220 Why Are We Here Today?


李春燕-1142  02/20   42003  
4.6/21 



Why are we here?


We are here today because we are yellow. Yes that is right, despite advice saying the otherwise, I would like all of us to face the reality. 

We are here because we are yellow. Just when we thought the Chinese Exclusions Act was long behind us, we had the government baselessly accuse Chinese American scientists such as Sherry Chen and Xiaoxing Xi as spies. We saw the Japanese interment looming when these innocent scientists were persecuted simply because they are yellow. 

So we are here because we are yellow. Just when we thought the American Dream has no color, we are reminded of the term "a Chinaman's chance", when we saw Peter Liang being convicted for something he has not committed. Assemblyman Colton called the prosecutor's act of painting Peter Liang as an intentional killer "highly prejudicial and inflammatory." Do we all agree? Even an African American young lady asked the question on YouTube, "why Liang, who didn't even have the intent? Is it because he is a minority?" The contrast between that over-zealous DA and this fair-minded lady can't be overlooked. How sad, and how ironic!!!

Note some didn't want us to use the race card, but let's face the grim reality pointed out by this honest young lady. 

We are here because we are yellow. We came to this country partly because of our belief in free speech, in the objective media, and in the fairness of the legal system. Yet we saw so often that TV hosts can condescendingly say, without consequence, "should we allow the Chinese to live?", "Chinese are all hackers", thus shamelessly blaming America's ills on the yellow peril. We saw the half truths around Peter Liang when the media painted him as a heartless person the moment the tragedy occurred, and politicians calling for indictment even before facts were clear. We saw the justice system failed Vincent Chin when the murderers were fined only $3000 dollars, when the judge said, "You don't make the punishment fit the crime; you make the punishment fit the criminal. These weren't the kind of men you sent to jail." Now, does Liang's conviction fit either the person or the "crime"? That is the question we should all ask. 

Thus we are here because we are yellow. Now it takes great courage to face this sentence, typing it down. Because I want to believe the American Dream has no color. My son echoed Dr. Martin Luther King's speech a little over 2 years ago in Time Square. Do I want him to know that, he not only has to work extra hard because of our "model minority" status, because of the "shy, nerdy" stereotypes thrown at him by the media, but now, my deep belief in the justice system is shaken? Do I want him to know the term "a Chinaman's chance"? 

We are here because we are yellow. Shall I tell my kids? Now, many parents would advise me otherwise. They rightly want to shield their children's innocent mind. But today, I no longer want to be the all protective parent, when I put myself into the shoes of Peter Liang's mother, and when I put myself into the shoes of the families caught in the tension between minority communities and police force. There is no winner in the Liang verdict. Will the society become safer after this? Will parents continue to encourage their children to become police officers? Especially Asian families? When is it a proper time to tell my kids? 

We are here because we are yellow. It hurts me when I type these words, because how I wish minorities of color can face this reality that, unless we unite and fight for justice together, our dreams will forever be tainted by our skin tones. It is a sad moment for two minority communities, but it doesn't have to be. I want to imagine, what if we all are like the African American lady ("no filter") on YouTube, to demand those truly are responsible to face the consequence? What if politicians and over zealous prosecutors had not used "political persecution", rightly called by an article on Independent Sentinel?

We are here because we are yellow. During the Civil Rights movement, Asian Americans marched together with Dr. Martin Luther King. Grace Lee Boggs, a Chinese American, fought decades for equal rights of the African American community. The government thought she was African American. So why Liang? Is it because the yellow color is seen as perpetual foreigner, an easy target? As law Professor Frank Wu pointed out: "how strange, and how wrong, it is, that the face picked to represent police brutality toward African Americans is Yellow." 

But we are not here solely because we are yellow. We are here because we still have hope that people of all colors, black, white, and yellow, can join force to demand true accountability, to demand equal treatment, to eradicate racial profiling, and in the end, to achieve the American Dream.

更新:
全美游行/集会视频

儿子和朋友分享的视频
清晰视频
Assemblyman Ron Kim 以及其他人演讲

一些辩论。很多朋友和我在这个视频下展开讨论,这是我们发声的开始
访谈

出发前敲到iPad上的感想引起很多朋友反馈,一并感谢!这里的角度不是我们自己如何定位,而是自己定位和社会定位的差异。我试图从媒体政府法律政治角度探讨。只有正视现实才能迈出步伐,这是我们作为社会争取权利、反对差别对待的行动。掩耳盗铃是毫无助益的。

有朋友提到yellow 一词本身历史上有歧视华人之意,也有人问我为何专用这词,是故意吗?我用它背景是从政治角度,参看前法学院院长Frank Wu几年前的书Yellow: beyond black and white http://www.amazon.com/Yellow-America-Beyond-Black-White/dp/046500640X 最近他又一次在Asian Scapegoat 文章(Huff Post)中重申"The face representing police brutality is yellow"。我也针对the Yellow Peril。No other word fits. 

然后还有Eric Liu讲什么样的词自己族裔可以说,别人说不得。比如Liu的书A Chinaman's Chance,刘可以说,但Bob Beckel说时我们就反对,后来Beckel无法再在Fox继续。Oscar出来的“小黄人”引起华人不满也是此意。之前的Fresh Off the Boat, 自己可以讲,别人用FOB就有嘲笑意思,当时推这部片子时也有讨论。Eddie在访谈时专门讲过。

照片
下面Facebook里嵌入的视频是梁母讲话,我一直站在她身后(直到她挪到前面讲话),能感到她的痛苦。
附注:近日各种分析不绝于耳,把法律和政治切割是无法看全面的。O编文章http://www.weidb.com/p39509&g=999&tag=&page=1