. RIP David

. RIP David

I intentionally made a point (twice) that i like David Carradine and that i don't feel any blame should be placed on him whatsover. But he is/was the most prominent symbol of the racism i referred to to most Asian Americans.

Of course i would have preferred to address the point over happier circumstances like a campy lifetime achievement award for Carradine or an upcoming Kill Bill prequel, but seing as this will probably be the last time he will be topical in the news, this may be the last time i have an opportunity to make the point specifically with the very person representative of the issue. My intention wasn't to be an insensitive jerk. It's just the last chance i have with Carradine to address it.

And just in case some might think it was in poor taste to bring it up now since "things are much better now a days", consider the ridiculous casting by M.Night Shamylan for Avatar: The Last Airbender that was done just this past year. The irony is that he is South East Asian himself… but i'll save that for an FSR article on Airbender.

Again… R.I.P. David Carradine. I really liked you in Iron Circle (which ironically was a movie Bruce Lee wrote before he died.) lol.

I intentionally made a point (twice) that i like David Carradine and that i don't feel any blame should be placed on him whatsover. But he is/was the most prominent symbol of the racism i referred to to most Asian Americans.

Of course i would have preferred to address the point over happier circumstances like a campy lifetime achievement award for Carradine or an upcoming Kill Bill prequel, but seing as this will probably be the last time he will be topical in the news, this may be the last time i have an opportunity to make the point specifically with the very person representative of the issue. My intention wasn't to be an insensitive jerk. It's just the last chance i have with Carradine to address it.

And just in case some might think it was in poor taste to bring it up now since "things are much better now a days", consider the ridiculous casting by M.Night Shamylan for Avatar: The Last Airbender that was done just this past year. The irony is that he is South East Asian himself… but i'll save that for an FSR article on Airbender.

Again… R.I.P. David Carradine. I really liked you in Iron Circle (which ironically was a movie Bruce Lee wrote before he died.) lol.

Yes, you have a legitimate point – No, this is neither the time nor the place.

Yes, you have a legitimate point – No, this is neither the time nor the place.

Let me also say, as an Asian American, i didn't like David Carradine – or more specifically i didn't like what David Carradine was the representation of – namely the racist replacement of Asians in film by Caucasians.

Of course i don't blame Carradine personally, he was just an actor who wanted a job. He didn't personally screw Bruce Lee over – that was the network executives. But because of that, Carradine became the visible symbol of what all Asian Americans hate – the Asian equivalent of White Americans doing Blackface routines. Many people would be horrified to see someone Caucasian paint their face with shoe polish and tap dancing, but Caucasians putting on Fu Manchu moustaches, squinting, and doing completely inaccurate "Oriental" voices, were commonplace all the way up to the late 70s/early 80s and still pop up even today here and there.

On top of the racist and completely inaccurate stereotypes portrayed of Asians by non-Asians, there is the simple matter of not giving a place at all in media for Asians which is analagous to saying Asians don't have a place in American society. Asian food, Asian martial arts, Asian interior decorating are all exotic and cool and desireable, but apparently not Asian people. Of course things have gotten better since the times of Carradine in Kung Fu but not as much as one might think, expecially in the media.

Like i stated earlier, i don't personally place even 1% of blame on David Carradine, and Bruce Lee thankfully was overcame and was recognized by the mainstream later, but he should never have been placed in a position to "have to overcome" anything in the first place. The only reason i mention this is because that same racist prejudice or "marketability" exists today to a lesser but similar degree. Asians make up 8% of America and yet we are represented less then 0.5% in the media. When was the last time you saw an Asian woman not cast in a vampy, sexy role? When was the last time you saw an Asian man not cast to do martial arts, gangster, or posessor of ancient mystical knowledge? When is that last time you saw an Asian actor cast as a person who just happens to be Asian? Sandra Oh, Daniel Dae Kim, and arguably maybe 3 or 4 others…

The "Carradine Kung Fu" problem still exists today and i hope people will refuse to accept it complacently as an acceptable form of racism.

Let me also say, as an Asian American, i didn't like David Carradine – or more specifically i didn't like what David Carradine was the representation of – namely the racist replacement of Asians in film by Caucasians.

Of course i don't blame Carradine personally, he was just an actor who wanted a job. He didn't personally screw Bruce Lee over – that was the network executives. But because of that, Carradine became the visible symbol of what all Asian Americans hate – the Asian equivalent of White Americans doing Blackface routines. Many people would be horrified to see someone Caucasian paint their face with shoe polish and tap dancing, but Caucasians putting on Fu Manchu moustaches, squinting, and doing completely inaccurate "Oriental" voices, were commonplace all the way up to the late 70s/early 80s and still pop up even today here and there.

On top of the racist and completely inaccurate stereotypes portrayed of Asians by non-Asians, there is the simple matter of not giving a place at all in media for Asians which is analagous to saying Asians don't have a place in American society. Asian food, Asian martial arts, Asian interior decorating are all exotic and cool and desireable, but apparently not Asian people. Of course things have gotten better since the times of Carradine in Kung Fu but not as much as one might think, expecially in the media.

Like i stated earlier, i don't personally place even 1% of blame on David Carradine, and Bruce Lee thankfully was overcame and was recognized by the mainstream later, but he should never have been placed in a position to "have to overcome" anything in the first place. The only reason i mention this is because that same racist prejudice or "marketability" exists today to a lesser but similar degree. Asians make up 8% of America and yet we are represented less then 0.5% in the media. When was the last time you saw an Asian woman not cast in a vampy, sexy role? When was the last time you saw an Asian man not cast to do martial arts, gangster, or posessor of ancient mystical knowledge? When is that last time you saw an Asian actor cast as a person who just happens to be Asian? Sandra Oh, Daniel Dae Kim, and arguably maybe 3 or 4 others…

The "Carradine Kung Fu" problem still exists today and i hope people will refuse to accept it complacently as an acceptable form of racism.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article…

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article…