04.29.02
04.29.02
Today marks the 10th anniversary of the Rodney King verdict and the Los Angeles riots, also know to many Korean Americans as "sa-i-gu" ("4-29"). This is how I remember the riots: I was in junior high, watching it all go down on TV. There were some angry guys on the street, beating the crap out of people driving by and burning down stores. And a lot of these stores were Korean-owned. I think for a moment I was just stunned to see Koreans on television, because in my mind, you never saw Koreans on TV (except on reruns of M.A.S.H.), let alone the lead story on national news. So what I saw were images of sobbing Korean women, hysterically lamenting the chaos around them, sputtering in broken English ("Why this happen??"). You also saw pictures of Korean men with shotguns on the rooftops of their stores, vigilantly guarding their property, commando style. It was an odd, scary sight, all of it. I remember sitting around, talking about it with friends in my social studies class. Jordi was like, "Yo, those Koreans are holdin' it down! Defending themselves with guns all that. There not letting anybody mess with them. Nice." Or something to that effect. I didn't know whether to say, "Hell yeah!" or let on how scared I really was about the situation. My teacher, Mrs. Howard, who I disliked immensely, overheard Jordi's comment and said flatly, "The Koreans are making the situation worse." At that very moment, in spite of my conflicted emotions about the uprising, I loyally sided with my South Central L.A. Korean brothers-in-arms, who at the moment were desperately under siege. Looking back, this decision was made mostly for the sake of opposition to Mrs. Howard. But now I'd like to go back and explain how I hated her for passing such quick judgment, tell her she didn't know jack squat about the situation (or much of anything else). The riots were about a lot more than we could possibly explain or judge. Anyway, that's my recollection of the L.A. riots... Knowing what I know now, it makes for a very different look back. New perspectives, and yet not a whole lot more answers.
04.28.02
Here's a picture from the Better Luck Tomorrow screening at Northwestern earlier this month:
Those are my sisters in front, standing with the cast of BLT: Sung Kang, Parry Shen, Roger Fan, Karin Anna Cheung and Jason Tobin. Very cool, guys.
04.27.02
I've been thinking more about the Rodney King verdict and the LA riots. The reason why the Latasha Harlins/Soon-Ja Doo case really bothers me is because it just tears me up. Even back then, I remember I'd see that surveillance footage, and it would be so obvious the lady committed a crime. She shot this girl, and it clearly wasn't self defense. The anger and shame I felt, knowing what kind of prejudiced attitudes existed within the Korean community, even in my own family, towards Blacks.
A lot of it reflected some sense of self-hatred I had. Why did Koreans have to be so...Korean? At the same time, I had equally conflicting emotions, being aware of the kind of struggle and hardship behind the status of the first generation Korean community in the United States --the patterns of immigration, sacrifice and assimilation that partially led to their community's economic circumstances in south central LA. It hit home closer that I would've preferred. While parents weren't operating a liquor store in the 'hood (we owned a video store in the suburbs), the heart behind my family's story is the same. Giving up prestigious educations, and setting up some kind of shop or business so that us kids could have a better life in America. It's all too familiar. I couldn't STAND the fact that anyone could or would take advantage of my parents, but I know it happened on occasion. I'd never condone Ms. Doo's actions, but in a very sad way I could sympathize.
Now, 10 years later, what bothers me most is the way the media covered it. The way the news wanted sooo bad to pit the Korean and Black communities against one another. The way they shamelessly replayed the Latasha Harlins shooting over and over again, and all the riot footage of Korean-owned stores burning to the ground. I'll never be sure how much of it was real, and how much the media so gleefully played it up... Either way, it still makes me sad.
04.25.02
I am a little tired of talking about the whole Abercrombie thing. Since when did people consider me the aficionado on the subject? Let us not talk about it, for a little bit. Instead, let me bring up something I've been really anticipating for the last few months... next week marks the 10th anniversary of the Rodney King verdict and Los Angeles riots. Last night I saw a special on MTV called "Back to the Hood," revisiting the events and circumstances behind that fateful, tragic day that started it all... The show was a little unbalanced, mostly framed from a black perspective. But for the most part, I'd call it fair. At first, I was a bit unnerved when they recalled Latasha Harlins, shot to death by Korean merchant Soon-Ja Doo. I know they revisited that particular incident in order to create a context for the civil unrest, but every time I see the surveillance video from that shooting, I just feel sick and torn up. The program looked as though it would truly be skewed, painting an ugly, ugly picture of Black-Korean relations, with South Central Korean storeowners in large part to blame for the conditions behind the riots. But when recounting the events of the actual riots, they did call on the perspective of a young Korean American man, Sonny Kang, who experienced the riots firsthand. I appreciated that. Oh yeah, and actor John Cho was strangely thrown in there and said like two sentences. What do you expect from MTV? Weird. Anyway, I am still sorting out the implications of the riots, ten years later. More on this over the next few days as we get closer to April 29.
04.24.02
Props to the San Francisco Giants, who pretty much feasted on the Cubs at Wrigley last night, 13-5. Shinjo hit his second homer of the season.
Yo, there are a lot of Asians in baseball. Before this whole A&F thing started, I heard about this site, swiftkicktogroin, but it kind of got lost in the shuffle. So I'm mentioning it now. Check out www.swiftkicktogroin.net - "Dedicated to the imminent vindication of Koreans in American baseball and the subsequent liberation of Asian masculinity from an oppressive collective American consciousness."
04.23.02
"The beauty of self-deprecatory humor is that it gives people permission to laugh. It makes the teller the butt of the joke, and invites us all to be in on it... But if a non-Asian makes references to Asians as caricatured slant-eyed laundry boys, then we have a problem. That's not self-deprecation. That's just denigration imposed by another. In the past, we'd recognize it as a form of cultural imperialism. That's what's at play here, especially if white, corporate A&F, as it claims, is really marketing to Asian Americans. This is its definition of the ethnic group. Hilarious, isn't it?" - Emil Guillermo
"Well, as long they poke fun at those oppressed groups, what's the big deal? The truth is, if it were really a free-for-all, A&F would have no problem selling shirts with African Americans in chain gangs or picking cotton and images of Jesus saying "Abercrombie & Fitch Christ Bashers." But it's not a free-for-all, and they know it." - Pati Poblete
More interesting perspectives on this Abercrombie thing in today's SF Gate:
Blueprint For a PR Disaster by Pati Poblete
Humoring Ethnic America: Abercrombie & Fitch Still Doesn't Get It by Emil Guillermo
04.23.02
Racist garbage: Preparing Asia For the World Cup. So what the hell is it?? Well first, a little background. Apparently, officials in Japan are concerned about the prospect of hosting thosands of notoriously unruly football fans at this year's World Cup soccer tournament. They are preparing for this 'hooligan threat'. I guess this freakin' video clip, complete with gong, is some kind of stupid joke in reaction to this. That's racist!
04.22.02
So in recent days I've received quite a bit of email... mostly supportive, mostly ranting about Abercrombie and all that. That's cool. However, since this site's inception last year, I've also received a fair share of hate mail. Suprisingly up until today, I didn't receive a single bit of dissenting mail over this whole Abercrombie thing. Today I got two. Actually, they're both pretty civil, and I appreciate that. They're also kind of funny... Here's one, from Iris or somebody,
You people really need to get over it. ok. If you dont like AF then just don't shop there. Its no loss to them or people who shop there. I mean you really need to get a life if you let little things like this bother you.
You're absolutely right. I don't like AF, so I won't shop there. But I really don't get the part about getting a life... I mean,
{ If you're writing an email to me [ about getting a life ( because of the little things like this that bother me ) ], then don't you need to get a life [ because you're letting the little things ( like the little things that bother me ) bother you ] ?}
But thanks for your feedback.
This second one, from 'Joe,' is also pretty good:
how is everyone so angry about the t shirts
Everyone is so angry about the t shirts because they are racist.
you are just too worried about others.... concentrate on yourself..... maybe you are too insecrue about yourself
You're right, maybe I am too worried about others... I should concentrate on myself. But then again, aren't you the one writing to me? Perhaps you are just too worried about others (thanks for your concern). The thing is, you should concentrate on yourself. 'Cause I was thinking maybe you are too insecrue about yourself.
racism is caused by people like you... you make the situation worse..... they really werent trying to hurt us asians.
I may not know everything, but I'm pretty sure racism isn't caused by people like me. Is it? That's a pretty bold claim. Who really causes racism anyway? If somehow your claims are true, then I am truly sorry. But if I make the situation worse, so be it. I'd rather stand up against something like this and "make the situation worse" than just let it happen. You do realize by saying that, you are acknowledging that this situation is indeed bad, and can get worse.
And maybe you're right, I'd agree with you: maybe they really weren't trying to hurt us asians. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt, if need be. But it's possible for racism, prejudice and ignorance to exist independent of malice. It's not always about good (or bad) intentions.
calm down dude
I'll try to calm down, dude. But lemme tell you you something: in times like these, that's really hard to do.
-joe
-minsoo
04.22.02
Happened to catch the end of The Weakest Link last night... I guess the contestants were all kids. It was down to the final two people, and one of the kids, Tessa, was Asian. She answered three straight questions correctly, while the other girl messed up three in a row. So Tess won, walking away with a fat chunk of cash. Props.
04.21.02
Oh yeah, I almost forgot. With all the crazy talk about racist tee shirts, I should really give a plug for Blacklava - "Clothing for a new state of mind." They've been around for a while, and they've got some pretty cool positive Asian American-themed shirts. Check it out.
04.21.02
Check out Chink - Asian Hype Wear. Yes, these are real tee shirts. Shocking, yes. But hang on, this is just my opinion, but I can't entirely condemn these shirts -- they do have a purpose. The designers are Asian, and they've appropriated the slur 'chink,' attempting to underminine its power. I know this is a pretty edgy, risky way of doing this. The meaning can be lost on a lot of folks, and people will have mixed feelings on this. Just thought I'd bring it up. Discuss.
So there was a big ol' A&F protest in Boston yesterday. For some GREAT coverage of how it all went down, check out: http://web.mit.edu/linus/www/afrally (Thanks Linus).
For all of you who just can't get enough of this Abercrombie madness, and you feel like you just haven't said all that you need to say, be sure to send a cheery message to Abercrombie & Fitch Senior Management:
Michael Jeffries, Chairman and CEO
mike_jeffries@abercrombie.com
Wesley McDonald, CFO, VP
wes_mcdonald@abercrombie.com
Seth Johnson, COO, Exec. VP, Director
seth_johnson@abercrombie.com
Raymond Attanasio, Sr. VP - Gen. Merchandise Mang.
ray_attanasio@abercrombie.com
Diane Chang, Sr. VP - Sourcing
diane_chang@abercrombie.com
Leslee O'Neill, Senior Vice President-Planning & Allocation
leslee_oneill@abercrombie.com
Now tell 'em what's on your mind.
04.21.02
This Abercrombie thing even made it on to the Weekend Update on Saturday Night Live... Something to the effect of: "Asian Americans staged a protest about the Abercrombie shirts blah blah blah.... the protest was orderly and calm until they got to the parking lot and got in their cars to go home."
Grrrr. More racism, even in jest. Such a cheap shot too. Does anyone have the exact transcript of this joke? Let me know. That's racist!
04.20.02
This fake Abercrombie tee shirt design (courtesy of Optimus Crime) is pretty shocking, but it most definitely gets its point across. I know it's fake (props, Simon), but I get kind of sick just looking at it... It's effective. The point being: why is it that Abercrombie would NEVER EVER in their right minds consider running a novelty tee shirt like this one, just racist to the last drop, but they didn't think twice when going for the offensive Chinese caricatures and printing them on actual tee shirts? They obviously believed they could do it without a problem. Why did they think it was okay to make fun of Asians?
Well, we didn't like that.
"If anything, this whole debacle should serve as a lesson to other companies, or to any other offending party for that matter, that Asian Americans are not only mad enough to take action, they are savvy enough to be effective and potent."
Check out: PoliticalCircus.com
04.20.02
Oh yeah. So I guess you've already figured out, I finally bit the bullet and registered angryasianman.com. Had no idea I'd have so many Angry friends. Yup, so this is the new home for all things Angry and Asian. And yes, that's a Quick Kick G.I. Joe action figure, circa 1985. Stay Angry.
04.20.02
The "Quick Vote" poll at CNN.com asks "Do you find Abercrombie & Fitch's 'Two Wongs Can Make it White' T-shirts offensive?" As of 1:07 pm PST, the results are Yes - 31%, No - 69%. What's up with that? That's racist!
04.20.02
04.20.02
So I saw The Scorpion King last night. It was loud and violent and cliched and ridiculous. I loved it. Now support The Rock and Kelly Hu and make the world a better place. Go see The Scorpion King.
04.20.02
This is kinda what I was thinking too: A&F T-shirts a little too cool for comfort
04.19.02
Check out www.boycottaf.com
For those in the Boston area, I got word of this protest:
PROTEST ABERCROMBIE AND FITCH'S RACISM
When: NOON, THIS SATURDAY 4/20/02
Where: outside of A&F Harvard Square
WHY: A&F recently put out degrading shirts that presented racist images of people of Asian descent. One design read, "Two Wongs Can Make It White", denigrating and stereo-typing Asian Americans. Although two shirts have been pulled from stores, numerous other racially offensive designs continue to be marketed by the company. Their excuse is that they poke fun at "everybody, from women to flight attendants to baggage handlers."
DOES THAT MAKE THIS RIGHT?
Let us show A&F and the corporate world that we will not tolerate such ignorance any longer.
04.19.02
Shame on you, people. The Abercrombie shirts are popping up on eBay. I suppose it was inevitable. You freakin' greedy suckas.
And if you just can't get enough of this story, CNN also covered the story: Abercrombie pulls 'racist' Asian theme T-shirts... But why is 'racist' in quotations? Is there some question of the actual racism? I prefer my racist to be in italics. That way, you know what's up.
04.19.02
Now how about something TOTALLY UNRELATED to Abercrombie & Fitch? Sounds great to me... Well, The Scorpion King opens in theaters today. The movie stars The Rock and Kelly Hu (aw yeah). Two APAs (did ya know that?) in starring roles! Now when does that normally happen? Yes, I know, it's The Rock, a professional wrestler, and the movie looks lame and loud and dumb. But come on, support Asian Americans in the media! He's the muscle man hero! She's the lovely heroine! And I'm pretty sure there's no kung fu involved (this is just a guess). I actually have hopes that this movie will make Kelly Hu a big, bankable star...
Anyway, see The Scorpion King this weekend. Mindless fun. Starring Asians.
04.18.02
Is anybody sick of Abercrombie yet? Ha ha. What have I done? My goodness. Traffic on this site has reached an all time high. This is both interesting and scary.
So A & F has definitely backed down by pulling the tee shirt line. But protesters aren't letting them get away that easily, coming at the company with a pretty hefty list of demands. Such anger! I'm down with that.
Coverage of the story made the rounds at all the local news stations (and from what I hear, on news around the country)... Check out the video clip of the segment from Channel 4 KRON News.
04.18.02
According to this article, it's official: Abercrombie pulls T-shirts after Asian-American protest
Well there you go. This quote from the article is especially funny:
"The thought was that everyone would love them, especially the Asian community. We thought they were cheeky, irreverent and funny and everyone would love them. But that has not been the case."
You're freakin' right that has not been the case.
The Abercrombie people are saying they even checked with their Asian employees, who apparently thought the designs were funny. Which employees? The two guys working in IT? Or maybe the sweatshop workers making the freakin' shirts...
But you know, I was thinking. A lot of the furor over this comes from the fact that big bad Abercrombie produced these shirts, and not some random dude on the internet. Is it because A&F is the unofficial apparel of the wealthy white frat boy? And Abercrombie's infamous catalogs and ads pretty much exclusively parade caucasian beauty? To be honest, and I might appall some people here, I was thinking if I saw some Asian website producing and selling similar tee shirt designs, I probably wouldn't be so angry --I might find it humorous, maybe even clever. And I think others might think the same thing. Kind of ironic isn't it? Doesn't make the A&F shirts any less offensive though. Abercrombie deserves a good kick in the ass.
04.18.02
They JUST took down the "Rick Shaw" tee shirt off the Abercrombie site, like almost exactly 12:30 pm PST. I was on the site when the grey and red suddenly shirts disappeared. However, all the offending tee shirts, ("Laundry," "Buddha," "Rick Shaw," "Pizza Dojo" etc.) are all still available for view on the Changing Room section of the website. Sneaky suckas. Hmm... I don't think said it yet today: That's racist!
04.18.02
The story also made the front page of the San Jose Mercury News. Here's what Abercrombie spokesperson Hampton Carney had to say:
"It was in no way intended to offend anyone, and it hurts us that it has offended people. Everyone here at the company thought it was funny. I even polled the Asians around the office today of what they thought of the shirts, and they thought the shirts were hilarious."
It's funny, every time a company does something racist, the company spokesperson always says the same thing. "We even asked the Asians in the office!" What, like all two of them?
I just checked the Abercrombie site and it seems they've taken down the offending shirts. But they still haven't taken down the "Rick Shaw" Minimum Wage shirts... Thought they could sneak it by us, eh?
04.18.02
Holy moly! The Abercrombie article made the FRONT PAGE of the San Francisco Chronicle
04.17.02
How about someone designing and selling me a shirt like this:
Well, people have definitely reacted to the now-infamous Abercrombie tee shirts in full force. From where I stand, these shirts have resonated pretty strongly with people, maybe more than anything I've ever posted on this site in the past. And not just the regular blogging community -- I'm getting word from seriously all over, particularly on college campuses (including Northwestern, Stanford, Dartmouth, MIT, Wellesley, etc.), about organized protests and demonstrations against Abercrombie & Fitch. It looks as though we're not going to let A&F put this whole ordeal away very quietly...
For those in the San Francisco area, I've been informed you can join a demonstration going on tomorrow (Thursday, 04.18) outside the SF Center Abercrombie & Fitch store on Powell & Market, 5:00 pm sharp...
Oh yeah, in all the craziness, this tee shirt seems to have flown under the radar:
Advertising RICK SHAW'S HOAGIES AND GRINDERS (Order by the foot!). Another guy in a hat, this time pulling a rickshaw. "Good Meat, Quick Feet." Yeah. That's racist!
I don't think many people have mentioned this one. They're the red and grey shirts under the ones called "Minimum Wage." I found it almost by accident.
Adding to the madness, Jenny Strasburg, a business reporter from the San Francisco Chronicle, called me up today for some thoughts on all this... That was pretty interesting. She told me she talked to a representative from Abercrombie, who claimed they had no idea these designs would be at all offensive to anyone. Actually, I'm almost inclined to believe them. It's stupid, but in my mind I have to blame pure ignorance because any other explanation would just make me too angry. They said they thought Asians would find the shirts humorous! Ms. Strasburg also told me A & F was planning to take some kind of steps to rectify the situation, but they didn't really specify anything. I guess we'll have to see. The article should run in tomorrow's paper (04.18). I may or may not appear in the article (I don't really care either way).
Several others told me they too had a few words with A&F customer service reps... I think Erin's experience sums up the apparent word on the street:
I wanted to let you know that I spoke to an AF rep today who openly shared my opinion that the t-shirts are AWFUL. He told me that the AF board would be meeting tonight to discuss the line and what to do, due to the THOUSANDS of phone calls and complaints they've received since just last night. He said he wouldn't be surprised if the line was pulled tomorrow. He said they've been told of Asian American demonstrations that will supposedly be taking place tonight at colleges and universities around the U.S.
Nice job, people. What pleases me most is how quickly and decisively people reacted to this. Especially college students, who Abercrombie obviously sees as their strongest marketing target. If I get official word that these shirts are being pulled, I'll be pretty impressed.
Still, the ordeal puts a bad taste in my mouth. The underlying ignorance and utter insensitivity of it all strikes a bad chord when considering what it means for Asians in the country. That a large retailer like A&F didn't even think twice about producing and selling these designs, even as a joke. It's just telling... there's still a long way to go.
04.17.02
More racist Abercrombie crap. Forgot to mention this "Bowling" tee shirt:
WOK-N-BOWL. Such a clever pun. Chinky hat man with a bowling ball. Chinese food and bowling. "Let the good times roll"
Oh, and don't forget the "Pizza Dojo" shirt I mentioned a few months back (02.27). It seriously pains me to think some genious designer at Abercrombie was probably laughing their ass off when they came up with these ideas.
Our man Travis lets us know about his telephone call to Abercrombie & Fitch's Customer Service line:
Just FYI, if you call their 800 customer service # - 1-800-432-0888† - you'll get a live person right away (or at least I did), and the guy I talked to pulled up the tee's on their website and took down my complaint (tell them to go to the "graphic tees" area, then "laundry" shirt and "buddha" shirt).† We'll see where it goes from there.† As I told him on the phone, the "Wong Brothers" shirt is just shocking - I just don't understand how a legitimate company can be so blatantly racist.
Thanks Travis. Everybody, stay Angry.
04.17.02
I just got notified of this racist crap they're selling at Abercrombie & Fitch. What the hell is this?? Makes me angry.
First, you've got "Laundry":
Two coolie laundry dudes advertising Wong Brothers Laundry Service -- "Two Wongs can make it white." What a slap in the face.
You can also get "Buddha":
It's the Buddha Bash, whatever the hell that is. "Get your buddha on the floor."
Hooray, both tee shirts are available in three different colors. Yet another instance of commodifying and reinforcing stereotypical "Oriental" caricatures. Who thought of these designs? Did they actually believe it would be okay to print these carciatures on a tee shirt -- and then sell them? What the hell are they doing over there at Abercrombie? Don't they at least have one person working there that might have the slightest notion of cultural sensitivity? Or maybe they really are just trying to be as offensive as possible.
Again, I have to reiterate the same point I always make when this garbage comes up: From Sarah Silverman to the freakin' Mandarin Juicer, there are people out there who think it's okay to offensively caricature and make fun of Asians. It's some jacked notion that Asian are fair targets for this. You would NOT see a shirt like with a caricature of a black person. That's racist!
Perhaps the biggest offense is that they're selling the damn things for $24.50. No, what's even worse, there are people who are happily going to buy them. Dang, people, save your money, buy a Fightin' Whites shirt or something.
Well it's all frickin' racist and you and I don't have to take it. So get angry:
Michael S. Jeffries, CEO
Abercrombie & Fitch
6301 Fitch Path
New Albany, OH 43054
1-800-432-0888 (customer service)
1-614-283-6500 (corporate)
You know what to do. I've said it before and I'll say it again: That's racist!
04.15.02
Charles Chun has had a semi-recurring role on Scrubs as Dr. Wen.
04.15.02
04.14.02
Now here's something pretty useful and interesting. Check out The Interracial Dating Guide For Asian Men. Very comprehensive, although a bit disorganized.
04.12.02
I kind of wish I hadn't heard of this. The following was printed in the April Fool's Day edition of the Colorado College campus newspaper, The Catalyst:
News in Brief
COLLEGE STUDENT "DISAPPOINTED" AT LACK OF Hot ASIAN BABES
Colorado Springs- Daniel Leap, freshman at Colorado College, expressed his
disappointment at the lack of hot Asian girls last Thursday "Man, where are
all the hot Asian chicks?" asked Leap. "There has to be one in Colorado
Springs who wants to give me some sucky-fucky." Leap than exclaimed his need
for an Asian slut was so great he would buy one from a mail-order bride
magazine, if necessary.
NICKALODEON LAUNCHES CONTROVERSIAL NEW SISTER CHANNEL, NIGGALODEON
Amidst cries of racial profiling and discrimination, the Nickalodeon
Company, founder of the popular TV channel, Niggalodeon.
"I'm certain that our new channel, targeted specifically at black
children, will enjoy as much popularity as its white counterpart," said
Nickalodeon CEO Nick Jackson at a Press Conference Wednesday. "This channel
is meant to depict the black people as they really are and reach out and
touch black children everywhere. I mean, come on, black kids love to watch
cartoons. What's not to like?"
Niggalodeon, which airs on Channel 52, contains back to back
cartoons similar to those seen on Nickalodeon, "only black," said Jackson.
A few cartoons that will be seen on Niggalodeon include Blackrats,
the story of 4 black toddlers who cause inane hijacks and mischief; Bubba,
which follows the life of a black teenager who just got out on parole and
must deal with both his low-income family and his crush on the school
hottie, Pattie Watermelon; and Count Crackula, an African-American vampire
duck who must feed on crack to survive and dies if he sees the light of
police flashlights.
Also included will be the special Nigs-at-Night, which airs after 9
p.m. every day and is intended for older viewers.
Niggalodeon has drawn fire from a variety of African-American
groups, including the "Black Panthers," an extremist faction formed in the
1960s.
"Know this, white fatcats: you can play your little blacka blacka TV
all y'all want," said Boomba Jasha, leader of the New York Black Panthers.
"but da time come when me an' my boyz be puttin' some caps in whitey's ass.
Black black blackity black."
"Word," added Jasha's companions.
Niggalodeon exec's have responded to the ongoing criticism with some
confusion.
"I don't get it. I thought black folks might like a little "darky"
television, you know?" said newly hired Niggalodeon Producer Jeffery Smith.
"I mean, black people must get tired of watching white people television all
of the time. Seeing their fellow blackies taking the lesser roles. Being the
butt of every joke. Taking every bullet. We though they might enjoy some TV
where they are the masters instead of us. I mean, what else do they want,
fried chicken and watermelon?"
Upon hearing Smith's comments, Black Panther leader Boomba Jasha
flew into an uncontrollable rage, smashing windows and shooting at nearby
white pedestrians before being arrested by police officers.
"Man, he was one uptight dude," said Smith. "He should of watched
our Nig-at-Night special Blacklock to learn how to best avoid being picked
up by white cops."
The footage taken of Jasha's arrest is expected to air on
Niggalodeon on April 7th.
This is just sick. I can barely read this crap. What kind of ugly, backwards, racist garbage is this?! This was actually published in a college publication? Trying to be funny? Once again, another instance of higher education putting it's best, racist foot forward. So sick of this. Here's news of Colorado College's follow-up to this issue: President, Students Address Issues Regarding Offensive Articles in Student Newspaper. Ugh. That's racist!
04.11.02
Giants beat the Dodgers last night, 2-1, thanks in part to Tsuyoshi Shinjo, who scored a home run. However, he hasn't had a very strong start this season. Coming into last night's game, Shinjo was 1-for-17 or something. Let's hope things warm up for him a little bit more. Go Shinjo.
04.11.02
On Tuesday, figure skater Michelle Kwan was named the winner of the 2001 Sullivan Award, which is presented to the year's top amateur athlete. Kwan becomes only the second figure skater to capture the prestigious honor, joining Dick Button, who won it in 1949. Here are the details: Kwan Named Winner of 2001 Sullivan Award. Props.
04.10.02
04.09.02
All right. My sister writes in with the scoop on the Better Luck Tomorrow screening at Northwestern. Check it out:
So, the NU screening of Better Luck tomorrow was supposed to start at 7 PM. I got out of a meeting at 6:45 and rushed to Norris, where I found the line was butt long. This butt long line was not to get into the auditorium--it was already FILLED-- but to get into the few seats that were remaining here and there. I was at the back of this butt long line, so there's no way I'm getting in. UNTIL.... I see Parry Shen! In all his cuteness! I wanted to say hey to this cool guy. So I amble over, introduce myself, and ask him if he knows my brother- you know, Minsoo, aka Angry Asian Man. I just want to say that this guy is really nice. He says hi, introduces me to Jason Tobin as "Angry Asian Man's sister" and they are both just so friendly and cool. But wait! What happens next? Cool Parry Shen asks me if I'm watching the movie, and sad Angry Asian Man's sister tells him that she can't get in, and she's just planning on coming back for the Q & A session after. Cool Parry then proceeds to usher me to the front of the line, and tells the people in charge that I'm with them, and that they should let me in. I feel kinda bad, cause we both got yelled at (aah! I got Parry Shen in trouble! dude, I suck) and cause I'm getting in and a ton of people are not. But that quickly passed as I entered McCormick Auditorium.
The makeup of the crowd I'd say was about 25 percent non-Asian American. The auditorium was packed. Pretty cool. Go NU. Anyways, I thought the movie was great. Really creative, really smart, really energetic. The performances were all great. I liked how the movie was about Asian Americans, but really about Americans, about a bunch of high-schoolers who are influenced by being Asian American but not solely defined by it. Let me tell you, it reminded me a lot of high school. Not so much the drugs, guns and hookers, but the cheating, the petty larceny, and the huge link between extracurriculars and the college app. My overall observations: good soundtrack, awesome writing, great chemistry between the actors and just a dang fine movie. Other observations: cute boys. All of them. Wooo! I really dug the guys in this movie a lot. OH! And was that "the Beav"????? Cause I think it was. Hell yeah! Jerry Mathers!!! Awesome. Man, he's getting oooold.
After the showing was over, there was a Q & A session. It was cool. I really dug how the cast was really tight knit and really seemed to enjoy each other's company. And they were all very intelligent too. So after that, Sarah and I talked to Parry again, and we took a picture with all the guys! It was AWESOME. They're seriously so nice. And they all professed to like Angry Asian Man a lot. Sarah and I have never been prouder to be Angry sisters. We both bought posters, and the cast signed them. Did I mention how cool the entire cast is? Cause they are. Oh, and one of the guys in the cast was a poli sci major in college, confirming my belief that no poli sci majors end up doing anything remotely related to poli sci.
Overall, Better Luck Tomorrow rocks. When it's released into the theater, I'm gonna go on opening day, and make everyone I know go, and the movie will earn tons of money and it will be a huge hit and I will have a cool poster with all those autographs. Props to Justin Lin for making an awesome, movie. Props to the whole cast for being very nice and very good actors. Props to Parry Shen for getting me in and being cute. MAD PROPS to Phil for being Angry Asian Man and hooking a sista UP!
It was a good movie. Hooray for Hollywood.
Actually, not hooray for Hollywood. Hooray for indies, but we get your point. NIIIICE. Sounds like it was a good time for all. And thank you, Parry, for hooking an Angry sista up. Not only a talented actor, but a really nice guy. Go Better Luck!
04.09.02
You can download audio clips of all of Jin tha MC's BET Freestyle Friday battles here: www.holla-front.com or www.aznraps.com
04.08.02
So I heard the Better Luck Tomorrow screening at Northwestern was a success... Props to actor Parry Shen, who hooked my sister up with a seat... It looked like she wasn't going to get in, since it was pretty packed, and line in front of her was long. Luckily, she had the Angry Asian connection... Parry made sure she was able to get in. That's so cool! Hannah called me up right there and told me all about it. She said she'd write in with the rest of the lowdown, so more on the screening later.
04.08.02
Jin won on BET's 106th and Park! His competitor tried to come up with some weak anti-Asian
rhymes but completely stuttered and messed up his flow, resorting to some mock-reggae improvisation.
Jin then proceeded to beat his opponent's ass (lyrically, of course). He won, hands
down. More importantly, he revealed he had signed with
the Ruff Ryders record label, becoming the first Asian
rapper do ever be signed to a major label. After the battle, he did a freestyle with Wyclef.
Download the videos of it here:
www.peterjun.com
Now, I don't know if Jin belongs with the Ruff Ryders. Still, that's a pretty high-profile deal, and with his seventh win he also goes into the Freestyle Friday Hall of Fame. That's pretty cool. Props.
04.07.02
This is absolutely dreadful: What Kind Of Asian Are You? This is even worse: HOw to B AzN. No, actually, that one's quite helpful, because although I was pretty sure I knew how to be Asian, I definitely didn't have the lowdown on how to AzN, so that cleared things up.
04.07.02
Saw a commercial for The Scorpion King starring The Rock, opening April 19... and Kelly Hu is lookin' goooood.
04.05.02
04.04.02
Here's an article/interview about an upcoming Bruce Lee video game for the XBox: Bruce Lee: Quest of the Dragon
04.04.02
To all my people in Chicago! The 2002 Chicago Asian American Showcase begins tomorrow and runs through April 14 at the Gene Siskel Film Center. They've got a pretty good line up, so support the cause and see some great Asian American films! Better Luck Tomorrow is the opening night film, and we all know how much I dig this movie. So go check out the festival! Tell 'em I sent ya.
04.03.02
Well this is kind of interesting. John Woo's next production could possibly star Chow Yun Fat and Nicholas Cage in a 19th century drama about the construction of America's railroads... Here's the article I came across:
Woo's man of 'Destiny'
Pandemonium pic looks to team Cage, Chow
By MICHAEL FLEMING
John Woo is courting Nicolas Cage to star with Chow Yun-Fat in "Men of
Destiny," the director's epic look at the 19th-century construction of
America's railroads.
The project, a Tom Vaughan script that has been rewritten by "Face/Off"
scribes Mike Werb and Michael Colleary, puts Woo in reach of joining his
Hong Kong star Chow with Cage, who starred in Woo's Hollywood films
"Face/Off" and the upcoming MGM WWII drama "Windtalkers."
"Destiny" is a plum project of Bill Mechanic's Pandemonium, which recently
signed an exclusive distribution deal with Disney.
Cage would play an Irish immigrant who at first clashes and then bonds with
his Chinese co-worker when they find common ground in the immigrant struggle
for the American dream.
Cage's participation in the film has been rumored since last fall, though
the complexities of Mechanic's overall financing deal kept such talk in the
speculation category until recently.
The actor, who made his directing debut on the indie drama "Sonny," had
expected next to be working on the superhero drama "Constantine," but that
film got grounded when its director, Tarsem, ankled.
Cage has several other options, including a revived attempt to mount "Ghost
Rider," an adaptation of the Marvel Comics character. That project was
grounded at Dimension when director Steve Norrington left the project, but
it appears Dimension will put it in turnaround, and that it likely will be
set up elsewhere as a potential vehicle for Cage.
Interesting. Lately, it seems John Woo has lost his touch. Windtalkers looks only so-so, and M:I 2 sucked all ddong. I only half like Nicholas Cage, but Chow Yun Fat is, was and always will be the asskicker. We'll see how it all goes down.
04.02.02
There's some weird mystery ailment in the Philippines that kills young healthy Asian men in their sleep. What's up with that? They call it bangungot (nightmare syndrome). Strange and scary. Why just Asian men? Why? I'll tell you why -- that's racist! This "bangungot" thing is prejudiced towards Asian men. This is no good.