By now, many of you may have seen the video in which then UCLA student Alexandra Wallace went on a rant about Asians. The video (which I've posted below) is offensive and ignorant on a multitude of levels. As expected, the video has drawn strong reactions. Unfortunately, some of the reactions have crossed the line. According to UCLA officials, Wallace and her family have received death threats. As a result, she has decided to withdraw from the school. In a letter to the UCLA newspaper in which Wallace explained why she is leaving the school, she also apologized for the comments she made in the video. Here is a NY Daily News story that provides more details.
As ignorant as the video by Alexandra Wallace is, responding to it with more ignorance isn't the answer. After reading the N.Y. Daily News article, it still isn't clear if she's apologizing for what she said or simply sorry because of the negative publicity the video has generated. Apologizing to the entire UCLA campus was a nice gesture. However, saying she was sorry to the Asian community as well would have been even better.
Something positive could still come from Alexandra's "Asians in the Library" video rant. I realize it's a dirty term for some, but this could be a "teachable moment" not only for her, but for others too.
9 comments:
I really appreciate how you pointed out that it could have been a "teachable moment". I posted two musings about diversity and Alexandra Wallace earlier today and thought you might be interested to hear what I had to say on the matter. Anyway, this is my first day blogging and I was trying to find like-minded individuals. Keep up the good work! :)
>>>As ignorant as the video by Alexandra Wallace is, responding to it with more ignorance isn't the answer.
Agreed, for the most part...
But...
Sometimes people really do screw up and then actually realize how wrong and WANT to apologize. However, I'm weary of people saying ridiculous stuff and then apologizing only after much pressure. It makes the apology seem like further insult rather than a sincere change of heart.
With the edits and stuff done to this vid, it is clear that she put some effort into it and wasn't just venting. Death threats and stuff are dumb, but I really don't have much sympathy for her.
This type of ignorance--mouthing off with stereotypes--is way down on the "hate" scale anyway.
Hurtful and bigoted? Yes.
She seems to dislike Asians.
But people mad to the point of threatening her life over her ignorance seem worse, at least in my estimation, because you do not show your tolerance by wishing someone dead.
Ignorance unlocking hatred is very ironic, as you can be fairly certain that those wishing her ill were taking a stand against her bigotry.
If there's a teachable moment in any of it, it should be people's reactions to things they disagree with across the board.
I mean, seriously - what's worse for the world:
"Asians are loud; ping pong chang chong."
or
"I'll kill you!"
If the former warranted the latter, you have to wonder how miniscule an upset would still trigger the latter. Perhaps an Internet glitch? "I'll kill you Comcast!"
I'm far more worried about those who would threaten violence than those who say stupid things.
Regardless of how touchy-feely we'd ever become as a society, the whole "sticks and stones" bit still holds true.
Of course, the statistical likelihood of anyone following through with a death threat is small. But what's in the heart of someone willing to make it? That seems the larger issue in terms of anything "teachable."
Dan: Thanks for visiting and for the kind words. I look forward to any future visits by you in the future. I will be over to check out your blog posts this afternoon.
Inno: Help me out; where exactly did you disagree with what I said?
Josh: It goes without saying (at least it should) that those making threats of violence are in more of a need of a teachable moment than someone like Alexandra Wallace. However, Alexandra and others who share similar views about a particular group are in need of some educating themselves. Also, who's to say "Asians are loud; ping pong chang chong" couldn't lead to something far worse?
Seeing things like this reminds me that there is a purpose to my job (I'm an EEO Specialist). It sometimes still amazes me that folk are still that ignorant but when it comes to feelings and discrimiantion it can become a very emotional thing. People are reacting irrationally and violence can often be apart of it.
We're all individuals, so any blanket assessment of potential violence is only as good as the last individual to act out. Will a girl making ignorant statements on video about how Asians get on her nerves eventually transform into a hate-filled serial killer, running down Asians in her car?
It's certainly possible. Few things are impossible.
But these faux comedic rants, wherein people display their ignorance of another race, are rarely hate-driven. Especially in this age of instant media, the likelihood she means Asians physical harm is slim.
If she took that on stage, threw in some material about a few other races and added in some colorful curse words, she'd be the poor man's Lisa Lampanelli.
These stereotypes, while ignorant, are on the more innocent side of the scale.
White people can't dance
Black people play basketball
Asians are loud and talk funny
I'd personally call her dumb (for more reasons than her anti-Asian rant). But should people be worried that she'll start committing hate crimes?
It doesn't wash. It's not impossible, but she's not threatening to harm or kill.
Unless she edited that part out...
CC: Thank you for visiting! I can imagine some of the stories you must have as an EEO Specialist. As angry as Ms. Wallace's comments may make some of us, we have to realize that violence isn't going to help enlighten her.
Josh: Whether or not these so-called "faux comedic rants" are hate driven is a matter of opinion. Although I doubt Ms. Wallace is going to go out and commit violent acts against Asians, my point is that hatred/violence towards particular groups can stem from ignorant stereotyping that some might downplay as being innocent. When it comes to this type of ignorance, I go by the "Barney Fife rule": Nip it in the bud.
Personally, I'm not downplaying it as being innocent.
I just try put all things into perspective.
There are mean, vicious, hateful people in the world. Although none of us speak about it enough, the amount of real hate in this world, hate that sees women raped for entertainment, families murdered and cake passed out in celebration, bombs sent on top of bombs, and more brutal, senseless acts of violence by the thousands each day, tips my scale so decidedly that a dumb-ass girl like this doesn't even blip my radar.
But that's just me.
I understand that it fits the theme here. And I will pop in to rant when something catches my eye. But I'm just not the type of individual to elevate basic ignorance higher than it should be simply because "race" is involved.
If she were ranting away about fat people or bald people or even little people, I highly, highly doubt she would become an insta-inter celeb. But because it's "race" (and maybe even because of her race) it's somehow more worrisome.
I cannot subscribe to that.
Try as I might, I cannot make it stand out as logical to give this the attention it's been getting (I've seen it all over the place to date).
The times in which we live open doors for this type of stuff to see the light more so than years past. Like with the idiot fly-by blog commenters in the new post above this - it's fairly light stuff.
I still hand out the stupid label where I see it fits. But beyond that...
Josh: Thank you for your explanation. When I originally planned to write about this topic, I was going to tackle it from a humorous angle because I felt Alexandra's idiocy was over-the-top laughable. However, once I learned about the death threats, I realized this isn't a laughing matter.
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