Rock band The Slants have just been dealt an unnecessary setback. They’ve been denied the trademark to their own name because the US Patents & Trademark Office thought it was “was disparaging to Asian Americans”. It’s nice that Big Brother and Uncle Sam are looking out for us “yeller fellers” but really? The Slants is too offensive? Keep in mind this is a band active in the Asian American community, comprised of several AA members. Documentation and evidence of the fact was even submitted along with the application but it was still deemed too controversial.
Yes, it’s true. The Slants can be a racial slur but not in this context. If anything it’s a self imposed commentary on the group and it’s members and their identity in society. It’s a talking point, a tool used to start conversation about the band and the stereotypes they are trying to break. But regardless, the folks at the USPTO, in their infinite wisdom want to protect us. Perhaps the Slants should change their name to “The Asians and/or Pacific Islanders” to be safe.
Fine. So be it. But before they take away The Slants from us, someone tell the USPTO that they need to have a little chat with Uncle Kracker too.
You can read more about the topic over at 8Asians.
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Word. But I think that any racial slur, even if it is not used in a disrespectful context, is a delicate issue. If the media doesn’t allow the use of derogatory terms such as “nigga,” even when used by people of African descent, I believe that standard should be set for all ethnic-slandering pronouns. It seems like Africans in America have fought for their own racial equality more than any other races have done for their own. Which is perhaps why, for example, when Jin was battling on BET, he was bombarded with Asian jokes, and it was not a big deal. Granted, when you step into the ring to battle, you do not expect the opponent to hold back, but on a relatively popular network, and the battle segment that does have rules and regulations, I’d expect some raised eyebrows. Then again, the network is primarily marketed towards young Black-Americans, and it seems that if anyone who would’ve taken offense to those jabs, it would’ve been Asians, but apparently none took enough offense to advocate and seek change. I was pretty young when it all went down, and I haven’t really thought about it that much, until I read this post. Personally, I don’t make much of words. As the saying goes: “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me.” And if you believe that, I ask you: If words do not induce pain, then is that to say that words do not ease pain either? After all, words are just that, words.