Hello Apu

apuflagI’m not going to lie – I think that Shilpa Davé is a little full of it in her article, “Apu’s Brown Voice.” She expects way too much out of both a fictional character and ignores the realities of Indian emigration to the United States.

Davé argues that Apu’s accent – his ‘brown voice’ – is used to set him apart, to identify his outsider nature to Springfield. Well, duh. The character is defined as growing up in India, having moved to the United States as an adult. She also lays out clearly how Indian English is a different variant of English, similar to Australian English or British English. It’s natural that the character would speak the language of his birth country, Indian English, so I don’t know how that could be offensive.

Technically, I would concede that Apu’s character overshadows the diversity that encompasses Indian Americans and the Indian diaspora. That’s almost on par with saying John Wayne doesn’t represent the diversity of America or James Bond doesn’t represent the diversity of the United Kingdom. It’s also an impossible task. Let us remember that India today has a population of 1 billion citizens, with such a linguistic diversity that 22 languages have a legal status in the country. I think that it’s next to impossible to represent such a diversity through one character.

Davé makes a point to mention the political diversity of India and Pakistan in order to judge Apu’s accent:

[Azaria] learned his accent “from listening. In Los Angeles, going to 7-11s, hearing Indian and Pakistani clerks.” Interestingly, as Al Jean’s quotation shows, even the writers… cannot distinguish between India (a democracy that has a largely Hindu population) and Pakistan (a military-based government that is primarily Muslim).

She doesn’t, however, mention the linguistic commonalities that they share. Linguists, for example, would argue that India and Pakistan share a language in common with two different standards. Both derived from the same root language, Hindi is spoken in India, written with a Sanskrit-derived script, using Sanskrit roots to coin new words, while Urdu is spoken in Pakistan, written with a modified Arabic script, using Arabic and Persian to coin new words. It’s entirely possible, then, for Apu to have the same accent whether he be from India or Pakistan. (Davé also forgets to mention in this section, regardless of the slip up that a writer may have made in an interview, that Apu is clearly a Hindu, thus from India, as shown by the statue of Ganesha, a Hindu god.)

Davé laments the popular perception of Indians as well educated (329). What she leaves out is that Indian Americans, the class that most Americans are likely to encounter in their everyday life, are well educated. About 40% of Indian Americans have a post-graduate degree – a marvelous, and unique feat considering only 20% of Indians have graduated high school. Why is there the disparity? Money. It would take the average Indian one year’s salary, approximately USD 1000, to afford a one-way plane ticket from India to the United States. This means that modern (post-1965) Indian immigrants are self-selected in a manner based on who can afford to emigrate, and who cannot. In other words, as Indian American author Sukethu Mehta writes, “If India shared a border with the U.S. and it were possible for its poorest residents to cross over on foot, we would fast cease to be the model minority, and talk-show hosts would rail against us just as they do against Mexicans.”

So in other words, you can’t just leave out facts that aren’t supportive of your argument, Ms. Davé.

Week 5, Friday Scissor Clips.

The reunions between North and South Korea that were meant to take place later this month have been threatened to be canceled by North Korea. This is not the first time reunions have been canceled and you can click here to read more about the current reasoning from CNN.

In other news, here are some Asian Americans to look for in this winter’s Sochi Olympics!!

1&2. Maia and Alex Shibutani, a brother-sister ice dancing team from Michigan who will be competeing in this winter’s Olympics. From their website they are the first “ice dance team of Asian heritage to win a medal at a major ISU Championship – 2011 Four Continents Championships.

3. Madison Chock (part of ice dance team with Evan Bates) is Hawai’ian-Chinese decent on her father’s side. Below is a video of her and Bate’s AMAZING performance which helped determine their naming in these Olympics and here is an interview with both Bates and Chock on going to the Olympics which is conducted by Michelle Kwan, two-time Olympic medalist and Chinese American woman.

Click here to view the embedded video.

4. Felicia Zhang, a 20-year-old Chinese-American skater. This will be her first Olympics and she is skating with Nathan Bartholomay in ice dance team. Below is a video of their Senior Pairs skate.

Click here to view the embedded video.

5. Julie Chu! Chu is a 31-year-old hockey player for the United States women’s team. She is the first Asian American woman to play for the U.S. Olympic ice hockey team, as well as a veteran of the Olympic. She will be making her fourth appearance in the winter Olympics this year. Here is a brief article which includes a video of personal interview with Chu and her mother.

6. J.R. Celski, a Filipino American short track speed skater. In 2010 during short track trials Celski fell and cut his leg with his blade however since then he has worked through his injury and is now completing in Sochi! Below is a video interview with him and his mother which goes more into detail on his injury, how he started, and where he is now.

Click here to view the embedded video.

7. Jen Lee is member of the U.S. Paralympic Sled Hockey Team. Lee is of Taiwanese heritage and had his left leg amputated above the knee in 2009. For those interested in hockey, they website The Color of Hockey is about “Players of Color” and here are the entries with Jen Lee tag.

There is also the notable figure skater Mirai Nagasu, who sparked some controversy about racism when she was not named to go to the Olympics despite her bronze medal in the U.S. National Championships. The rest of that article can be found here.

– API NEWS

I’m a little bit worried to talk about this topic, because this news was related with politics so I’m not sure I can post exactly what I want to say. However, I’m interested how you think about this news, so I decided to share this news.

I want you to check this page and watch the movie on the top of the page.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-25518137

Japanese Prime Minister; Abe went to Yasukuni Shrine which is dedicated to the spirits of dead by wars and also soldiers. It has been seven years since Japanese Prime Minister last came there. Every time the person who were related with government went there, Chinese and Korean criticized them because our history background. In this time, he might have expected that he would get criticisms from these countries. However, it was surprising that the American government also said that this Japanese act was disappointed on the website (http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/p/tp-20131226-01.html).

I think that criticizing by Chinese and Korea is one of the problem in Japan and we should talk more and have good relationships between them, but I know it is difficult to do because we have different thoughts from history. So, it would be everyday occurrence what Chinese and Korea said something against Japanese. However, this problem is not only around Asian but also around world American caused commenting about this news in America. From American view, problems between Asian countries like this looked like small matters. However, recently most of countries became international and have relationships all over the world. Today, we can’t live with closing countries. I don’t want you to think that this problem is not your business.

Zombie Obsession Post 4: Comparison of Dialogue and Relationships

Each week I will be answering one or more of the 12 questions posted from week four’s obsession blog.  I will do this by comparing and contrasting a Japanese zombie T.V. show/movie with an American zombie T.V. show/movie.  This week I am comparing and contrasting dialogue and relationships.

Zombie Loan Episode 2 “Want to Die” (Japanese anime T.V. series):

 (From left to right: Shito, Michiru, and Chika)

(Picture found from:  http://animahiro.blogspot.com/2013/06/zombie-loan.html)

 

The relationships in Zombie Loan are quite complicated. In a list I’ll give examples.

1. In episode two it is revealed that Shito and Chika are very competitive with each other.

“Materializing your weapon uses energy. Save it for now” Shito says to Chika.

“Don’t tell me what to do! A weak guy like you should conserve some energy!” Chika says.

“Have you ever heard of the term “strategy?” The quality and quantity of a weapon as complicated as my gun consumes more ectoplasm. Not like your simple little toy! ” Shito says.

“Toy! It’s on! You’re dependent on projectiles, you chicken! ” Chika says.

2. There is a foreshadowing of a caring/loving dynamic between the two boys and Michiru. On multiple occasions Chika threatens Michiru, telling her that she better do as she’s told or else he’ll “kill her.” Clearly Chika would not kill her though because near the end of the episode he decides to save her. After Michiru wakes up, the ferryman tells her the only reason he agreed to save her was because the boys told him to. Michiru also learns that both Chika and Shito took an additional debt in order to save her. Neither the Ferryman or Michiru knows exactly why the boys saved her but it can be implied it is because they care for her. This implication can be seen when Michiru leaves her aunt’s house and walks out onto the sidewalk. Both the boys are waiting there for her. In my opinion, Chika’s threats show his budding feelings for Michiru and also his progression of humanity (Yes, I know that sounds completely weird and crazy). Before episode 2, Chika would have killed Michiru easily with no remorse. But as the season continues Chika beings using the threat as a way of telling Michiru that he wants to see her again. At least that’s my interpretation of the threat.

The Walking Dead Episode 2 “Guts” (American horror drama T.V. series):

 (From left to right: Shane, Lori, and Rick)

(Picture found from: http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/the-walking-dead/images/17444426/title/shane-lori-rick-photo)

 

The relationships in The Walking Dead are just as complicated as in Zombie Loan, but the show’s plotline has a heavier mood to it. In the 1st season, Lori is caught in a love triangle with Rick and Shane. Paying special close attention to episode 2, this is when the audience sees Lori’s romantic emotional turmoil begin to unfold. She believes that her husband Rick is dead, yet still wears her wedding ring. Walking into the woods Lori hears branches snapping. The snapping of the branches adds suspense, because it typically indicates an approaching zombie. However, it’s not a zombie; it’s Rick’s best friend Shane. Putting his hand over her mouth, he then pulls her to the ground. She lightly smacks his arm while smiling, saying; “you scared the hell out of me.” Within a few minutes Lori removes her wedding ring and they have sex.  Ultimately, Lori is torn between her past, present, and future life. The reason she continuously wears her wedding ring is because she is still in love with Rick and a part of herself is still loyal to him; she takes off her wedding ring during intimacy with Shane because she feels guilty for having sex with someone other than her husband and because he is Rick’s best friend; and she also wears the wedding ring because it symbolizes her hope that Rick is still alive, and because it keeps her attached to her old life.

Conclusion:

 (Michiru)

(Picture found from: http://www.chia-anime.com/zombie-loan/watch-zombie-loan-2.html)

 

Both Michiru and Lori feel vulnerable because they are scared of new life. Michiru is left vulnerable because of her parents death, she is scared of zombies, and she is scared of working for Zombie Loan (that is before dying and coming back to life). Lori is vulnerable because her husband is supposedly dead and she is scared of living in a world without her family.

In future episodes of both shows, the male characters mentioned above become competitive with each other for the same reason; their love for a woman (either Lori or Michiru).

 

All Look Same?

The biggest portion of reading that stood out to me from Tuesday was about Asian Americans and their association with the Online world. The section mainly covered alllooksame.com which involved categorizing Asians into either Korean, Chinese or Japanese based on one facial picture. Our seminar group discussed how even with race coinciding with geological factors that play into physical aesthetics, it is impossible to be certain of someone’s ethnicity based on a picture. The book further delved into this topic with race mixing of Asian population such as a Japanese-Korean or some one that is Chinese born in Japan etc etc.

With the general topic of internet culture at hand we talked about the anonymity of cyberspace and how people can choose to portray any kind of person they want without repercussions. Which could be a reason why the Asian population has the highest Internet usage of any other group, including whites. Any kind of societal pressure of stereotypes and model minority can be abolished in the online world where one’s identity is masked in order to have discussion with others based on content alone rather than race/sex.

The reading further provides examples of minorities who could point out which Asian race is which (That’s a Korean. That’s a Chinese. etc.) Though I agree that those involved with a group more so than others will notice things such as attire and style the pure physical aesthetics cannot be just tied to a race. Personally I scored an 11 out of 18 on the test which apparently is a high score which I found ironic due to my stance on the idea of racial categorization.

Asian Musicians With Taste

“On the path of Zen Guitar, develop your sense of taste as you would your sense of hearing. Learn from those players whose taste you like. Then trust your taste like the cook who knows how hot he likes his chili. If rejection follows, so be it. At least you have satisfied yourself”.

Remember, too, that tastes can change. Some music we learn to appreciate with study. Some music grows on us with the passage of time. And some music we ignore for years until it catches us at exactly the right moment as we are driving down the highway. Play the truth and it will remain the truth for listeners to discover when they are ready” (p67) ~Philip Sudo, Zen Guitar

With music being one of the primary focuses of week-five, I decided to search for Asian musicians outside the genre of pop and hip-hop to see what influence they have had in guitar-centric rock.

I’ve assembled and present for your viewing & listening pleasure a short list of serious, established Asian/American players of the highest caliber who leave behind the mass of teenage marketed genres. These cats are true musicians who transcend stereotypes by being true to themselves and their music. I selected a video for each musician that showcases their craft, rather than posting their bands music videos; this way it is the musician talent being presented instead of a producers story.

John Myung bassist and founding member of Dream Theater (Wikipedia):

photo-2“Born in Chicago to Korean parents, Myung grew up in Kings Park, Long Island, New York. He played the violin from the age of five until he was asked to play electric bass in a local band when he was fifteen. He accepted. After graduating from high school he and his high school friend John Petrucci enrolled at the Berklee College of Music, where they met future bandmate Mike Portnoy. The three of them formed the band Majesty with another friend from high school, keyboardist Kevin Moore and vocalist Chris Collins. The band would later change its name to Dream Theater.

…he has appeared as a guest on numerous records. He also played keyboards in the spoof band Nightmare Cinema… Myung’s main influences include Chris Squire, Steve Harris, Geddy Lee and Cliff Burton, and their respective bands Yes, Iron Maiden, Rush, and Metallica.

 

Click here to view the embedded video.

Kirk Hammet, the lead guitarist for Exodus (1980-83) followed by his current band, Metallica (Wiki):

“Hammett was born on November 18, 1962 in San Francisco to a Filipina mother Teofila “Chefela” Oyao from Cebu and an Irish Merchant Marine father.[3] He attended De Anza High School in Richmond, California.” 

Click here to view the embedded video.


Herman Li was born in Hong Kong in 1974, and is the lead guitarist for the band Dragon Force (Wiki):

Li is such an influential guitarist that Ibanez produced a signature model for him

Click here to view the embedded video.

Arnel Pineda replaced Steve Perry as the lead singer for the classic rock band, Journey (Wiki):

“Born in 1967 is a Filipino singer-songwriter. He came to prominence in the Philippines during the 1980s and internationally in 2007 as the lead singer of the American rock band Journey.”

10_3_09_JOURNEY_kabik-198-2-570“Videos… performing cover songs by Journey, Survivor, Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, Air Supply, The Eagles, Kenny Loggins, Stryper and other popular acts from the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, began appearing on YouTube in February 2007. On June 28, 2007, Neal Schon of Journey contacted Noel Gomez, a longtime fan and friend of Pineda who uploaded many of these videos, to ask for Pineda’s contact information. Schon sent an e-mail to Pineda inviting him to audition for Journey. Pineda initially dismissed the e-mail as a hoax, but after being persuaded by Gomez, he finally replied to Schon’s e-mail. Ten minutes later, Pineda received a phone call from Schon. On August 12, Pineda, along with his manager Bert de Leon, flew to Marin County, just north of San Francisco, for a two-day audition. The star-struck Pineda was welcomed warmly but he described the audition as “nerve-wracking, tense”. On December 5, 2007, Pineda was announced as the lead singer of Journey.”

 A feature-length documentary of Pineda’s story titled, “Don’t Stop Believin’: Everyman’s Journey” was released in 2012. 

Click here to view the embedded video.

This list was just a sampling of the many Asian/American rock musicians who stand head & shoulders above the rest. There are a host of others in America– many of whom can be heard right here at Evergreen’s public radio station, KAOS 89.3 Olympia.

 

Notes

The notes that I take vary from week to week. I wrote something like this.

Talking about Tiger Woods and when he said when he was growing up that he called himself,” Cablinasian” and that right there I thought I was the only one that kind of combined my races together. Blactive that’s what I claim as. Black/African American and Native American so to intertwined. I love that it was in a book that we was reading for this class.

I also wrote about the music videos that we watched and I had no idea about the ABC and what it stood for. That was a surprise to me and the fact that there are abbreviations that I had no idea that were applied to Asian Americans.

Yoko I also wrote down as interesting just wanted to get better clarification on the word and its meaning as it relates to Asian Americans because I’ve heard that in a song and was wondering what it meant. Anyone???

Apu’s Brown Voice

As reading this chapter, I thought that is was ironic. The idea of a popular TV show and one of characters of color, especially Indian American is played by a American actor and he is sounding just like an Indian, but some may not know this.  I didn’t know of this because I don’t watch TV that often, but now reading about it in a published book and that was a surprise itself to me. In the beginning of the chapter where it says,” Apu vents his frustration about falsely posturing in both dress and accent as someone who is culturally and stereotypically represented as American. Also in the book, “Although Indian independence was achieved over fifty years ago, the image of Indians in the world is that of the highly educated English speaking immigrant.” Who says that Indians can’t speak English just as well as a American English speaking person. Just saying that underestimating a nation is not always the best thing to do in general. Every nation I know have their own set of skills and talents that maybe some may not be able to accomplish and to have something as a TV show actor an Indian American actor at that is being played by a American. Just saying that everyone deserves a shot in this world even if its one part because he probably made a bundle on that show because its gotten popular in the world of TV. Everyone deserves a shot.

for the islands i’ve lost // the islands i’ve never known (preview)

Click here to view the embedded video.


“the first preview for my senior thesis project, a multi-channel, multimedia installation exploring notions of home, family, and kinship within a postcolonial and queer diasporic pin@y context.”

Devyn Manibo is an internet acquaintance of mine who continues to end up in my real life circle of friends. They just got back from a trip to the Philippines where they were working on a really incredible project. More info here