MAKING THINGS RIGHT
Part of me feels like I need to go to every single Indian person in this country and personally apologize. And sometimes I do, Azaria said during the podcast
Hank Azaria’s resignation last week as the voice of Apu in the long-running cartoon The Simpsons opened a floodgate of issues.
Azaria shared during actor Dax Shepard’s podcast, Armchair Expert, how he came with his decision. He was at his son’s school and was able to talk to some Indian students. A particular kid said that he’d like Azaria to reach out to Hollywood regarding his sentiments about the show stereotyping Indians. The kid admitted to have not seen an episode of The Simpsons.
“Part of me feels like I need to go to every single Indian person in this country and personally apologize. And sometimes I do,” Azaria said during the podcast.
Comedian Hari Kondabolu commended Azaria on the latter’s decision to step down voicing Apu.
“@HankAzaria is a kind & thoughtful person that proves that people are not simply ‘products of their time,’ but have the ability to learn & grow,” he posted on Twitter.
On the other side of the fence, there are those who wondered about creativity. Most comedies have been under fire for blurring the line between acceptable humor and crass stereotyping and racial slurs.
The comedian made the 2017 documentary The Problem with Apu that hopes to address the portrayal of Indian immigrants in the United States. It also features his fellow Indian-Americans Designated Survivor actor Kal Penn and House of Card actress Sakina Jaffrey.
John Cleese, a founding member of the British Monty Python comedy troupe that spawned a BBC series and movies, had his own take on Azaria’s apology.
“Not wishing to be left behind by Hank Azaria, I would like to apologise on behalf of Monty Python for all the many sketches we did making fun of white English people. We’re sorry for any distress we may have caused,” he tweeted on the same day.
On one side, it served as an avenue for conversation about the alleged stereotyping of Indians in the cartoon. In the same note, it again puts the spotlight on whitewashing in the entertainment industry.
On the other side of the fence, there are those who wondered about creativity. Most comedies have been under fire for blurring the line between acceptable humor and crass stereotyping and racial slurs.
This is true when there’s involvement of minorities and their cultures. There tends to be a gray area as a pun or joke could be taken differently, depending on who is watching or listening.
The terms “woke” and “snowflake” were even brought up by some who have been keeping tabs on this particular issue. These are terms that have evolved from their original meaning; in this digital age, they have become associated with terms that have increasingly been associated with the much younger generation.
Merriam-Webster defines woke as a “chiefly US slang” that refers to someone who is “aware of and actively attentive to important facts and issues (especially issues of racial and social justice).”
“Snowflake,” it says, is an “informal” and “disparaging” description that refers to a person who is regarded or treated as unique or special or someone who is overly sensitive.
The Simpsons remains to be a cult classic and a favorite. It continues to be a pop culture reference.
Times have been changing, and with it, what used to be commonly let slide as “inoffensive” or “non-consequential” may be frowned upon or unacceptable in the years to come. It’s with hope that people will still be able to distinguish between a bad and a good joke, and know their puns, too.