Municipal Campaign Image Sparks Backlash

A municipal awareness campaign in Gatineau has removed one of its posters following criticism that the imagery reinforced harmful stereotypes about Black individuals. The controversial visual depicted a Black woman wearing a reptilian mask appearing to threaten a white male city employee.

Community Members Raise Alarm

The issue came to light when Papa Ladjiké Diouf, a mental health professional, encountered the poster at a local library with his child. “My son immediately pointed out how disturbing the imagery was,” Diouf recounted. “This perpetuates dangerous tropes that portray Black women as inherently aggressive and Black people as violent.”

Community advocates echoed these concerns, noting the poster featured the only Black individual in the campaign series – consistently cast as the aggressor, while all depicted municipal workers were white. Advocacy group representatives César Ndema-Moussa and Charles Makaza confirmed similar critiques regarding racial representation.

City Officials Respond

Municipal authorities launched the campaign in September through their transit agency, aiming to address increasing reports of uncivil behavior toward city staff. Officials stated in a release that the poster carried no intentional discriminatory message but acknowledged its potential for harmful interpretation.

“While we never meant to convey exclusionary messaging, we recognize this image could contradict our commitment to inclusion,” the statement read. “In the interest of consistency and preventing negative perceptions, we’ve opted for immediate removal.”

The city has since removed all physical and digital instances of the controversial poster from circulation.