Pray For Our Pastors

ASIAN STEREOTYPES, PART II

Yesterday’s blog was written in a hurry, and upon further reflection I’m even madder at casting directors and others that have influence in determining which faces play which roles on TV and the big screen. Because it’s not just inner-city blacks who have a narrow exposure to Asians in mass medias. Now that I ponder on it, it’s much of mainstream America.

I mean, let’s think about this. Quick: name five Asians on TV. If you could even think of five, are there any in your group who don’t represent some Asian archetype? Mysteriously attractive female (think Lucy Liu), techno-geek (Archie on CSI), martial artist (pick your movie), sinister bad guy (the Taiwanese dude on Alias), or F.O.B. (hello, William Hung). Sorry, no Asian faces playing characters outside these comfortable stereotypes.

I played this game with other races, too, and was happy to think of some decent characters for other minority groups. African-Americans, for example, can celebrate Taye Diggs on Kevin Hill, Aisha White on Friends, and Jamie Foxx in Collateral as characters who are neither stereotype-reinforcers nor stripped of their ethnic identities.

But for Asians, not a lot of good parts. And so if your non-entertainment human interactions with Asians are limited, you can’t help but buy in a little to these stereotypes. It worries me to estimate how many people in this country subconscious believe that Asians aren’t Americans, or that they are impotent nerds or exotic temptresses or kung-fu jokers.

Less than 25 years ago, a Chinese man was bludgeoned to death by two white guys who were mad at the Japanese because they had just lost their jobs at the local auto manufacturer. Three years ago, six men in Wisconsin were given prison sentences for attacking Hmong families; the defendants admitted in court that they didn’t know the families but targeted them because they were Asian. Less than three months ago, a bogus terrorist tip caused the Boston Globe to run mug shots of four Chinese people with the headline, “Find them!”

As someone with an Asian face, I could have been mistaken for any of those people; and as an Asian, at any given time I can be the subject of someone’s stereotyping. Nobody likes to be erroneously attacked or targeted, and nobody likes to have people make assumptions about them that are incorrect, insulting, or demeaning.

I don’t mean to solely blame the media, for people ought to take responsibility to be culturally sensitive, to teach respect for others to their children, and to not let hatred fester in their hearts or in their communities. But the media has to understand that it has influence, sometimes a monopoly of it, on how people view themselves and each other. And with that power comes responsibility. And as an industry, its treatment of Asian roles has been irresponsible and detrimental. Shame on them.