5.09.2013
What does this racist video have to do with recycling water?
Oh hellll no. Racist video alert. This one doesn't come from dumbass frat dudes or a ditzy college gal. This one comes courtesy of the City of Los Angeles Department of Public Works: City Of LA Department Of Public Works Under Fire For Producing Controversial Video Mocking Asians.
The video, shot at the Japanese Garden at the Tillman Water Reclamation Plant in Van Nuys, shows a guy in yellowface dressed as a geisha, doing the usual tired-ass Asian accent mockery. This is all somehow supposed to teach viewers about using recycled water -- and is paid for by taxpayer money. Yeah. Watch:
The video has been taken down from the City Works YouTube channel, and officials from the Department of Public Works have pologized for "an attempt at humor" that "missed the mark." No freaking kidding.
I feel like a broken record having to say this over and over, but again, I am astounded at the complete lack of common sense that went into producing something like this. No one, at any point, stopped to think, hey, this is hella racist. Complete ignorance. And that's frightening.