MADRID – According to critics, the Spanish postal company Correos has missed the mark. The idea seemed so good: The Spanish company wanted to launch a campaign against discrimination and therefore created stamps in different skin colours. Yet this went completely wrong.
The prices of the stamps went completely wrong for many people, the Spanish news site El Periódico wrote on Friday. Correos decided to make the white stamp more than twice as expensive than the dark stamp. The white stamp has a price of €1.60 and the black stamp costs €0.70.
Equality Stamps in Memory of George Floyd’s Murder
Correos decided to launch the campaign called Equality Stamps due to the fact that on May 25, 2021, it was exactly one year ago that the American George Floyd died in the United States as a result of police crackdown. With support from SOS Racismo, Correos launched this controversial stamp campaign.
On May 25, Correos wrote on Twitter to launch the stamp series: “As part of #EuropeanDiversityMonth, and to coincide with the one year anniversary of the murder of #GeorgeFloyd, we are launching #EqualityStamps: A series of stamps that wants to shed light on racial inequality and promote diversity, inclusion and equal rights. ”
Stamps Reflection of Inequality
In the video, a man talks about the fact that Correos has deliberately chosen to make dark stamps worth less than the white ones. So more dark than white stamps will have to be used to send the same package. Every letter and package thus becomes a reflection of the inequality created by racism. ”
Critics loose on social media after anti-discrimination campaign
Although Correos consciously chose this message, critics took to social media shortly after the launch of Equality Stamps. “Accidentally racist” and “The intention was good” read various messages on Twitter and Instagram. The undoubtedly well-intentioned anti-discrimination campaign of Correos ultimately came across as racist to many. According to several critics, these kinds of campaigns are still too often made by white people.
On Twitter, the postal company itself responds by stating that the campaign is intended to raise awareness for the unfair and painful reality that the company believes should not exist.
