The African Foreign Press Association has criticized the use of photos of Black people in reports on the monkeypox outbreak in North America and the United Kingdom by media outlets. ‘ It can strike anyone, regardless of color or nationality, in any part of the world. As a result, we feel that this disease should not be associated with any particular race or skin color’, The Foreign Press Association of Africa (FPAA) issued a statement on Twitter on Saturday.
According to the FPAA, the usage of stock photographs of monkeypox sufferers with Black skin in headlines about the outbreak in Europe and North America is ‘disturbing’. Instead, the professional association asked outlets to show photographs of hospitals in Europe and the United States, or, if that wasn’t possible, electron microscope images of the virus. The statement continued, ‘We oppose the maintenance of this negative caricature that attributes calamity to the African race and advantage or immunity to other races.’
The FPAA described media outlets’ conduct as ‘extremely disrespectful,’ and encouraged editors to amend their image policies. It further requested that editors prohibit their staff from utilising photos of Africans, individuals of African ancestry, or anyone residing in Africa to report epidemics in the UK and North America. This month, instances of monkeypox have been reported in at least a dozen European and North American nations. According to BBC News, this is the first time the virus has been discovered in persons who have no clear connection to Western and Central Africa.
The monkeypox virus causes pus-filled boils that are painful and contagious for weeks. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), it can also result in fever, headaches, swellings, and tiredness. Monkeypox can be transferred by direct contact with an infected person or animal, as well as by touching clothing or bedding used by someone who has a rash.
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