Speaking of unhinged people in media, we’d be remiss if we didn’t at least mention the train wreck that recently went down at San Francisco’s AsianWeek newspaper, where a complete idiot by the name of Kenneth Eng, 22 years of age, wet behind the ears, hot under the collar, too big for his britches and bats in his belfry, has been allowed to write a column called, interestingly, “God of the Universe,” in which he spewed moronic racist rants against white people, fellow Asian people, and Black and Latino people, apparently unchecked until his most recent gem blew the lid off the whole damn pot. Entitled, “Why I Hate Black People,” it explained, well, why Kenneth Eng hates black people. Though he also likes to call them Negroes. The column has been pulled and AsianWeek, which ran this guy’s infantile bloviations for a number of months, has now issued a pathetic, simpering apology, but the text has been preserved for posterity in various places on the interwebs. Here is a wee sample:
Contrary to media depictions, I would argue that blacks are weak-willed. They are the only race that has been enslaved for 300 years. It is unbelievable that it took them that long to fight back. On the other hand, we slaughtered the Russians in the Russo-Japanese War.
You’ll find a link to a PDF of the whole thing here. Anyway, at the risk of over-extending this fool’s fifteen seconds of fame, I also wanted to draw your attention to his soapbox at Amazon, where he’s also peddling some really atrocious fantasy writing (there’s a link to excerpts on this page). He writes on his Amazon blog:
Let’s look at the muslim religion. They believe that music, dance, naked women and other such things are “indecent”. They think that some creature called “allah” will bring them peace, yadda, yadda, yadda. They think that if they bow every day, they will somehow be transported to a place called “heaven”, where everyone looks conspicuously human. I don’t know about you, but I masturbate all the time. It’s not going to affect me in any way, aside from making me need to take baths more often. And listening to O Fortuna will not make my head explode. Nor will spitting at every church I see make my intestines burst out of my abdomen.
Furthermore, most religious people I’ve met tend to be incredibly stupid/poor. They are usually black/hispanic immigrants who do not have the brains or the balls to understand science and thus resort to reading retarded stories about saviors and saints. (Oh, by the way, for those of you who want to scream at how “racist” I am for mentioning negroes and hispanics in such a way, go to someone who gives a sh*t).
OK, that’s enough of that. So what’s this AsianWeek anyway? Here’s a take from Neelanjana Banerjee, who was once a reporter and editor there. AsianWeek’s pitch to advertisers says the paper is aimed at “1.5, 2nd and 3rd generation Asian Americans” — basically the East Asian equivalent of a lot of y’all macacas reading this site. You’d think someone there would have had the sense to sever young Mr. Eng’s ties to the paper a long time ago. I’m all for free speech, but I’ve rarely seen a more compelling case for blacklisting (pun intended! ha ha Kenneth, I said blacklisting!) — or maybe just an good ol’ fashioned beatdown. Happy Friday everybody!
Did you mention that he wrote earlier columns entitled: Why I Hate Whites and even, Why I Hate Asians? He does spread the hate around, you have to say that for him.
GREAT title!
You couldn’t call him a racist though, his next column that AsianWeek pulled “Why I hate my self”
Oh, insidethebeltway, he’s an equal opportunity bigot? That makes it a lot better! Hate’s at least marginally acceptable when it’s spewed on everyone.
I notice he seems to revel in the exploits of Imperial Japan. Such a shame then that we will miss his next article: “Why the Chinese Had Nanking Coming”
Wouldn’t the oft-mentioned Brother Angry be a closer match? Scroll down to 02.24.07 for his take on the controversy.
Well, at least Eng will have more time masturbating (he must be ambidextrous), which is not surprising since I’m willing to bet five dollars that he must’ve been dissed by women of those ethnic groups that he wrote those ignorant racist tantrums.
i was apalled by this when i learned of the entire situation earlier this week..at least this super tool got fired…forget blacklisting.. let’s blackball him… oops.. i forgot.. he doesn’t have any balls to blacken..
As a matter of fact I did, in the very first paragraph of the post:
So the worst thing is that a lot of people are taking this as an “all you asians are racist” thing despite numerous Asian organizations decrying this article. Why does this always happen? One Asian/Black/Hispanic goes off his/her handle and suddenly we’re all tainted.
Honestly I’m not seeing it that way. There is some dumb sounding off going on comment threads of various blog and newspaper sites, but have you come across anyone with any kind of authority or media platform putting forward that view?
I just read Eng’s angry essay about his time at NYU [http://scars.tv/dirt/dirt012.htm]. While he certainly may have some anger management and other issues, it seems to this macaca that his basic complaint that racism against Asians is more accepted in America than racism against other ethnic groups … could be true.
i find a lot of the blame and media backlash highlights eng as the sole perpetrator of this racist drivel. but, i honestly think that asian week holds the majority of the blame, there are racist crazies everywhere, that doesn’t mean that they should all get a credible platform to spout their crap. not that i thought that asianweek was a great publication before, but they’ve really gone down as an appropriate source and mouthpiece of asian americans in my mind – it seem pretty clear that they published eng solely for his shock factor, not for his great writing skills. i hope the spike in traffic/interest made up for the loss of whatever credibility they had left.
“As a matter of fact I did, in the very first paragraph of the post.” Sorry Siddhartha. I’d already read about this unhappy individual and was a little jaded. Should have read your post more thoroughly. Mea culpa.
“Oh, insidethebeltway, he’s an equal opportunity bigot? That makes it a lot better! Hate’s at least marginally acceptable when it’s spewed on everyone.”
More like transposed fractions cancelling each other out. Or you can’t hear the words for the din, etc. But all you really need is love, love, love.
From a Bay perspective, this has been so disgusting, and it has honestly had a huge effect in driving back years of progress in inter-community race-relations in the area. I personally have’nt heard people say “all you Asians are racist,” but this whole incident of gross stupidity hasn’t helped when the operating assumption/stereotype of API/As is that we already hate everyone else or “think they’re too good” for other communities.
It really doesn’t matter to me that he has written hate articles for all sorts of people; he is blatantly racist and classist, and it is disgusting that AsianWeek thought that this was acceptable to run to print. They said they were sorry for any hurt they may have caused – wtf did they expect!?!? Did they think someone was going to go, “You know, Kevin, you are right. Because of my skin color, I and everyone who looks like me are sorry excuses for human life”?
You see, Camille, no wonder the brother has a chip on his shoulder. You can’t even get his name right!
😛 (of course)
One Asian activist said that Eng’s viewpoint existed in the Asian community. I’m lifting this from the SAJA forum:
David Lee of the Chinese American Voters Education Committee said Eng’s column “echoes the feelings of some Asian-Americans”:
“There is a segment that feels the way Eng does, but the sentiment is underground and not brought to the surface,” Lee said. “If you don’t have a discussion, then I think it allows these types of views to fester and turn into something much more negative. Rather than refute and bury this, we should be calling for a community dialogue to address this.”
Obnoxious, maddened rant, yes. Isolated? Perhaps not.
A Chinese guy referring to Japan as “we?” That’s a paddlin’…
I like the white colloquialisms..
A Chinese guy referring to Japan as “we?” That’s a paddlin’…
The Asian-American identity, like all identities, is replete with internal contradictions. Identity politics is situational, rooted in localities. Recall the Chinese proverb “leave the monkeys in the forest alone.” Those monkeys are us. And yet, for a time, some Indians considered themselves “the most Asiatic of all the Asiatics,” as Sri Aurobindo said, in a moment of spiritual triumphalism.
I suspect on Asian supremacism of Eng’s variety would be quite risible in East Asia, just as the South Asian identity is scoffed at by Indians and Pakistanis.
Mr. Eng is a tool who deserves to get his a$$ kicked, no doubt. I’m more upset with the publication, frankly. In today’s world how can an editor-in-chief possibly think that publishing this tripe was a good idea?
“Kenneth Eng, 22 years of age, wet behind the ears, hot under the collar, too big for his britches and bats in his belfry” Thank you for using of all those phrases. Couldnt describe it better. I had to google a couple of them to know what they meant.
Duly chastised. I think my unadulterated anger interfered with my capacity to spell his name correctly 😉
First of all, I heart Siddhartha and not just because he suggested a “ol’ fashioned beatdown.”
There is SO much wrong with this situation–AsianWeek what were you thinking?–but I’ll just focus on Mr. Eng:
1) Branch Dravidian, I’m with you, when in the heck did Chinese folks start claiming Japanese conquests?! Let’s be real here. Even if they tried, the Japanese would lay the smackdown (again). 2) I find it interesting that someone who took the time to pen a diatribe on people of faith would then choose to call himself “God of the Universe.” Um, right. 3) I am laughing out loud at point #3: about black people being coerced/forced into Christianity, “the white man’s religion”, by a Chinese guy named KENNETH because that’s such a traditional Chinese name.
As for the suggestion that a lot of Asian folks are pretty ticked at black folks (re:#16), I don’t think that’s any more the case than any other racial/ethnic divide in the US. I really think it’s more an issue of Asian folks not getting black folks, not being able to understand why things are the way that they are today.
plus the fact that many koreans and chinese people are christian anyway.
3) I am laughing out loud at point #3: about black people being coerced/forced into Christianity, “the white man’s religion”, by a Chinese guy named KENNETH because that’s such a traditional Chinese name.
That is quite funny. The viewpoint, however is hardly original. The Nation of Islam had been saying that about Christianity in the 60s, that the promise of heavenly reward entrenched passivity and enabled the hierarchical social order in American society. Check out the Malcolm X Playboy interview.
I disagree with what he has to say but I really don’t see a cause here for revoking free speech. The kid said what was on his mind. I think we’re better off letting these guys vent their steam on pen and paper than bottle it all inside and then go postal. Will his opinion radically change if this piece wasnt published ? Will the hatred disappear ?… Brushed under the carpet maybe.
The fact remains that it wasn’t an intelligent, well-thought out piece reflecting racial prejudice, but a racially-prejudiced rant. Whether an illogical rant (racist or not) deserved to be published is completely another issue. I would not have any problems with this if it was written on his blog. And my problems in this case are with the editorial standards of the magazine, which shouldnt really matter to me, since I’m not a subscriber.
You guys also want his ISP\Amazon to take down his blog and issue an apology if it contains similar content? If not, then why the double standard ? Why is a mass-audience paper-ink publication subject to one standard while an electronic publication, also capable of garnering a mass audience, subject to another ?
I think it’s unfortunate that these pieces were published, and even more unfortunate that Mr. Eng feels the need to express such hated. However, the truth is, the world is full of bigots like Mr. Eng, and many of them will continue to voice their opinions in whatever way they are able. It’s a sad, cruel world full of very ugly people.
The important question to ask is
How many other South Asians feel this way? If he is speaking for a sizeable number of people I think it is OK to publish this article.I agree that they should have chosen a better writer.
I agree with Udit. It’s better to let this guy vent out his anger and say what he actually thinks. It’s better to have a dialogue about these issues rather than brush them under the carpet.
Different ethnicities in the US DO have prejudices against one another, which are based on stereotypes. Too many times “political correctness” prevents us from talking about issues honestly.
My hope is that Kenneth’s article got people to talk about these things.
Yes, the irony of someone with the surname “Eng” praising Imperial Japan’s conquests was not lost on me. I don’t have words to describe what a putz this guy is.
Oh there is just NO way the Editor can wash his hands off this one.. His days in office are definitely numbered.
As with the case of lots of ill-tongued celebrities in the recent past, I think Kenneth and the entire editorial board need to check in to Rehab ASAP.
Folks, we are all barking up the wrong (or at least irrelevant) tree; racism is the least of Mr. Eng’s problems. He is, how shall I put it, a bit ‘touched’. Scroll down and read his interview for evidence.
Actually, Udit, I’m one among the minority of people who think hatemongering is NOT covered under the exercise of free spech so, at least in my case, I wouldn’t be applying a double-standard. You bring up an good point though: Because printed journalism enjoys a higher level of legitimacy than its electronic cousins, our expectations for integrity are higher.
sigh! ROFL on saving your “animal plushies” when your house is burning!
The guy is a proto Dinsesh D’Souza!
I liked this comment on his amazon blog:
For those who are arguing that publishing racist drivel is ok (or even useful) because it encourages dialogue or highlights the way a segment of society feels, I would ask you to really think about this again. I think arguing the merits of this article is ridiculous. It is poorly written, hateful, and has no intelligent reasoning. Furthermore, it does not open the door for sincere conversation on attitudes towards interracial relations, it automatically puts people on the defensive or makes them angry, which is no place to start a conversation. Further still, I really don’t think we should legitimize racism in the Asian American or South Asian American community, especially not through something like this.
He must be so unhappy. He’s still a complete douche, of course, but that interview just reeks of inadequacy.
And did anyone else find it ironic that all his characters’ names were really really Euro-Latin in their made-up-ness? (Daemonhand Mediaeval? Uther Penn Sapien? Animantis?) Why no names of Japanese or Chinese extract, Mr. Eng?
As far as the free speech argument goes: yes, freedom of speech means KE can say what he wants, but it doesn’t mean anyone anywhere at any time should give him a platform for doing so. They should not. And I don’t buy the whole “maybe this will start a dialogue” argument either. I don’t believe that any useful, forward-looking dialogue will ensue when touched off by bigotry and hatred. Folks get (understandably) defensive, and it’s all downhill from there.
Oops! Camille beat me to my last point, and put it more eloquently. 🙂
But there is a further difference. AsianWeek is a publication, with an editorial staff that takes responsibility for its content. Amazon.com is not a publication, and its management does not take editorial responsibility for what users post. If it were, say, Slate or Salon or some other online publication with editors, most of us would expect the same standards in matters such as this one as we’d expect from the traditional print media. Don’t get taken in by the double-standard police. There are people who make a hobby out of calling out so-called double standards that are in fact spurious. It’s one of the most-abused concepts out there.
Looks like the only people he spared are… desis! That seems to be the only desi angle to this blog entry, unless I’m missing something.
His views on religion/religious people are not too different from that of Richard Dawkins, though.
M. Nam
yea i don’t buy that eng is doing us some favor by starting this dialouge either. there’s a difference between starting an intelligent conversation about tensions between two groups and spitting racism and tell all other asians that they should be too. not quite the discussion that we should want about the subject.
Is this possible? An atheist fundamentalist. I guess both these words don’t look good in a sentence (lol). Anyway,What was the editor of “Asiaweek” thinking?! This is a malicious ,malignant,noxious and racist rant.
From his Blog on Amazon: “Hail Evolution. Long live Science. “
WTF?! Mr.ENG: You Effing moron. Just by calling other people DUMB because of their religious preferences doesn’t make you any better,In fact you are more DUMBer and come off as a pathetic excuse for a human being.
I just hope he evolves into … a tick.
Kenneth Eng, 22 years of age, wet behind the ears, hot under the collar, too big for his britches and bats in his belfry”
Couldnt have said it better.
“Asianweek”. My Bad.
I agree with the first statement, not sure about the second. I haven’t read this guy’s ‘article’ in detail, but it doesn’t seem like he was a particularly articulate exponent of any cogent point of view. So the only way he could be saved is if he was being ironic, sarcastic, or deliberately writing in caricature. On the other hand, I agree wholeheartedly that inter-ethnic mutual negative perceptions are very real, go every which way, are often conditioned by majority-propagated stereotypes, and are hard to erase.
On people beating up on him for being ‘Chinese’ and glorifying supposed ‘Japanese’ miltary conquests, I don’t see a particular contradiction. To a considerable extent, home-country identification washes away in the 2nd and later generations to yield to a pan-racial identity, so that’s what I see here. It’s rather like the way some Af-Ams think of Nubia or, more dramatically, ‘Abyssinia’ and ‘the black Christ’ – these things are/were on the other side of the continent from where their ancestors mainly came. China and Japan are practically next door.
Another real, inter-ethnic issue is that some Af-Ams are As-Ams too, and vice-versa. Yes, a half-century of US troops in Asia has created many Asian-Af-Am kids, and so the As-Am vs Af-Am schism is not nearly as big a disjunction as might appear on the surface. Another locus for this is the Caribbean. Yes, the next Jamaican you meet might very well be a little (or a lot) Chinese too!
So let’s be a little more inclusive in our thinking and recognize that every category is a little fuzzy around the edges…
Desis aren’t Asian?
Taking that concept a little further, What if someone runs a one-man print publication from his basement. That person simulatenously functions as management, editorial staff and journalist. As a tech-savvy dude, he also has a blog where he publishes the same content online. Will his rant published on ink-paper be accountable to a different standard than his rant published online. If he has 10,000 subscribers to his publication and 10,000 subscribers to his blog, did the hate-speech using different media have a different impact on society ?
Siddhartha, if the “Double Standard Police” epithet was for me, I’d rather be a double-standard philosopher for asking questions. My question was not rhetorical in nature, I genuinely want to find an answer. Maybe I should have asked the question in a different way without sounding like the “Double Standard Police”.
“Blacks hate us.” Funny, they’ve always been very friendly to me.
That Eng has these views is no surprise. That a “real” newspaper published them is shocking and inexcusable. The editor needs to be fired.
Appreciate your points Chachaji- the gorgeous Ralph Lauren model Tyson– is black/asian. Black/Afro or Negro Identity as Kenneth calls it, evolves- as any other (brown)group does. A lot of us appreciate Ethiopia as having some of the earliest established churches in all of Christendom so much for it being the white mans religion. However I don’t think many of us claim to have ancestry from the horn of Africa. Risible@ 25- I think Huey Newton-founder of the Black panthers,summed it up best when comparing the NOI and the PanAfricanist of his day by saying ” a pork chop never oppressed me, and a diashiki won’t liberate me”– or something along those lines.
I attended this event this past week-I don’t know if Prof. Wolper was just bored,or thought the whole proposition was so beneath him he couldn’t be bothered to bring his A game- but he basically said- the same thing as Kenneth here with out reference to race. I guess the gene for believing in god is like the gene for IQ (not going there now ). To my view he did not dispute the scientific facts the other presenter brought to the table. And so he resorted to culturalizing the debate–it was a 95% white(presumably christian background) audience- the question was is it delusional to believe in god? He turned it into why is your god better than some other person’s god. Throwing a bone to the 6 visibly ethnic looking people in the crowd.
This guy sounds like an idiot. However I do beleive some ideas that you might find ugly/scary need to be brought into the cold light of day- such as the IQ business. When I say ‘debate/discussion’ that should be a between people who have a clue of what they are talking about – and “recognized/verifiable” credentials to back it up. Its no reason to be afraid to discuss ideas-if you don’t know -shut up listen/learn and be prepared next time. To quote a phrase- iron sharpens iron. T Hype #23- whats to get? After our 400+ years sojourn in America- I’m just as American as George Herbert Walker Bush and his son! He and I are ‘culturally’ but not,consequently-politically the same. We are not all one big happy family in the US– but the differences are not nearly on the scale as the real culture wars that happening here.