Wake Up, People
Dear Asianweek: Being of Asian descent, I am very disheartened by the backlash caused by the U.S. spy plane incident. Asians in America do not receive their due respect. Despite our rich contributions to the so called “melting pot,” we are still victims of racial jokes. I thought we would have learned our lesson from the disgraceful way this country treated Japanese Americans during World War II.
Asian Americans are still not respected in this day and age, and are slow to be promoted in workplaces. We need to wake up and take more action, through protest against the likes of 101.3 FM’s Don Bleu, [who allegedly taunted a caller who could not speak English]. He should be more sensitive because of the Bay Area’s diversity.
If Asian Americans continue to be passive, the train will roll right over us.
Bennetti Calube
via e-mail
Another Side to the Story
Dear Editor: I read “The U.S. ‘Regrets’” (April 12). I agree with Alicia Wong’s comments that any anti-Asian rhetoric by President Bush or any “yellow peril rhetoric” in the media could “incite anti-Asian American violence.” I think that the same could be said regarding anti-Chinese rhetoric concerning human rights and religious freedom in China.
Patricia Wong Hall
via e-mail
Enough is Enough
Dear Editor: I refer to last week’s issue of AsianWeek, to the piece called “Newsrooms Must Walk the ‘Diversity’ Walk,” (April 19), authored by young journalist Amy Leang. Leang wrote about her horrific experience at the American Society of Newspaper Editors (ASNE) convention in Washington, D.C. During the opening reception, an actor from a comedy troupe imitated a Chinese official — complete with a black wig, thick glasses and heavy accent.
This kind of stereotypical putdown and ethno-racist caricaturing must stop.
The ignorance in America’s newsrooms about China and the Chinese is appalling. It is unacceptable that readers of the mainstream press are being misled with jingoism, bellicosity, hectoring, without any real understanding about the history or the peoples of China. We don’t all look and sound alike.
Edward Liu
via e-mail
Apology Needed
Editor’s Note: The following letter was sent to the American Society of Newspaper Editors in response to their national convention, during which a skit was performed mocking a Chinese official in the wake of the U.S. China spy plane standoff.
Dear Editor: I write to express my extreme disappointment at the failure of American Society of Newspaper Editors (ASNE) to publicly denounce the Capitol Steps performance at ASNE’s opening reception of its convention in Washington, D.C., on April 3. It has been widely reported that Capitol Steps performed a skit depicting a white man dressed in a black wig and thick glasses impersonating a Chinese official saying “Ching, ching, chong, chong,” to which several members of ASNE were amused.
While ASNE may not be responsible for the production of this skit, the manner in which several ASNE members responded to and embraced the skit with laughter is disturbing, especially by editors whose profession demands an accurate portrayal of issues and people. This is not an issue about First Amendment rights, but of sensitivity. The skit was not a commentary on China’s policies, but a mockery of stereotypical physical features of Chinese people and their language. Without an official rebuke of the skit by ASNE, it sends the wrong message about ASNE and its purported values, especially at a time when ASNE is supposedly seeking solutions to diversify newsrooms. A welcoming environment in the newsroom for Asian American reporters is not fostered by unchecked “mocking” and use of harmful stereotypical images of persons of Asian descent at ASNE’s own convention.
Newspaper editors hold leadership positions in directing and controlling coverage of underrepresented groups. Indeed, the historical legacy of Asians and Asian Americans wrongly depicted in the media is well documented. Unfair stereotypical images of Asians abroad have fueled anti-immigrant and anti-Asian sentiment, leading to violence, discriminatory legislation, and discriminatory treatment toward Asian Americans at home.
The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights has been vigilant in denouncing anti-Asian bashing as a fallout of the campaign finance scandal, the Wen Ho Lee incident, and anti-immigrant measures. Taunting, such as “ching, ching, chong, chong,” is often the catalyst leading to more violent forms of anti-Asian hatred well documented in the National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium’s Annual Audit of Incidents of Anti-Asian Violence.
Capitol Steps has issued an apology. I urge ASNE, which sponsored the Capitol Steps performance, to similarly recognize that the depiction was offensive and derogatory. This would be a positive and consistent step in its stated efforts toward inclusiveness and respect for diversity. I would further encourage the organization to meet with other national and local Asian American community groups who have expressed similar sentiments, to understand more fully the perspectives of those impacted by this incident.
Yvonne Y. Lee
U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
via e-mail
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