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Identity

Hilarious skit illustrates the problem with 'Where are you from?' line of questioning

A simple turn of the tables makes it crystal clear.

Heidi Sadecky/Pixabay

There's no such thing as "a regular American."

There's nothing wrong with asking someone where they're from—in fact, it's a normal conversation starter among a lot of humans around the world. The follow-ups to the initial question, however, can turn problematic quite quickly when there are racial and cultural assumptions, biases and stereotypes underlying the questioning.

Unfortunately, that's all too often the case. Frequently, when the question is asked of non-white people in the U.S., "Where are you from?" leads to "No, where are you really from?" which then leads to an awkward ancestral analysis and an implicit "othering" that the questioner is often oblivious to.

That obliviousness isn't charming or harmless, as a video sketch played out by actors Stella Choe and Scott Beehner shows.

The "What Kind of Asian are You?" video from Ken Tanaka, originally released in 2013, starts with a woman on a trail stretching for a jog. A man comes up to her and starts chatting with her, and at first she seems interested. But then he almost immediately asks her where she's from while also telling her, "Your English is perfect."

She tells him she's from San Diego, but by the look on her face she clearly anticipates what's coming next. And sure enough, what follows is a predictable series of increasingly offensive questions and responses, which the character in the sketch probably just considers "friendly get-to-know-you talk."

But when the woman turns the tables and asks him the same exact series of questions and responds with exaggerated or inaccurate cultural stereotypes, he acts like she's the weird one.

Watch:

People who have been on the receiving end of these kinds of questions and assumptions have shared the video multiple times over the years since it came out, resulting in several waves of virality. And commenters have shared what they love about the video.

"It's the subtle things in this that make it the more awesome," wrote one person. "Like how she amalgamates in Irish stereotypes (Guinness, Top o' the mornin' to ye) with English stereotypes... the same way people like that guy mix Chinese, Japanese, Korean etc. stereotypes together as if those nations were the same thing."

"I'd just like to point out that while a lot of you think this is a parody video and this guy is a characterized, over-the-top version of a person, it's not," wrote another. "This is my life (minus me jogging and being as funny back). And it's not even a compilation of lots of mini experiences all summarized in one video to make even more of a point. In fact, if anything, I think it's missing the part where the man then tells her about how his last 5 girlfriends were all Asian and how he has learned how to make awesome spring rolls, where he starts speaking Korean at her, and then proceeds to ask if she has a boyfriend. Because then, it would be real life."

"This is an actual conversation I've had!!!" shared another. "So funny to see it here, wish I could've had a good comeback for it like this!"

Some people pointed out that the woman said her great-grandmother was from Seoul while the man said his grandparents were from England. That would technically make her more of "a regular American" than he is. (Unless, of course, "regular American" just means white. Ahem.)

Choe and Beehner also had some fun with the comments section, reading aloud some of the affirming as well as some of the more obtuse and/or racist responses to the original video. It's amazing.

You can find more Ken Tanaka videos on YouTube.

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Wellness

Anti-Asian hate crimes are skyrocketing in the U.S. Here's what we can all do to help.

Amanda Nguyễn/Instagram

In countries throughout Asia, people ring in the Lunar New Year with cultural traditions as diverse as Asian people themselves. From China to Vietnam to Malaysia to South Korea—and in communities of people of Asian descent around the world—families gather to celebrate, pay homage to ancestors, and welcome in the blessings of a new year.

This year, however, such celebrations in the U.S. are impacted not only by the upheaval of the ongoing pandemic, but by fear in the wake of skyrocketing violence against people of Asian and Pacific Islander descent.

Hate crimes against Asian-Americans and Pacific-Islanders (AAPI) have been highlighted by advocacy groups since early in the pandemic, but have not received the broad media coverage they deserve. Unfortunately, it's taken vicious attacks on elders in the AAPI community to get the nation's attention.

Last week, the death of an 84-year-old Thai man who was violently tackled in his driveway shone a spotlight on the issue in the Bay Area, where a spate of attacks has erupted in recent months. A video of a 91-year-old man being violently shoved to the ground in Oakland prompted actors Daniel Dae Kim and Daniel Wu to offer a reward of $25,000 to anyone who could help identify the attacker. (It turned out police already had him in custody as a suspect for other similar attacks.) A 64-year-old Vietnamese grandmother was assaulted and robbed of $1000 while walking to her car in San Jose last week as well, and Chinatown businesses have been hit by an alarming increase in robberies.

Amanda Nguyễn, CEO and founder of the civil rights organization Rise, shared a plea on Instagram for people to raise awareness about the increase in anti-AAPI violence.

The heinous attacks in the Bay Area are making headlines, but violence and harassment are not just happening there, not just happening to the elderly, and not just happening now.

According to NYPD data reported in the Queens Chronicle in September, anti-Asain hate crimes had already increased 1900% from 2019 to 2020 before fall even hit. (In the same time period, anti-Jewish and anti-Black hate crimes in New York had decreased.) The Anti-Defamation League reported in June that there had been a "significant" number of reports of harassment and attacks against people in the Asian-American and Pacific Islander community, and the United Nations stated in October that hate crimes against Asian-Americans were happening at "alarming levels," citing 1800 incidents just from March to May of 2020.

Reading people's individual stories, it's clear that the vast majority of incidents include references to the COVID-19 pandemic. People blame Asian-Americans for the coronavirus—a xenophobic idea that has been inflamed by politicians who insist on calling it the "China virus" or "Kung flu." (That's not merely conjecture; Manjusha Kulkarni, executive director of the Asian Pacific Policy and Planning Council said that their data showed that the increase in racist and xenophobic attacks was "catalyzed by rhetoric from the president and other government leadership.")

The AAPI community needs every American of goodwill to step up, speak up, and act to put an end to these attacks. Here are some things everyone can do to help:

- Personally: If you see or hear someone using anti-AAPI language, say something. Don't let phrases like "China virus" or comments blaming AAPI for the pandemic go unchallenged. Commit to not being a passive bystander, but rather an active disrupter, of harassment when you see it. If you witness an incident, report it at stopaapihate.org.

- Socially: Get to know AAPI members of your community and listen to their concerns. Raise awareness by following and sharing the hashtag #StopAAPIHate on social media. Speak out about AAPI hate crimes and share positive stories about people from the AAPI community as well.

- Educationally: Seek out information about the kinds of discrimination people in the AAPI community face. Click on the links from this article or simply Google terms like "Anti-Asian" and "AAPI hate crimes." If you're a parent, teach your kids how to recognize when their peers are engaging in anti-Asian jokes or behavior and how to be an ally.

- Organizationally: Make sure your workplace and organizations you're a part of are committed to protecting AAPI members of your community from harassment. This PDF from the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance put together has specific action items employers and organizations can use as a guide.

- Monetarily: Buy from AAPI-owned businesses, many of which have suffered during the pandemic both from economic loss and discriminatory attacks. Support AAPI advocacy and anti-discrimination organizations such as iHollaback! (an anti-harassment organization that provides free bystander intervention training) or the National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development (a coalition of more than 100 organizations advocating for AAPI communities). Keep an eye out for crowdfunding efforts for individual victims of hate crimes.

- Democratically: Reach out to your local, state, and national government representatives to voice your support for the AAPI community and ask them to denounce xenophobic rhetoric in politics. Learn about the president's plan for the AAPI community and push him to take action on those commitments. Elevate the voices of elected officials from the AAPI community and those who speak up against anti-AAPI discrimination.

Let's all commit to creating a society in which everyone is uplifted and where all people can feel safe no matter who we are or where we come from.

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Equality

President Biden signed four historic executive actions promoting racial equity into law

President Biden/Twitter, Yamiche Alcindor/Twitter

In a year when the U.S. saw the largest protest movement in history in support of Black lives, when people of color have experienced disproportionate outcomes from the coronavirus pandemic, and when Black voters showed up in droves to flip two Senate seats in Georgia, Joe Biden entered the White House with a mandate to address the issue of racial equity in a meaningful way.

Not that it took any of those things to make racial issues in America real. White supremacy has undergirded laws, policies, and practices throughout our nation's history, and the ongoing impacts of that history are seen and felt widely by various racial and ethnic groups in America in various ways.

Today, President Biden spoke to these issues in straightforward language before signing four executive actions that aim to:

- promote fair housing policies to redress historical racial discrimination in federal housing and lending

- address criminal justice, starting by ending federal contracts with for-profit prisons

- strengthen nation-to-nation relationships with Native American tribes and Alaskan natives

- combat xenophobia against Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders, which has skyrocketed during the pandemic

"In my campaign for president, I made it very clear that the moment had arrived as a nation, as we face deep racial inequities in America and systemic racism that has plagued our nation for far, far too long. I said that over the course of the past year that the blinders had been taken off the nation, the American people. What many Americans didn't see or had simply refused to see couldn't be ignored any longer."

Biden spoke of how George Floyd's killing opened the eyes of the nation and the world and marked "a turning point in this country's attitude toward racial justice." He spoke of the impact of the pandemic on Black and Latino communities and the economic inequalities that plague the nation. He spoke of the white supremacists who invaded our Capitol.

"We have never fully lived up to the founding principles of this nation, to state the obvious, that all people are created equal and have the right to be treated equally throughout their lives," he said. "And it's time to act now, not only because it's the right thing to do, but because if we do, we'll all be better off for it."

"For too long we've allowed a narrow, cramped view of the promise of this nation to fester," he went on. "You know, we've bought the view that America is a zero-sum game in many cases. If you succeed, I fail. If you get ahead, I fall behind. If you get the job I lose mine. Maybe worst of all, if I hold you down, I lift myself up. We've lost sight of what President Kennedy told us what he said, 'A rising tide lifts all boats.' When we lift each other up, we're all lifted up. And the corollary is true as well. When anyone is held down, we're all held back."

President Biden gave some details about what the four executive actions signed today will mean, including giving Native tribes and nations access to the federal stockpile and FEMA, as well as taking a step toward stopping corporations from profiting off of incarceration that is "less humane and less safe, as the studies show."

He also elucidated on further actions he wants to take, or see taken in the case of legislation in Congress, during his administration, starting with undoing some of Trump's last actions as president:

"In the weeks ahead, I'll be reaffirming the federal government's commitment to diversity equity and inclusion and accessibility, building on the work we started and the Obama-Biden administration. That's why I'm rescinding the previous administration's harmful man on diversity and sensitivity training. And abolish the offensive counterfactual 1776 commission. Unity and healing must begin with understanding and truth. Not ignorance and lies."

And including making it easier for all Americans to vote:

"Here's another thing we need to do—we need to restore and expand the Voting Rights Act, named after our dear friend, John Lewis. And continue to fight back against laws many states are engaged in to suppress the right to vote, while expanding access to the ballot box for all eligible voters.:

Biden concluded with by repeating the call for racial equity to be incorporated throughout every part of the government:

"Here's the deal, and I'll close with this," he said. "I ran for president because I believe we're in a battle for the soul of this nation. And the simple truth is our soul will be troubled as long as systemic racism is allowed to persist. It's not going to be overnight. We can't eliminate everything. But it's corrosive, it's destructive, and it's costly. It costs every American, not just who felt the sting of racial injustice. We are not just a nation morally deprived because of systemic racism. We're also less prosperous, we're less successful, less secure. So we must change, and I know it's gonna take time. But I know we can do it. And I firmly believe the nation is ready to change. But government has to change as well. We need to make equity and justice part of what we do every day. Today, tomorrow, and every day.

I'm gonna sign these executive actions to continue to work to make real the promise of America for every American. Again, I'm not promising we can end it tomorrow. But I promise you we're gonna continue to make progress to eliminate systemic racism in every branch of the White House, and the federal government is going to be part of that effort."

People in racial justice advocacy spaces seemed to receive President Biden's address and executive actions with cautious optimism. NAACP president Derrick Johnson told MSNBC, "This is a great initial start," and "The fact he's embedding this inside of Domestic Policy Council shows the urgency and the gravity of what's taking place."

Some pointed out that unless and until there are actual changes coming from the legislative branch, the actions taken by Biden today are tenuous, since they can be changed at the stroke of a pen with a new administration. However, these executive actions and the promises made by Biden do seem to indicate that he is serious about making racial justice a key policy driver during his tenure in the White House.

It's definitely a start, and considering we're only seven days in, a promising sign that more meaningful action is on the way.

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An actor's response to 'whitewashing' backlash shows the rest of Hollywood how it's done.

It's time to put an end to whitewashing in Hollywood.

On Aug. 21, actor Ed Skrein announced that he had accepted a role in the upcoming "Hellboy" reboot. A week later, he dropped out — for a very good reason.

Skrein had been cast as Ben Daimio, an employee of the fictional Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense. Best known for his role as Ajax in 2016's "Deadpool," Skrein seems like he'd be a great fit for what will likely be a high-energy, action-packed "Hellboy."

There was just one problem: The character, Daimio, is Japanese-American. Skrein is not. And Daimio's heritage plays a pretty huge role in his story.

Hollywood has a decades-long pattern of whitewashing Asian characters. Opting not to contribute to it, Skrein dropped out of the role.

Whether it's Matt Damon's bland performance in "The Great Wall," Emma Stone's confusing portrayal of a half-Asian woman in "Aloha," Scarlett Johansson's starring role in the recent "Ghost in the Shell" film, or any number of other examples of white actors being cast to play Asian roles, this isn't a new phenomenon.

It's the ugly cousin of "yellowface," the practice of casting white actors as Asian characters with prosthetics, makeup, and over-the-top bad accents.

Skrein announced via Twitter that after getting feedback from "Hellboy" fans, it would be best if he dropped out "so the role can be cast appropriately."

"It is clear that representing this character in a culturally accurate way holds significance for people, and that to neglect this responsibility would continue a worrying tendency to obscure ethnic minority stories and voices in the Arts," he wrote. "I feel it is important to honor and respect that."

He added, "Representation of ethnic diversity is important, especially to me as I have a mixed heritage family."

A 2014 photo of Skrein. Photo by Vittorio Zunino Celotto/Getty Images for ZFF.

Turning down that role wasn't an easy decision. Hopefully, however, it'll inspire other actors and directors to do the same.

It would have probably been pretty easy for Skrein to shrug off the criticism as simple oversensitivity, but instead, he decided to listen, show some empathy, and break the cycle.

Small acts of compassion have the potential to make a big impact on the world. Thanks to fans, diversity advocates, outspoken Asian actors, and Skrein, Hollywood now has a great opportunity to vocally pivot away from its history of Asian caricature and erasure, putting whitewashing behind us. Whether that will happen is anybody's guess, but sometimes it's worth celebrating life's little victories. Hopefully, the decision will pay dividends for Skrein, and he'll land something even bigger.

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