DUMB ACTS OF DISCRIMINATION
yes, the dragon has a gun
Poplicks is a little late to the party on this one considering that everyone from SFGate.com to Hyphen to Wired has already offered their two bits. Nonetheless, this story is hard to pass by:
A columnist for the weekly Asian American newspaper Asian Week published an editorial entitled, "Why I Hate Blacks." Here is the original, taken from the print version of the paper.
It is, without question, one of the most jaw-droppingly racist screeds I've ever read in any publication outside of White Supremacist literature. In fact, it is so hateful, yet so bereft of actual logic and reason that while it makes sense for people to be up in arms at Eng, one really has to question:
WTF was Asian Week's editors thinking running this?[1]
Maybe times are tough over there in terms of finding freelance columnists but Eng's previous posts included screeds against White and Asians (no doubt, "Why I Hate Latinos" was just waiting in the chamber). Nonetheless, it boggles the mind how any editor, at any publication of even minimal repute, could have let this run. It goes beyond free speech; this is hate speech and it's poorly written, unfathomably stupid hate speech at that.
Just how stupid?
Usually, on occasions like this - think Michael Richards or Tim Hardaway - people would say, "we should use this as an opportunity to build dialog." Such a course of action might make sense in times where one can see the possibility for actual communication and growth. However, when your argument basically says, "Blacks are weak because they didn't fight slavery" backed with, "The Japanese beat the Russians, ergo we must be superior"[2], it's clear you're dealing with someone with severe mental deficiencies. My two year old displays more rational thought and she's not even potty trained yet.
Of course, Eng isn't just any moron. He is, by self-description, "the youngest published science fiction novelist in America." No...he's "a genius." Nay..."a god." His blog on Amazon suggests someone who is quite possibly suffering from some kind of high-functioning autism (hence his lack of empathy and seeming disconnection from people around him) compounded with a delusional Messiah complex. (By the way, his sci-fi book on dragons sounds eerily like a real world version of this).
So yeah, I'm not sure what kind of "constructive dialog" can be taken from this. Eng doesn't need an intervention or a sit-down. He needs a ____down, preferably by a rainbow coalition of folks so that they may actually help earn the prejudicial feelings he has towards, well, everyone.
There can and should be many opportunities for Asian Americans and African Americans to engage in frank and honest conversations with each other. I just don't think Eng's rant should be that starting point unless people really need to "discuss" whether enslavement is really a sign of "weak-will." (I don't normally want to punch people in the face but the urge is palpable, you know?)
At least Asians and Blacks can likely agree on one thing: K.E. is a certifiably [pick your favorite pejorative].
In addition, I'd be very surprised if the editor at Asian Week doesn't lose his job over this and frankly, it'd be well-deserved.
Sadly, if you read some of the comments on that Hyphen post, there's actually a few people trying to defend the column. Looks like stupidity amongst the Asian community isn't limited to just meglomaniacal authors of bad fantasy novels.
[1] I actually used to be an Asian Week columnist, back in 1994. The newspaper was the first publication to give me a freelance gig. The newspaper has often times - and unfairly in my opinion - been derided simply because their owners, the Fangs, are an old school, S.F. power-broker family that tends to play their politics opportunistically depending on the ways the winds of power shift. However, the newspaper itself is decidedly LEFT LEANING and has been, in my opinion, a very good advocate of Asian American social issues and news over the years.
It's a shame if Eng is going to destroy the previous years of good work that's gone into the newspaper but then again, any publication that would have let this column slide will deserve whatever fate awaits it.
[2] The whole Russo-Japanese bit was especially confusing since a) Eng is Chinese and not Japanese. B) The Japanese were not slaves when they went to war with Russia. C) After smashing Russia, Japan subjugated China (I guess the Chinese must be "weak-willed" too). D) Japan lost WWII.
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