In January, Asia was struck by one of the most destructive natural disasters in modern history, a tsunami that left in its wake upwards of 152,000 dead. Most of the world responded empathetically to the disaster by sending donations and offering humanitarian assistance.
However, New York's hip-hop radio show "Miss Jones in the Morning" apparently decided that the devastation was just a trivial, overblown news sensation. They responded to the crisis on Jan. 18 by airing the now-infamous "Tsunami Song."
This song, a parody of "We Are the World," displayed a shocking degree of insensitivity to human suffering, along with outright racism targeted primarily at Asians. The song's producers probably thought they were pretty clever for airing lyrics such as "All at once you could hear the screaming chinks" and "You could hear God laughing, 'Swim you bitches, swim.' " Moments after the song was broadcast, the station was hit with an onslaught of calls from angry listeners. Nevertheless, the hosts went on to vehemently defend the song, ridicule the callers and insult the tsunami victims. At one point, co-host Todd Lynn actually said, "I'm going to shoot all Asians."
I support free speech, but only to the extent that it does not amount to hate speech. The victims of the tsunami were not insignificant; they were human beings with friends and families, they were people who were loved and who were tragically taken from this world. How could something so offensive and distasteful be allowed on public airwaves?
Please recall that some of the victims in the tsunami were Americans. Now, how do you suppose the families of the American victims must have felt when they heard the "Tsunami Song" on their drive to work? Besides the song's callous attitude towards the victims of this natural disaster, the song also disseminated racism through the airwaves, which only serves to exacerbate existing social tensions.
What is worse is that those who were responsible for the "Tsunami Song" have gotten little more than a slap on the wrist for their behavior. Though the station's morning show producer Rick del Gado and Lynn were fired from the station, five other employees of Hot 97 who were involved in the production of the "Tsunami Song" - including Miss Jones herself - were merely suspended. So far, that has been the extent of the punishment. It is expected that Jones and the other suspended employees will be back to work soon, and that the "Miss Jones in the Morning" show will resume broadcasting.
America's widespread indifference to the matter is extremely disappointing. Of course, there have been small pockets of opposition to the song, mobilized primarily by Asian and Muslim-American groups around the country, but overall, most Americans are simply ignoring the matter. Not enough is being done to spread awareness of Hot 97's disgraceful conduct, and even less has been done to mobilize popular opposition to it. In most cases, the lack of a response may be attributed to a general sense of apathy, where people do not feel a personal connection to the insult, or are simply too busy to be bothered by something they feel is trivial.
But any insult of this magnitude concerns us all, not just those of us who have ties to the affected areas, or those of us who fit into the categories being denigrated. The tsunami victims were fellow human beings who deserve to be treated with respect, and Asians don't deserve to be smeared with racial slurs.
Perhaps if a more powerful and widespread condemnation of the "Tsunami Song" is made, its producers would be punished more severely. Allowing Miss Jones to act the way she has with impunity implies Americans feel foreign people are insignificant, and that domestic prejudice is acceptable.
I wonder how the public would have responded if the parody were about a disaster affecting another demographic. For example, what if Hot 97 broadcast a "Twin Towers Song" mocking those that had died in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks? What would the response have been if a minority radio host suggested that he would start shooting white Americans?
It is unacceptable for anyone to respond to any tragedy of this scope with mockery and racism, and we should not have to stand for it.
Wah-Kwan Lin '07 is a member of the Asian-American Students Association.
