'It's bizarre, actually, to consider what the editors, writers, and photographers had to consciously not see.' 'National Geographic's story barely mentions any problems,' Mason told Goldberg, pointing out that many of the black South Africans who are included in the piece are servants or workers. For example, he noted that a story about South Africa in the early 1960s failed to mention the Sharpeville massacre, when police killed 69 black people who were protesting the country's discriminatory system of internal passports. John Edwin Mason, who teaches African history at the University of Virginia, highlighted some of the most egregious examples and omissions as part of the review. National Geographic staff didn't examine their magazine's history alone they asked an expert for help.
As a black woman who has recently written about black girls for Nat Geo, and who has misgivings about its past, I appreciate this and the effort of - Alexis Okeowo March 12, 2018
