Asian Jokes?

During a recent question and answer session at a university, I was asked by a bright and enthusiastic Asian American student, “The political stuff was great, but what about the Asian jokes?” This was met with a gleeful response, to which I had no real solid reply. It kind of took me aback, because the only answer I could come up with was that me being an Asian American went without saying, and therefore, by nature of who I am, everything I do is Asian American. I am the bearer of my perspective and that is all. I assume that my ethnic identity is not separate from my words or my message. Perhaps that is taking too much of societal acceptance of minority opinions for granted. I am not sure.

I hope that people see me as having a right to debate issues that are not exclusive to Asian Americans, without having to be cast as a ‘banana’ (yellow exterior, white interior). Do we think when listening to Peter Jennings that he is actively avoiding his Canadian roots? Is Jay Leno ever held up as a spokesperson for his own ethnic background, of which I am actually unaware? Why am I unaware? Perhaps because I have never heard him talk about it. I assume that he is of European descent, since he is white, and therefore, kind of a social ‘neutral,’ deftly able to comment on all of culture and make fun of it by virtue of his own socially sanctioned ‘neutrality.’

Because I am not white, am I not qualified to comment on the state of American politics? Can I not engage in hands on activism for hot button issues like same sex marriage and the death penalty? I am not trying to be hostile, but the operative word there is ‘trying.’ We live in trying times, and as a compassionate person, with a fierce warrior spirit and a true desire to change the world, I find that there are many causes that I wish to fight for, and many enemies to conquer, for to right wrongs is my true mission in life. Is my race a determining factor in whether or not my war cry will be heard?

As an Asian American, I have felt firsthand the effects of racism, and therefore civil rights are vitally important to me, never wanting to have to let those experiences I endured repeat themselves in the generations to come. I take what I have learned from the great leaders of the civil rights movement, as well as assorted historical figures, suffragettes, pop and religious icons, artists and philosophers. I want to combine my knowledge with my own suffering, piecing together a kind of quilt, so that we all might benefit from the warmth of understanding. My heroes were not exclusively Asian, or Asian American, but from everywhere, as far back as recorded history would allow us to see.

The people I choose to admire are not necessarily popular, nor are they terribly well known, but they each have something to offer me, a lesson, an idea, an inspiration, a cautionary tale. I remember them in hopes that someone in the future might remember me, and possibly be helped by this, a message in a bottle, which I’d say is a fairly great ambition. This is how I would like to be remembered. Perhaps then, I will transcend the ethnic face I was born with, and my words will be as powerful as I wish they could be, but frankly, I would rather have that now, while I am still here.

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