P.C. chronicles: A reader’s take on Texas state rep. Betty Brown’s apology
Reader Kyle S. e-mailed me this weekend:
I’m a liberal who passes through your blog from time to time and although I disagree with you often (not always), I wanted to bring something to your attention that, though you might be aware of but I haven’t seen on your blog (sorry if I missed it), has been enraging me from the ultra-PC wing of the left.
State Rep. Betty Brown (R) from Texas suggested that a way to reduce the disenfranchisement of Asian-Americans was to suggest a uniform transliteration (most East Asian languages have several “official” transliteration schemes) or some single name to use to make sure that a missing letter in their names or a misplaced hyphen doesn’t knock them off the voting rolls.
Upon *hearing* this report, I was outraged. Upon actually seeing the YouTube clip, I was offended that my ideological colleagues would smear this woman for racism as she is clear that she is not expecting every Mr. Chang and Ms. Liu to change their names to Chuck and Mary, but rather is looking for a way to make sure minor spelling errors or one document that uses their “real” name while, say, a work pay stub uses their “American” name, doesn’t cause beureaucratic headaches for them. As a white Anglo-American, I have had my name butchered while both traveling and living overseas, and I have had the common courtesy to either 1) not throw a fit and call everyone a racist for saying my name incorrectly, or 2) adopted a “foreign” name that was easier on their tongues out of respect and ease while outside of English-speaking lands.
Rep. Brown explicitly stated she is NOT asking anyone to change their names, but everyone on the left is predictably saying she asked them to “change their names.” Rep. Brown unfortunately apologized (I’m sure she was mobbed) and now politicians are saying it’s “not enough.” I see people commenting on online blogs now, all of them rushing up to claim how victimized and hated and stereotyped, etc., they have had been and expressing “outrage” at this woman who is being virtually tarred and feathered.
As a side note, I have traveled and lived abroad a lot. Although all very enriching experiences, they only reenforced my view that the USA really is the greatest country out there.
Here’s a link to her speaking.
Here’s a link to the apology.
***
Thank you, Kyle, for the refreshing rejection of P.C. hysteria.
See what others have said
Note from Michelle: This section is for comments from michellemalkin.com's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that I agree with or endorse any particular comment just because I let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with my terms of use may lose his or her posting privilege.
Trackbacks
- Hot Air » Blog Archive » Video: Did Betty Brown ask Asian-Americans to change their names?
- Michelle Malkin » Guess who wants Asians to change their names?
Comments
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Categories: Political Correctness, Race relations
Power Line
» More From the East Anglia Archives
Mudville Gazette
» Leakiest administration ever?Sister Toldjah
» Obama plans to announce troop decision on Afghanistan next weekPundit & Pundette
» Various and sundryStop The ACLU
» Obama To Hold Another Prime Timer To Explain Our Afghanistan Strategy To Islamic ExtremistsRedstate
» Put Me in the No Camp on the Purity TestAmSpecBlog
» Lieberman Says He's "Stubborn" on Gov't Plan
Well…I’m rooting for you. Another couple of years and you’ll be a full blown conservative…I just know it.
The Church of the Perpetual Outrage and Hurt Feelings was old before it started. As with every other identity some of our East Asians are overly sensitive crybabies and need to be told to grow up stop crying.
Many people have a hard time pronouncing my name; usually I just help them work through it (it is pronounced differently than the Cuban-Porto Rican version easterners are use too)
If I sense an apologetic Liberal I let them stew a bit.
I can be hurt, so hurt
“The acidic Asian-American columnist” rocks. (Did she mean acerbic?)
Sounds like the PC hysteria is starting to come back and bite the libs! Could there could there be some shred of Hope for this liberal? If even a glimmer of common sense can penetrate his brain, I believe he can Change. I will pray for that kind of Hope and Change!
My name is more of an English than an American name. I’ve been called by it’s American equivalent so often I just answer to it, too.
My Asian wife just usually corrects people when her name is mispronounced. She’s used to it by now.
When I was in college, many Asians WOULD choose a more Anglo name to use here, knowing that, often, their real names were hard for us to pronounce. But, that was their choice.
I am not offended by State Rep. Betty Brown’s statement. But, I do think she was wrong to say it.
(yawn) Call me whatever you want, just don’t call me late for dinner. Now that would be an outrage!
Sounds like the voice of common sense and fair play is still alive in Texas, whether among conservatives or right-thinking (”classical”) liberals. But Kyle is in the minority on his wing of the political spectrum, as he so accurately points out.
It’s probably so, happy. Everybody knows that liberals eventually grow up and convert to conservativism.
I guess I should be outraged that I can count on one hand the number of times someone has actually come close to pronouncing my German name correctly. I’m not, though, and it doesn’t really bother me. I’ve come to expect it, and I guess I just give people credit for being human.
Hmmm…Not according to Pew Research.
In 2004, party identification among 30-49 year olds was 49/43 Republican Democrat. Now that is 43/49.
Among 50-64 year olds, in 2004 it was 45/47 Republican to Dem (i.e., party identification for Dems increased with age). And in 2008 it was 41/51 among that age group (i.e, even more people are identifying as Democrats).
After 65, and the inevitable onset of crankiness and senility, party identification does seem to start tipping back to the Republicans.
I’ve seen some ‘professional Hispanics’ on other sites bloviate with outrage over Rep. Brown’s comments – comments about how “we’re” supposed to have “evolved” ……………… HERE’S the thing – my great-grandparents came through Ellis Island, from Czechoslovakia – the family name was Anglicized {actually, it was spelled phonetically} there – they initially settled in Duquesne, PA, later moved to Prince William County, VA, where they were burned out three times by the local KKK, for being “foreigners” & Roman Catholic – EVEN THOUGH ALL their sons & grandsons served in the U.S. military {as far as I know, I’m the only one of my generation who served} – their children were absolutely intent on assimilation, with the result being that a LOT of family history has been lost ………………. I DON’T have a lot of sympathy for the Church of the Perpetual Outrage and Hurt Feelings – several of my grand-uncles served in the U.S. Navy, at a time when the communities where they were based prominently displayed signs to the effect “Sailors & Dogs Keep Off The Grass” …………….
Disgusting
Semper Fi’
DM
Looking forward to the day when politicians like Betty Brown has the principles to look the Thought Police staight in the eye and tell them,
“My opinion is my own. If you cannot make a more intelligent comment about it just shut the bleep up.”
No reason to be polite to rude people.
Rep. Brown undoubtedly “apologized” because the Leftie haters were in “full attack mode.” You know, the usual cries of “raaaaacist” sprinkled with the obligatory death threats. Of course, her “apology” has done her no good with those irrational people. **sigh**
I’m with you Flyoverman…no one holding an opposing viewpoint should EVER apologize to the “Thought Police” crowd.
BINGO!
Agreed 100%!
That said, every full-blown capitulation by conservatives is always seen as a first step. Spare me.
This craziness has been going on for decades because … it works! And really, really well – the “civil rights” leaders and polticians are laughing all the way to re-election. Until these temper tantrums are no longer indulged and people challenge them head-on, this bullying and pathetic self-pity will continue to the detriment of the social fabric of our society.
the politically correct crowd is regressing, in the evolutionary scheme they are going backwards. in time they’ll go from two brain cells to none.
aw poor babies… when my grandfather came to the US from Ireland , his last name was spelled in Celtic fashion befitting County Sligo. Ellis Island changed it to four letters. I can only imagine what hell I’d have gone through with the original name.
By grow up, I didn’t mean the physical aspect of the term, chap. I meant the mental aspect. Thanks for the research though!
I have traveled abroad and had my name destroyed in Asia. It is a German last name, and the Europeans pronounce it easily. But these are things that should be expected when traveling abroad. My name is Jeff and in Chinese and Japanese, I use the phrase “Je Fu”, which is fine by me.
I have had my name ripped apart throughout my life in the pooblik school system. At times, my name was so mispronounced, by that I mean completely different syllables, that I had no idea that the teacher was calling my name (they use to just read the last name) and I was shown to be truant in the first few days of school in certain years. Imagine how stupid the teacher felt when it was shown that I was in my classes (my parents told the teacher that he was an idiot).
I think the representative was stupid for issuing this statement.
The true problem with voting, DMV, pretty much anything related to the registration of personnel data and related information has nothing to do with regards to a first or last name. It pretty much has something to do with the slackers used for data entry at the source. This applies to the private sectors just as well as it does to the pooblik werx (pubic works).
It troubles me that people attempt to “solve” problems by looking superficially at the circumstances rather than truly opening the sore and addressing the source of the problem.
our last name is butchered everyday. We just correct them and go about our business.
My family has been here for almost 300 years, with some references that are pushing 375. And Im pretty sure Uncle Jed had a hand in bringing a lot people here that are the cause of this PCBS. We definitely werent loyalists and based on post-1865 migration patterns I think we experienced brother pitted against brother.
My last name can be said 20 different ways because no one wants to admit to themselves that it is pronounced exactly as one would read it. Most of the time, my co-workers and customers they think I am Indian (asian) anyway.
It bothers me about as much as when I use my ex-girlfriends grocery store discount card. The stores have a policy that they have to call me Mr So-and-so based on what is printed on the receipt – but they always have an odd look on their face when they try to pronounce her eastern european name and I dont look like a Sasha….
Skwer-ell?
Skwer-ill?
Skwire-ell?
Skuh-whirl-ell?
Yeh…. and who knew Squirrel was an Indian name?
I guessing when the Brits colonized the sub-continent several of us got loose there too.
—
Squire L
Squire L uh
Sqwy rel
B@st@ard (oh sorry that ones just from my ex-wife)
O.K. Chap…I resemble that remark! I am over 65 and I am neither cranky or senile, although some on these threads might disagree with that! Actually, I was quite liberal until my early 30’s when I married and started a family. Those old “family values” then kicked in and I realised how stupid I had been when I was younger. I never looked back, except with regret over some of the things I did as a liberal with low self-esteem and lower value system. Wasted years!
Oops. I guess I forgot
Eventually all the libtards will abort themselves out of existence, proving and disproving Darwin at the same time.
How racist of you Kyle S. to mistake her stupid, narrow minded, ultra-liberal good intentions as racism. After all the Libs got to make sure that every vote counts for them.
Same here. My last name is very simple–only four letters (no jokes please!!!), very simple. But people can’t pronounce it or spell it correctly. I’ll never forget the day my older brother came home from the 2nd grade upset because a smug music teacher thought he was too stupid to know how to spell his own name. I would joke she must have been a liberal, but I have a very conservative sister who has that same attitude.