One very classy response to racism

[Flea]

Some of you may have heard about an anti-asian rant some bimbo from UCLA posted on her vlog a couple weeks ago. She quickly took it down, but not before it went viral. It's garnered hundreds of responses from all over the world, publicly embarrassed UCLA, and may potentially get her expelled. She made a public apology but no one seems to be impressed with that - police are also investigating hundreds of threats made to her as well, including some death threats. I for one have zero sympathy.

Among the hundreds of responses I came across this one. I think it's perfect - it's damn funny, but the humor is gentle and (well, 90% anyway) dignified. It even shows some compassion. I have a lot of respect for this guy - I think that if we could all respond to bigotry this way the world would be a less violent place. Bravo, Jimmy.

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I don't know if he has aspirations in the music industry, but he should. :bangahead:

 

[granfire]

Catchy!

 

[Flea]

Here's another unrelated gem. I proudly submit this as evidence that sarcasm is not only a valid form of discourse, but an artistic medium as well:

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[Ken Morgan]

I would still argue that for the most part the vast majority of the people in Canada and the US are fine, but you have say 10% who simply hate, doesn't matter if its gays, ethnic groups, women, the left, the right. jews, muslims, those who have more money or greater education. they are simply hateful people and take their nonsense out on whoever is available.
Nice video's Flea, thank you.

 

[crushing]

Catchy!

Yes it is, but don't sing along too loudly. Someone overhearing may misunderstand.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

I would still argue that for the most part the vast majority of the people in Canada and the US are fine, but you have say 10% who simply hate, doesn't matter if its gays, ethnic groups, women, the left, the right. jews, muslims, those who have more money or greater education. they are simply hateful people and take their nonsense out on whoever is available.

I would add only to your statement some people don't 'simply' hate. Not many people hate because they are evil and simply want to hate. Most people have what they consider to be a good reason to hate. And sometimes they don't think their hatred is hatred, even if it looks that way to others. I'm not sure that hate is ever simple.

In my experience, hatred is often fear-based. The problem is that the logic which ties the often-legitimate fear and the hate-based solution together is not good logic.

It is easier to hate a group of people for something bad which has been done to you than to consider that there are complex reasons why everything happens, and that people are motivated for all kinds of reasons that have nothing to do with their skin color or religion, etc.

It is easier to propose solutions when fear drives us. If group X is the problem, then eliminating group X is the solution. The problem of course is that group X is seldom, if ever, the problem. And you can substitute any value for X that you like. Jews, blacks, Irish, Catholics, asians, Muslims, you name it.

Hatred begins with a problem, usually a real one. It moves from the problem to the fear that the problem will become worse or destroy us, which is sometimes reasonable, and sometimes not reasonable. And then it moves to the solution phase, which transforms fear to hatred and hatred to action.

 

[granfire]

Yes it is, but don't sing along too loudly. Someone overhearing may misunderstand.

nah, they'll pay me to shut up, cos - I can't sing!

( I want the sheet music for that, and I wonder how viral it has gone so far...)

 

[girlbug2]

Great song--I'd buy it!

 

[Sukerkin]

I guess my Imperialist English roots are showing here as I don't actually see any racism (TM) per se in the orignal vlog. That doesn't mean that none was intended just that I don't see it.

What I see is a complaint (with a smidgen of racial stereotyping) about simple bad manners that are brought about by a lack of appreciation for cultural norms.

But of course, the 'ranter' is not a 'minority' so she is automatically wrong and fair game for all kind of counter-attacks and ridicule.

Silly me.

Of course, I have ranted the same thing about all kinds of people that happen to be under 20 and bereft of the kind of social 'conditioning' that I was brought up to show ... I think it's called 'consideration' tho' I am probably making that up to cover for a rampant '-ism' of some kind (possibly "agism"?).

 

[Empty Hands]

What I see is a complaint (with a smidgen of racial stereotyping) about simple bad manners that are brought about by a lack of appreciation for cultural norms.

Most Asian cultures have far more strict social norms and manners than we do. I've been in the very library she was complaining about many times; the Asians are no worse than anyone else and better than most. Of course, people that look like her and have bad manners don't cause her to think of that person as the representative of an entire group, they are just a single jerk. Meanwhile, any Asian that acts badly means to her that something is wrong with the entire group. That's racism, albeit not of the burning cross kind. That, and she felt the need to mock in a stupid way someone else's language, which is not even relevant to her complaint, and makes her look again like a racist.

 

[Sukerkin]

Ahh, I see. So it's not uncommon for all Americans (or non-indiginous visa holders) to display such bad manners in a library?

Oh and to confess, I too must be a racist with my parodies of Scottish and Welsh accents that I have performed over the years - tho' a friend of mine at university defeated my mimicry with his Welsh Pakistani accent ... impossible, despite my having a Welsh girlfriend and a certain command of the language at the time!

 

[granfire]

Most Asian cultures have far more strict social norms and manners than we do. I've been in the very library she was complaining about many times; the Asians are no worse than anyone else and better than most. Of course, people that look like her and have bad manners don't cause her to think of that person as the representative of an entire group, they are just a single jerk. Meanwhile, any Asian that acts badly means to her that something is wrong with the entire group. That's racism, albeit not of the burning cross kind. That, and she felt the need to mock in a stupid way someone else's language, which is not even relevant to her complaint, and makes her look again like a racist.

she looks like a fool (had a different word in mind, but it might get me TOS'd not sure tho)

 

[Empty Hands]

Ahh, I see. So it's not uncommon for all Americans (or non-indiginous visa holders) to display such bad manners in a library?

Actually it is uncommon, including in the library that she is speaking of on the UCLA campus. Of course, that library is so enormous that it's basically impossible for it to be silent, but it is pretty quiet.

Oh and to confess, I too must be a racist with my parodies of Scottish and Welsh accents that I have performed over the years - tho' a friend of mine at university defeated my mimicry with his Welsh Pakistani accent ... impossible, despite my having a Welsh girlfriend and a certain command of the language at the time!

Except her parody sounds nothing like any Asian language I've ever heard. It is funny that Americans go with the "ching chong" routine when trying to sound Chinese, when both Mandarin and Cantonese are comprised mostly of soft, flowing vowel sounds. It's obvious from the routine that they haven't been around any actual speakers.

Also, again, the language spoken has nothing to do with her complaint. Unless she would like to claim that speaking loudly on your phone in English is fine, but not in Cantonese. I don't think even this twit would be that stupid.

 

[Flea]

If she wanted to criticize people talking on their cell phones in the library she could have done so very easily without targeting a particular demographic. She went way out of her way to be specific, and the insulting ching-chong crap really drives it home as racism. Personally I don't see any other way to interpret it. That, and she also went out of her way to kick people in the teeth with the "if you're going to get bad news from home about the tsunami, go outside so when you freak out it won't disturb the rest of us who are studying." Yep, racism.