Anti-Asian Column Becomes Rallying Cry for Colorado's AA Student Community
A peace rally and a list of demands for the chancellor are just some of the actions taken by AA students protesting a racist column in the U. of Colorado at Boulder's student publication.
Chris Choe, 21, should be studying for his midterm exams right about now but instead he's busy helping organize a peace rally and preparing a list of demands for the chancellor - all this in response to the frenzy created by an anti-Asian column that has gripped the University of Colorado at Boulder (CU) campus the past several days.
"If it's war the Asians want ... It's war they'll get" - an Opinion piece by student editor Max Karson calling for Asians to be rounded up, "hog tied" and made to perform demeaning acts - was published in CU's online student publication, the Campus Press, on Feb. 18.
The reaction from CU's Asian American students and from AAs across Colorado has been one of uniform anger and frustration. Dissatisfied with the school's response thus far, the students have now formed an organized coalition to press for further action including demanding the resignations of Editor in Chief Cassie Hewlings and staff faculty advisor Amy Herdy.
"Why leave the people in power who did this? They say they want diversity but they have the same people in the positions," said Choe, president of CU's Korean American Students at Boulder.
"This is not the first time a racial incident has happened on campus. On the outside they say diversity, diversity ... but no changes are made here. What about our physical safety?"
Chancellor G.P. "Bud" Peterson and Campus Press editors issued apologies shortly after the uproar, describing Karson's Opinion piece as satire gone horribly wrong. The Dean of the School of Journalism and Mass Communications Paul Voakes has also promised diversity training for the staff, workshops on opinion writing, and the establishment of a Student Diversity Advisory Board.
But critics argue the school's response so far has focused on the journalistic mistakes made rather than the damage Karson's inflammatory comments (Asian students "hate us all. And I say it's time we started hating them back.") and the negative stereotypes inflicted on the AA community.
"This is not an issue where you can say diversity training and workshops will fix it. This is not an issue you can just bandage and hope it goes away," said Timothy Ung, president of CU's Asian Unity. "I do not feel the Asian community is satisfied with the steps taken and I also feel that they should not be."
Critics are also quick to question the timing of Karson's piece. It was published a day before the National Day of Remembrance - the anniversary of Executive Order 9066, an order that sent tens of thousands of Japanese Americans to World War II internment camps - and on the eve of the school's Diversity Summit.
A peace rally at CU "to end racism and discrimination on campus" drew close to 200 people Feb. 27. Later that day the AA students presented a list of demands to the chancellor at a public meeting. The group has also started an online petition and are using social Web sites like Facebook to form groups (i.e. "Plan of Action in Response to Max Karson's Hate Speech") to spread their message.
As a result of the face-to-face meeting, Chancellor Peterson promised to look into changing the way the Campus Press is currently operated and overseen. The school will also investigate whether any of the students' civil rights were violated.
In the Feb. 28 issue of Campus Press, the publication announced the suspension of duties for the entire Opinions section staff, including Karson. They have now been given new assignments.
But concerned AA students are still pressing for the resignations of those responsible for allowing Karson's column to be published and they are considering economic sanctions against the school. They want Campus Press advertisers to pull their ads and donors to withhold any funding for the school.
"Where is our money going? We are paying fees here," said Choe. "This affects us all; it's not just about the Asian American community. There's a broader picture here."
Although the school remains mum on Editor Hewlings future at Campus Press, her critics note that in addition to targeting Asians at the paper, Latinos have also been the butt of Opinion pieces - two groups that each make up about six percent of the CU student population
"No hablo ingles ... Try speaking English, this is the United States" was published as an Opinion piece on Feb. 17. Writer Lauren E. Geary espouses a number of offensive stereotypes of Latinos throughout the article, calling for the official language of the U.S. to be English.
Although Hewlings, 22, refused Pacific Citizen's requests for comment, she explains her decision to publish Karson's piece in the Campus Press: "I felt it had a fair shot to encourage dialogue, and I thought it had a fair shot to upset some people. I was really hoping the article would be thought provoking and didn't want it to be hurtful at all."
In an interview with the Rocky Mountain News, Hewlings said she does not plan to resign her position.
Karson has largely shied away from the media attention created by his column and he refused P.C.'s requests for comment. But he is no stranger to controversy; his previous columns have dealt with his fear of Blacks and why women can't enjoy sex. In 2007 he was arrested and suspended after making public comments that seemed to sympathize with the Virginia Tech shooter; no charges were filed.
In writing "If it's war the Asians want ...," Karson seems to have been aware of the controversy it would create. To get his Opinion published, he knew he had to present a counter argument and asked his friend Felix Im to pen a satirical piece. Im's "A few words on the Asiaphilic plague" was eventually published alongside Karson's piece.
"Karson is a rabble-rouser who thrives on controversy and political incorrectness. He loves the attention, and I'm both appalled and amused at how readily it's served to him by all those Internet debaters and banterers who, as far as I'm concerned, have all become his conceptual slaves," said Im.
Karson's inflammatory column is still posted on the Campus Press site although the comments portion has now been disabled. Angry readers are instead being encouraged to submit letters to the editor.
More than two weeks after Karson's piece was published, the wave of criticism has yet to subside. AA students on the CU campus are already gearing up for an "In Solidarity" campaign May 9 to demonstrate the community's unity against the school and Campus Press.
"Every day a student steps foot into the University Center, flags fly with 'diversity' written on them. Then, a paper that claims to be the voice of the campus publishes an article which threatens a whole community at CU," said Ung. "What is the message the Campus Press is trying to send? It is time someone is held accountable for their actions."
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