Comments by Yohan (last 300)
On July 16th, 2007 › Context
On July 16th, 2007 › Context
On July 16th, 2007 › Context
I'm not justifying bigotry here. I'm just saying it exists everywhere. You have to give people time to welcome newcomers into their society. The Irish, the Italians, the African-Americans, the Jews, the Hispanics - even they have not been fully absorbed, but things are constantly getting better. History is on your side! Eventually Indians will have their very own Anti-Defamation League. In the meantime let your own example prove the stereotypes wrong! That's what I do. That's all anyone can do. Trying to campaign against a harmless cartoon character will not help the cause - it will make NRIs seem overly sensitive, subjecting people to even more ridicule. Laugh it off. At least try.
But having reaquainted myself with how much I love Apu's character on the show, I think culture is richer for having had him on television. he is neither evil nor perfect, but has both qualities - a well-fleshed out character, if you ask me. High schoolers will find reasons to make fun of minorities and oddballs, whether or not they get ideas from television.
Here's an interesting article: http://www.beliefnet.com/story/78/story_7843_1.html
It's an interesting debate, I'll grant you that. No need to get worked up about it.
But having reaquainted myself with how much I love Apu's character on the show, I think culture is richer for having had him on television. he is neither evil nor perfect, but has both qualities - a well-fleshed out character, if you ask me. High schoolers will find reasons to make fun of minorities and oddballs, whether or not they get ideas from television.
Here's an interesting article: http://www.beliefnet.com/story/78/story_7843_1.html
It's an interesting debate, I'll grant you that. No need to get worked up about it.
On July 16th, 2007 › Context
Hmmm. Very true, Savitre. I imagine things are different in "middle America." I'm currently doing my PhD in Boston, and in general I have not seen any sort of racist behavior here. Perhaps Manish should have written about such experiences in his Guardian article.
I lived in South Carolina till I was 9, after which my family moved back to India. I was here during the Simpsons rise to fame, but was too young to experience any bigotry. Perhaps if I had stayed in SC I would have experienced what you guys have. [My mother spoke of "dot-busters" and Paki-bashers in New Jersey in the 80s - clearly the stereotypes were in place long before the Simpsons came along.]
But one must be very clear - there is no escaping bigotry in the "home country." South Indians living anywhere north of Bombay have to deal with ignorance, ridicule, and even skin-colour related chauvinism. Not just in school, but even in college and after. People from the North East of India are referred to as Chinese; Sikhs are the butt of countless dumb-blonde type jokes. And we haven't even broached the topic of caste. We of the middle class can easily ignore the fact that the caste system is in many ways worse the same as racism in the west. Ironically, many Indians in the US support organizations in India that are anti-minority and communal.
The process of intergration into the US culture will probably be slow, but I think eventually it will happen. We can only hope that eventually "good" stereotypes (doctors, engineers, businessmen) compete with the less flattering ones. But there is no escaping skin colour, and the covert racism that goes along with it.
I lived in South Carolina till I was 9, after which my family moved back to India. I was here during the Simpsons rise to fame, but was too young to experience any bigotry. Perhaps if I had stayed in SC I would have experienced what you guys have. [My mother spoke of "dot-busters" and Paki-bashers in New Jersey in the 80s - clearly the stereotypes were in place long before the Simpsons came along.]
But one must be very clear - there is no escaping bigotry in the "home country." South Indians living anywhere north of Bombay have to deal with ignorance, ridicule, and even skin-colour related chauvinism. Not just in school, but even in college and after. People from the North East of India are referred to as Chinese; Sikhs are the butt of countless dumb-blonde type jokes. And we haven't even broached the topic of caste. We of the middle class can easily ignore the fact that the caste system is in many ways worse the same as racism in the west. Ironically, many Indians in the US support organizations in India that are anti-minority and communal.
The process of intergration into the US culture will probably be slow, but I think eventually it will happen. We can only hope that eventually "good" stereotypes (doctors, engineers, businessmen) compete with the less flattering ones. But there is no escaping skin colour, and the covert racism that goes along with it.
On July 16th, 2007 › Context
As an Indian (not a "desi"), I can assure you that no Indian I have ever met has felt offended by Apu. The Simpsons is a cartoon that repeatedly plays on stereotypes to great effect. The show is harmless and has a big heart, unlike its descendants such as Family Guy or South Park. The stereotypes are not only for the brown skinned - Autralians, Brazilians and others have been spoofed with broad brushes, as have been American Christians, Politicians and "white trash".
Hypersensitivity does no one any good.
As far as the Indian "accent" goes, you must admit that the myriad accents from the subcontinent (I can count over 6 from my state alone - Kerala) are very hard to put on. Peter Sellers actually did a fairly decent job. I know Indians who talk sort of like that. Indians themselves love to make fun of grammatical mistakes and differing accents. Elitist English-speakers make fun of their vernacular cousins, and North Indians make fun of the South Indian difficulty in mastering Hindi. Their imitations of South Indian accents are in fact far more mocking that the imitations by westerners.
This is human nature! It will never go away. One should be more concerned about the tacit racism that underly assumptions of western "cultural superiority" that go together with the missionary capitalist system.
Hypersensitivity does no one any good.
As far as the Indian "accent" goes, you must admit that the myriad accents from the subcontinent (I can count over 6 from my state alone - Kerala) are very hard to put on. Peter Sellers actually did a fairly decent job. I know Indians who talk sort of like that. Indians themselves love to make fun of grammatical mistakes and differing accents. Elitist English-speakers make fun of their vernacular cousins, and North Indians make fun of the South Indian difficulty in mastering Hindi. Their imitations of South Indian accents are in fact far more mocking that the imitations by westerners.
This is human nature! It will never go away. One should be more concerned about the tacit racism that underly assumptions of western "cultural superiority" that go together with the missionary capitalist system.