Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009

Racist pop star? Maybe, maybe not

There's usually three people on my list of people that I hate. Today, make that four.

Four is an unlucky number in Asian culture. It is often associated with death - so you know it's a screwy number.

Let me start this blog off by saying screw Miley Cyrus. I don't care if she's an inspiration to teen girls - she is just another dumb, spoiled teenager with parents trying to sell her sexuality for another 15 minutes of fame.

Why do I loathe her? It's not because she's famous and a millionaire - that would be just bad taste on my part. It's because of a recently released picture of her making "Asian eyes" at the camera with her friends.

So what, you might ask. She's a kid, just let her be - it's just a photo.

Wrong. You wouldn't paint your face black and say you're making a goofy face. You wouldn't chant "Hey, how are ya" to a Native American, thinking they'll join in. It's just... how do you say... bad taste.

Borrowing from Chris Rock, if you do certain things, you deserve to get your ass beat. Somebody needs to slap some sense into Miley. And not in the way that Chris Brown beat Rihanna... that just wasn't cool, Chris.

A lot of people on message boards are saying that Lucie J. Kim, who is filing a lawsuit at L.A. County Superior Court, is overreacting, stating that "people can sue over anything now." Kim is representing more than one million Asian Pacific Islanders living in L.A. seeking $4,000 in damages, which totals to about $4 billion.

Different people have their own reasons for being upset. Here's mine:

If Miley is a role model for young audiences, then she should act like one. Pulling pranks like this only exacerbates an issue that is still prevalent in society. It allows people to think that it's okay because she's doing it. Therefore it's funny... therefore it's harmless.

The fact of the matter is, Miley is a famous white person and has a lot of power. By simply saying she is acting like a kid and she didn't mean anything by it, lets her off the hook. It lets her get away without any consequences except for a little bad PR.

People can say that there wasn't any malicious intent in the photo, but clearly those involved are making fun of Asian stereotypes. Having your ancestors as well as yourself be made fun of is scarring, and having a famous person do it without any remorse or repercussions... what does that say about our worth as human beings?

One argument used in Miley's defense is that supposedly millions of other teenagers pose like this all the time and aren't being sued for it. Shockingly, the people who make this argument also add that because an Asian guy is in the photo, it somehow magically makes it okay. People are going even as far as to say "The Asian guy is making Caucasian eyes, so he's racist, too."

I'd like to add that while I don't agree that non people of color can't be discriminated against, it is a much different type of prejudice they face than what major minorities have endured. It's not the Oppression Olympics... It's just common sense.

I'd also like to point out that while Kim represents most of the Asian community in L.A. - she doesn't represent all of it. Some people probably are fine with this incident or couldn't care less. To each their own. I, obviously, am not one of these people.

While I don't necessarily agree with suing Miley for $4 billion, I do understand the reason behind it. One can say they're sorry, but when they're threatened by a higher power, it hits closer to home. Maybe she'll realize how big her actions are and understand that "Hey, maybe I shouldn't take racist photos because I might be held responsible for my actions." If we continue to let things slide, then when will it stop?

While people make assumptions that this is an attack on people's free rights, how would you like being screamed profanities at? Does that make you feel good? Does that make you feel safe? Being talked down by someone? It's a similar instance of what the message in this photo represents. Sure, you could say it's childsplay, but is it, really? Is it ignorance? And even if we leave it at that - ignorance - a person of such stature who is in the public eye should be made accountable for said ignorance, not just let off the hook.

Whatever happens with this lawsuit is fine by me. If it goes through, it's both good and bad. It's good because the court recognized the damaging effects caused by this seemingly unharmful act. It's unfortunate that such a drastic measure had to be unleashed upon America's supposed sweetheart. If it doesn't go through, I'm fine because it's still one step forward for AAPI's in showing that we're not going to be walked over.

What did Miley have to say about the whole ordeal?

"Well, I'm sorry if people looked at those pics and took them wrong and out of context! In NO way was I making fun of any ethnicity! I was simply making a goofy face..."

Well, the last time I checked, Asian people and their appearances are not 'goofy faces.' Just ask Spain's basketball team...