California senator hits TV show's 'desperate attempt at humor'
10/05/2007 | 07:00 PM
An American senator who represents the largest Filipino community in the United States has issued a statement against the show “Desperate Housewives," calling the racist slur in its season premier as a “desperate attempt at humor."
California State Senator Leland Yee echoed the calls made by many Filipinos especially in the medical sector regarding the episode in the American show’s fourth season premier where one of it’s lead characters doubted the credibility of a doctor that might be “from some Philippine med school."
“As a human being, I am disheartened to see that these stereotypes continue to permeate our airwaves and entertainment media. This desperate attempt at humor is offensive and has no place in our community," said Yee on his website.
“Filipinos, including those trained outside of the United States, have made invaluable impacts on the medical field, and should be valued, not disparaged," added Yee, an assistant president pro tempore of the California State Senate.
"While I am pleased to see the network issue an apology, I encourage them to do so publicly during the show’s next broadcast and work with the community to heal the wounds caused by this insulting reference," the senator suggested.
Yee represents the communities in San Francisco and San Mateo, California where the largest Filipino population outside of the Philippines are located.
This year he filed the Filipino Veterans Equity Act, which is a Senate resolution that aims to resuscitate the benefits of many war veterans including healthcare, disability pensions, and burial expenses.
Despite the public apology from ABC Studios on Thursday, the number of Filipinos signing up in the online petition demanding apology from the shows' creators continue to soar.
As of 7 p.m. Friday, the number of signatures posted on PetitionOnline.com has reached almost 81,917 and is increasing by the hundreds every hour.
The petition, which was initiated by New York-based lecturer Kevin Nadal, seeks not only an apology from the show’s creators but also proper rectification from the damage it has caused by deleting the scene from the episode.
“We demand a public apology to the Filipino American community, and we demand the episode be edited to remove the ignorant and racist remark. We will not allow hateful messages against our community (or any other oppressed community) to continue," Nadal said in the petition letter.
In the “Desperate Housewives" episode aired on September 30, Susan Mayer visits her gynecologist who told her she was undergoing menopause. Visibly agitated, she fired back, “'OK, before we go any further, can I check these diplomas? ’Coz, I just want to make sure they’re not from some med school in the Philippines."
After being hounded by the widespread outcry from the Philippine medical sector as well vocal bloggers, ABC Studios apologized for the racist slur from the show.
''The producers of 'Desperate Housewives' and ABC Studios offer our sincere apologies for any offense caused by the brief reference in the season premiere. There was no intent to disparage the integrity of any aspect of the medical community in the Philippines,'' ABC producers said in the apology. - Mark J. Ubalde, GMANews.TV
California State Senator Leland Yee echoed the calls made by many Filipinos especially in the medical sector regarding the episode in the American show’s fourth season premier where one of it’s lead characters doubted the credibility of a doctor that might be “from some Philippine med school."
“As a human being, I am disheartened to see that these stereotypes continue to permeate our airwaves and entertainment media. This desperate attempt at humor is offensive and has no place in our community," said Yee on his website.
“Filipinos, including those trained outside of the United States, have made invaluable impacts on the medical field, and should be valued, not disparaged," added Yee, an assistant president pro tempore of the California State Senate.
"While I am pleased to see the network issue an apology, I encourage them to do so publicly during the show’s next broadcast and work with the community to heal the wounds caused by this insulting reference," the senator suggested.
Yee represents the communities in San Francisco and San Mateo, California where the largest Filipino population outside of the Philippines are located.
This year he filed the Filipino Veterans Equity Act, which is a Senate resolution that aims to resuscitate the benefits of many war veterans including healthcare, disability pensions, and burial expenses.
Despite the public apology from ABC Studios on Thursday, the number of Filipinos signing up in the online petition demanding apology from the shows' creators continue to soar.
As of 7 p.m. Friday, the number of signatures posted on PetitionOnline.com has reached almost 81,917 and is increasing by the hundreds every hour.
The petition, which was initiated by New York-based lecturer Kevin Nadal, seeks not only an apology from the show’s creators but also proper rectification from the damage it has caused by deleting the scene from the episode.
“We demand a public apology to the Filipino American community, and we demand the episode be edited to remove the ignorant and racist remark. We will not allow hateful messages against our community (or any other oppressed community) to continue," Nadal said in the petition letter.
In the “Desperate Housewives" episode aired on September 30, Susan Mayer visits her gynecologist who told her she was undergoing menopause. Visibly agitated, she fired back, “'OK, before we go any further, can I check these diplomas? ’Coz, I just want to make sure they’re not from some med school in the Philippines."
After being hounded by the widespread outcry from the Philippine medical sector as well vocal bloggers, ABC Studios apologized for the racist slur from the show.
''The producers of 'Desperate Housewives' and ABC Studios offer our sincere apologies for any offense caused by the brief reference in the season premiere. There was no intent to disparage the integrity of any aspect of the medical community in the Philippines,'' ABC producers said in the apology. - Mark J. Ubalde, GMANews.TV
