 In July 2007 , British human rights lawyer David <unk> complained to the United Kingdom 's Commission for Racial <unk> ( CRE ) that he came across the book in the children 's section of Borders <unk> while shopping with his wife and two sons . The CRE called on <unk> to remove the comic , stating that it contained " hideous racial prejudice " by depicting Congolese who " look like monkeys and talk like <unk> . " Responding that it was committed to letting its " customers make the choice " , Borders moved the book to an area reserved for adult graphic novels . UK <unk> <unk> 's followed suit . Another British <unk> , <unk> , said that the book was sold on its website , but with a label that recommended it for readers aged 16 and over . The CRE 's attempt to ban the book was criticised by Conservative Party politician Ann <unk> , who remarked that the organisation had more important things to do than regulate the availability of historical children 's books . The media controversy increased interest in the book , and Borders reported that its sales of Tintin in the Congo had been boosted 4 @,@ 000 % , while it also rose to eighth on the Amazon.com bestseller list . Publisher Egmont UK also responded to racism concerns by placing a protective band around the book with a warning about its content and writing an introduction describing its historical context . 
