The views and opinions expressed on this site and blog posts (excluding comments on blog posts left by others) are entirely my own and do not represent those of any employer or organization with whom I am currently or previously have been associated.
Academic Version: Applying my personal experiences and academic research as a professor of Sociology and Asian American Studies to provide a more complete understanding of political, economic, and cultural issues and current events related to American race relations, and Asia/Asian America in particular.
Plain English: Trying to put my Ph.D. to good use.
California isn’t the only state where strange things are going on politically. As this article on CNN.com points out, Indian American Republican candidate for Governor Bobby Jindal is running against a female Democratic challenger to be the next Governor of Louisiana.
If elected, Jindal would only be the second mainland Asian American Governor, after Gary Locke of Washington. The fact that a non-White and especially an Asian American like Jindal is one step away from the Governor’s seat surprises a lot of people. Considering that Louisiana is known to be a very White, conservative state (where ex-Klan leader David Duke almost became Senator and Governor back in the 1990s), many people are shocked that Louisiana voters seem to think so highly of Jindal, an American of Indian descent.
In fact, the fact that Jindal is a conservative Republican and a recent convert to Catholicism, appeals to many Louisiana voters. Not to mention he was a former Rhodes Scholar and Louisiana’s Secretary of State. I’m not sure to what extent Jindal identifies himself as “Asian American” or to what extent other Asian Americans (most of whom are liberal Democrats, like myself) embrace him as a role model and leader of the community. I suppose that in the end, and presuming he gets elected, we’ll just have to see what kinds of policies he favors and how these policies affect most Asian Americans.
Latest update: On November 15, 2003, Democratic candidate Kathleen Blanco defeated Jindal to become the new Governor of Louisiana. It appeared to be somewhat of a come-from-behind win for Blanco, since the last polls showed Jindal with a lead of several percentage points. The Associated Press has a very interesting article that speculates on whether race was a factor in Jindal’s defeat. Although Jindal lost this particular election, I’m sure we haven’t heard the last from him — don’t be surprised to see him run for Senator of Louisiana in the future.
As news articles like this from CBS News describe, Yee was employed as a Chaplain for the U.S. military and was assigned to counsel Muslim prisoners at the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
After a recent flight back to the U.S., he was detained and arrested for allegedly passing classified information onto the terrorist suspects. Federal prosecutors are conducting an investigation to see if they can levy more specific espionage charges against him.
I can’t say at this point whether Yee is guilty or innocent but what disturbs me is the confluence of several factors. First, the Justice Department (led by Attorney General John Ashcroft) seems bent on enacting “anti-terrorist” legislation that would basically trample many basic civil rights that the Constitution supposedly guarantees us as Americans.
Second, on the heels of the Katrina Leung arrest and the infamous Wen Ho Lee episode, espionage allegations have been brought against another Asian American. It just seems like if you’re Asian (and Muslim), you’re seen in a much more suspicious light than other groups. We’ll have to see how this case plays out, but something about it already smells rotten to me.
First update: Yee was recently released from “pre-trial confinement” (a.k.a. prison) but is now charged with committing adultery and storing pornography on a government computer. This case isn’t through yet, but it sounds like the government could not find any evidence to substantiate its charges of espionage against Yee so in order to save face, they’ve brought these new charges against him. Like I said, smells pretty rotten to me.
Latest update: On March 19, 2004, the Army formally dropped all charges against Yee. Although they claimed it was because revealing evidence against Yee would have put national security at risk, it was pretty clear that the charges were pretty weak all along. Once again we witness an episode where, just like Wen Ho Lee, an Asian American is accused of espionage, denied bail and unfairly imprisoned, and in the end, the charges of espionage are never substantiated and all other charges are dropped. Incredible.
Earlier this summer, Fox premiered the show Banzai!, which they described as an irreverent parody of Japanese game shows. Originally a British series, Banzai! was meant to appeal to a young audience, including Asian Americans. The problem was, many Asian Americans didn’t find it funny at all. Rather, they saw it as another media perpetuation of the stereotype of Asians as nerds, geeks, and even perverts.
In addition to protesting straight to Fox, groups like Media Action Network for Asian Americans started putting pressure on advertisers who ran commercials during Banzai!, urging them to pull their advertising from the show, unless they wanted to face the possibility of being boycotted by the Asian American community. A couple of weeks ago, Fox cancelled Banzai!, although they did not mention exactly why they decided to do so.
I personally never watched an entire Banzai! show in its entirety but I saw enough to conclude that this was pretty weak humor at best and at worst, a serious example of racial insensitivity or even blatant prejudice toward Asian Americans. However, what really encouraged me about this whole Banzai! incident was that it again showed that when united around a single cause, Asian Americans can make a difference. If we all speak loud enough and as one voice, people are bound to hear us and if we keep it up, they will not be able to ignore us.
Salon.com reports that a group of Hispanic and Asian plaintiffs have filed a lawsuit against Abercrombie & Fitch, alleging that the company, in its efforts to “cultivate an overwhelmingly white sales force,”
systematically discriminates against Hispanic and Asian employees and applicants. You might remember that last year A&F got into trouble with the Asian American community after marketing t-shirts that many Asians found offensive. This also follows a recent suit where A&F was found to have forced its employees to buy and wear its clothes while on the job.
A&F insensitive to racial/ethnic minorities? No!!! Ignorant of diversity issues? Unheard of!!! Discriminating against Hispanics and Asians? That’s so unlike them!!! Yeah right. More like, “I told you so!” Regardless of the final outcome of the lawsuit, the fact that these allegations have been made and now formally publicized for official legal action only confirms what many Asian Americans have suspected all along — that A&F has no clue about what it means to live in a modern multicultural society. I hope the plaintiffs take A&F for all they’re worth.
As a recent article by the Associated Press details, many Arab Americans, Muslims, and Sikhs in the U.S. fear that they will be the targets of another wave of hate crimes and racism, similar to what many of them experienced after the September 11 terrorist attacks.
Recent actions by the Immigration and Naturalization Service directed against the Arab American community may have also contributed to the potentially hostile climate. Specifically, the INS has detained and deported many Arab Americans only because their immigration documents were not completed, which was caused by backlogs in the INS system. The Asian American Legal Defence and Education Fund has set up a toll-free telephone number to report incidents of hate violence, detention, racial profiling, police misconduct, and other acts of discrimination at 1-800-966-5946.
Without getting into a discussion into whether war with Iraq is justified or not, I would like to urge everyone to be mindful that Americans come in many colors and from many backgrounds. Let us remember the lessons of the Japanese imprisonment during World War II and not scapegoat an entire community for the actions of a few who are only remotely associated with them. I hope that we also remember that expressing dissent against the war is not unpatriotic — in fact, it’s part of our rights and freedoms as Americans. Let’s also keep in mind that despite differences in opinion, both sides of the war debate almost universally support our troops who are risking their lives to protect American ideals and freedoms. I think we can all agree that we want our men and women to come home as quickly as possible and with as few causalities as possible.
Update: Even though it looks like the war is over and that the U.S. has basically accomplished most, if not all, of its goals, that does not necessarily mean that the danger of hate crimes against Arab Americans, Muslims, and Sikhs has significantly lessened. As an American, I am glad that the war did not result in massive, catastrophic causalities on both sides, and that the Iraqi people are now rid of an evil tyrant. At the same time, like many other Americans, I still think the invasion sets a bad international precedent (especially in light of the fact that contrary to the U.S.’s expectations, very few, if any, weapons of mass destruction including biological and chemical weapons have been found in Iraq) and hope that it does not lead to more hatred, resentment, and terrorist attacks on the U.S.
During a radio call-in program, Rep. Coble (Republican from NC) said that President Franklin D. Roosevelt was right to send Japanese Americans to internment camps during World War II because “some [Japanese Americans] probably were intent on doing harm to us,” according to the Associated Press. “Just as some of these Arab Americans are probably intent on doing harm to us.” He also noted that the internment was for the Japanese Americans’ own safety.
Apparently Rep. Coble completely forgot about the bipartisan Congresional commission that issued the “Personal Justice Denied” report in 1988 which declared that the internment was never militarily necessary and that instead, occurred as a result of “race prejudice, war hysteria, and a failure of political leadership.” Also, Coble apparently doesn’t understand that if the internment was indeed for their own protection, Japanese Americans were never given a choice on whether or not they wanted the “protection.” Instead, their rights as U.S. citizens were unilaterally revoked and they were incarcerated only because they were of Japanese ancestry.
Also, if Japanese Americans were being “protected,” why was it that military guards at each prison camp had their machine guns and bayonets pointed inside, toward the Japanese American prisoners with orders to shoot any Japanese suspected of trying to “escape,” instead of outside at potential attackers? The scary thing is that Rep. Coble is also the Chair of the house Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security. He has the power to direct public policy and impose his views on all of us.
Asian-Nation condemns Rep. Coble’s remarks as ignorant, insensitive, incongruent with historical facts, and far out of step with the U.S. Congress and the American people. He is unfit to serve as the chairman of a Congressional subcommittee that is charged with weighing the most consequential civil liberties issues of our time.
Asian-Nation therefore supports efforts organized and supported by the Japanese American Citizen’s League, the 80-20 Initiative, the Arab American Institute, the National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, several of his colleagues in Congress, and others who call for his immediate removal from the House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.
Show your support by signing Petition#1 and Petition #2 to demand Coble’s resignation as Chair.
Update: On Feb. 10, Representative Coble issued this statement:
“In recent days, there has been considerable media attention and interest surrounding comments I made on a morning radio call-in show regarding the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II and the implications of this policy in today’s society. I regret that many Japanese and Arab Americans found my choice of words offensive because that was certainly not my intent.
The point that I was trying to make during the radio show was that given the circumstances in which President Roosevelt found himself at the time and the information that was available to him, he made a decision which he felt was in the best interest of national security. Today we can certainly look back and see the damage that was caused because of this decision. We all know that was in fact the wrong decision and an action that should never be repeated.
It is my sincere hope that this situation will be a reminder to us all that while we have made great strides to improve diversity, acceptance, and understanding since 1941, there is much work left to be done.”
Is this a genuine and sincere “apology?” You be the judge. At the least, thanks to the onslaught of criticism from Asian Americans, Arab Americans, and others who were outraged by his comments, Rep. Coble seems to have realized how stupid his comments were. Should he continue to be Chair of the House subcommittee overseeing homeland security?
I still say no and still support calls to have him resign. My reason: politicians need to understand that the rights of loyal, hardworking, and patriotic Americans, who happen to be non-White, must be respected. If not, we as a united community will demonstrate just what kind of power we have to demand justice.
In the February 2003 issue of Maxim, there is an article, alleged to be “humorous,” that has enraged many Asian Americans. As described by the Southern Poverty Law Center,
“The article, attempting to show how fighting can bring fitness, calls for ‘a healthy regimen of violent assaults’ and urges readers to ‘teach those pacifists a lesson about aggression.’ The three-page article includes 21 different scenes of the man hitting, kicking, choking and throwing Gandhi” (see picture on the right).
I’m so glad to see that pure stupidity and ignorance are alive and well. Not only does Maxim have the gall to depict a (White) man beating up on one of the most revered leaders in history but in doing so, it explicitly encourages its readers to commit hate crimes against not only Asian Indians, but also anyone who may remotely look like a Muslim terrorist, and by implication, all Asian Americans as well.
Of course, Maxim will claim that it was all intended as a joke and that they never meant to offend anyone, blah blah blah, the usual half-ass retort. I’m sure they’ll keep repeating this line after one of their half-witted Neanderthal readers, fueled by a six-pack or two, goes out and beats up on an Asian too.
This kind of stupidity in the name of “humor” is getting really old. It’s so sad to see that even in this so-called enlightened and multicultural society how many people just simply don’t get it.
On January 22, 2003 members of two Asian American fraternities from San Jose State University and U.C. Santa Cruz — Pi Alpha Phi and Lambda Phi Epsilon — settled an earlier dispute at a pool hall with a bloody brawl in a suburban park near SJSU. In the end, four students were stabbed and one died on his 23rd birthday. Both frats have subsequently been banned from SJSU as a result.
Nice going, guys. Real nice. Model minority? More like model gang members. Here we have two groups of Asian Americans who were supposed to be in an organization that promotes cultural diversity, inter-Asian unity, and community service. Instead, these boneheads are killing each other and make not only themselves look like complete morons but also make many of us embarassed to be identified with them as Asian Americans. As the details unfold, it appears that both sides initially agreed not to bring any weapons but also decided to recruit some “friends” who weren’t in their frats to back them up. Apparently, one those “friends” on the Pi Alpha side was the one who stabbed Alam Kim to death.
Although it appears that none of the frat members on either side actually did the killing, this is an incredible act of stupidity nonetheless. Is there someone or something to blame here? The Greek system for making these Asian Americans feel like they have to defend the “honor” of their frat and of their “brothers” at all costs, including gang violence and murder, even if their antagonists are other Asian Americans? A misplaced feeling that rather than the prejudice and discrimination out there in the larger society are their biggest threats, they scapegoat their most immediate rivals as the ones to blame for their problems? An unconscious inferiority complex in which young Asian American men think they need to be violent to show that they’re just as masculine as Whites, Blacks, or Latinos? Youthful bravado, reinforced by a mob mentality? Simple insanity on the part of each person who took part in this fiasco? My guess is, all of the above.
As many of us within the Asian American community and communities of color in general have suspected all along, President Bush has publicly stated his opposition to the University of Michigan’s affirmative action program, which is currently being reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court. In this program, UMichigan assigns certain points to different criteria that if they add up to 100 points, assures the applicant of admission. For example, getting a perfect SAT score is worth 20 points, having a 4.0 GPA is worth 60 points, and in this case, being an underrepresented minority group member (Black or Hispanic/Latino) earns the applicant 20 points.
As I’ve stated already, I wholeheartedly support affirmative action. I feel that it provides access to underrepresented group members who otherwise may not have access to certain opportunities, because of the institutional and historical mechanism of racism and discrimination. I’m not going to get into a long discussion about the merits of affirmative action here, but I will say that I think this is just the beginning of the Bush administration’s plan to demolish affirmative action and most civil rights legislation that are currently on the books.
As Bush and his ‘enforcer’ John Ashcroft have already demonstrated with their attack on individual liberties, privacy, and due process under the law, this administration priorities are to serve conservative and corporate interests, plain and simple. The political and social interests of most racial/ethnic minorities will always lose in this battle, as long as Bush remains in power.
AsianWeek Magazine recently released a commentary on Shaquille O’Neal’s comments about Yao Ming (the Houston Rockets’ rookie center from China), which many have called hostile and racist.
In these comments, Shaq frequently said things like, “Tell Yao Ming, ‘ching-chong-yang-wah-ah-soh”‘ and also included several mock “kung fu” moves. CNNSI has Shaq’s response to these criticisms in which, not surprisingly, Shaq claims that he was just trying to be funny, didn’t intend to offend anyone, and that Asian Americans are overreacting because we don’t have a sense of humor. CBS News has an article on how many Asian Americans feel about his ‘apology.’
He may not have been trying to offend us but it doesn’t excuse the fact that many Asian Americans found his comments to be very insensitive and hurtful. I think that it’s very sad that such a public figure who is adored by so many Asian American fans can be so ignorant about how his taunts and slurs were going to be interpreted. Asian Americans are trying to work more closely with Blacks and Hispanics/Latinos and to repair the misunderstandings and hostilities that afflicted our communities in past years. At a time when we as communities of color can achieve common goals, especially as the Bush administration is so set to work against us, something like this unfortunately shows just how far we still have to go to respect and understand each other.
North Korea is threatening half the world with its nuclear weapons. First, North Korea admits that it has been working on building nuclear weapons, then it kicks out all U.N. inspectors, and then it says that it will no longer abide by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation treaty that it signed earlier, in which it pledged not to sell any or help other countries develop nuclear weapons. All the while, its leaders spit out hostile rhetoric toward the U.S. and threaten, in no uncertain terms, to unleash its entire cache of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons against the U.S., South Korea, and even Japan, if provoked.
This is a complicated issue for sure. Cynics point out that North Korea is merely using the U.S.’s preoccupation with Iraq to blackmail the U.S. into giving it more energy and food aid. Similarly, many in the Bush administration enjoy pointing out Kim’s antagonistic rhetoric as further examples of just how deranged he is. Others point out that the U.S.’s policies against North Korea since the end of the Korean War has left Kim Jong Il little choice but to take a hostile and aggressive stance toward the west in order to ensure North Korea’s survival.
As a recent episode of ABC News Nightline so acutely pointed out, the U.S., South Korea, and Japan all know that North Korea is capable of such madness. If provoked, North Korea will certainly retaliate like there’s no tomorrow by unleashing its entire chemical, biological, and nuclear arsenal and turning cities like Seoul, Tokyo, and perhaps even Honolulu into seas of fire, poison, and death. Deaths could easily top one million and may even approach five million. It will be nothing less than a human catastrophe of epic proportions.
If this scenario becomes reality, North Korea knows that eventually it will lose and that the U.S. and its allies will bomb them into oblivion, then invade, and ultimately take over the country. That’s exactly why North Korea is willing to take out as many people as possible before that happens. I don’t know what’s the best way to defuse this situation and to get both sides to back down, but I think it’s clear that the international community needs to play a strong role in mediating this potential crisis and that we should not leave it up to the oppressive and totalitarian regimes on either side — Kim Jong Il or George W. Bush.
Missed Opportunity: How “Blue Crush” Continues the Tradition of Cultural Theft, by Jeff Park.
What comes as no surprise is that “Blue Crush” is a surfing movie that is based in Hawaii, has a female blonde, blue-eyed lead, her love interest is a White quarterback, and the villains are island boys, here a hodge podge of “other” ethnicities – just not White. And of course the White star is a leading exponent of surfing as far as this movie goes. It’s no surprise, and nothing new. The hit film “The Fast and the Furious” also stole an Asian cultural phenomenon – import racing – dropped in White leads into the story, and made up an Asian gang as the villains.
What should not go unmentioned here is that “Blue Crush” was produced by Brian Grazer, who also did the Oscar winning “A Beautiful Mind.” In that movie, he also showed a knack for cultural ignorance by casting Jennifer Connelly as John Nash’s wife, a native Salvadoran. Connelly’s star would later shine as she picked up the “Best Supporting Actress” Oscar, a major slap in the face to the many hundreds if not thousands of struggling and able Latina actresses. Talk about insult as well as a missed opportunity.
So an insult and missed opportunity it is again with “Blue Crush.” In a state that is overwhelmingly populated with Asian/Pacific Islanders, we see instead an Asian woman who is the nagging boss of the lead and her two friends (one of whom is a mixed Asian/White, the other Latina), Asians as bell hops, Pacific islanders dancing the hula at the obligatory and trite luau scene, and, of course, as the aforementioned villains.
Think about it: If White producers made a movie about hip-hop and denuded it of Blacks, then installed Whites as leading lights of hip hop, and relegated Blacks to inconsequential side roles, what do you think would happen? Chances are that the public would get an earful from any number of spokespeople on behalf of Blacks.
With the way the political climate is, White producers wouldn’t dare displace and “dis” Blacks. However, White producers such as Brian Grazer evidently feel okay with culturally looting Asian Pacifics and installing White leads as the heroes/heroines while demonizing Asians. Worse, they may even play the part of the “good White liberal” by maintaining their “commitment to diversity” by dint of just having made the movie at all. If, like me, you scratch your head at that kind of rhetoric, just file it under “that sounds like it makes sense, but it doesn’t.” It’s next to the “Miss Saigon” file.
But there are plenty of other fingers left for pointing. For instance, Asians feed right into this mess with their complacency and lack of a strong voice that says “You wouldn’t do this to Blacks, so why are you discriminating here against Asian Pacifics???” Until Asian Pacifics learn to stand up and demand to be heard, they can’t expect things to change, because the mirror of reflection and shame isn’t being held up. They aren’t holding it up. So, the one-two punch: “The Fast and the Furious,” and now “Blue Crush.” As the saying goes, fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.
About Jeff Park
Jeff Park is the co-president of the Media Image Coalition (MIC), a program of the Los Angeles County Commission on Human Relations that advocates fair representations and hiring practices for all under-represented groups in mass media, particularly film and television.
