That Seems a Bit Racist

The Asian American Justice Center is going after Andrew Reynolds’ Baker Skateboards after they released a t-shirt featuring two Asian men, one of whom is sponsored skater Don “The Nuge” Nguyen, in a rice rocket called the “General Li” under the title The Gooks of Hazzard. The shirt also has the tagline “Good Orr Boys” just to really drive that racism home. Hey, at least they didn’t give them buck teeth and make them wear a rice hat.

While Don Nguyen seems to approve of the shirt, either because he doesn’t know it exists or because he’s Uncle Tomming it, the Asian American Justice Center isn’t so forgiving saying it’s “unacceptable for Baker Skateboards to create a depiction of Asian Americans which uses racial slurs and perpetuates racist stereotypes. Baker Skateboards, and the outlets that sell this shirt, should be aware that use of the term ‘gook’ on their apparel is offensive and quite simply amounts to racism for sale. No one should seek to profit from racism.”

It’s always fascinating to see how people tiptoe around black people but don’t do the same with other races. They should follow this simple rule. If you’re going to use a racial slur, replace it with the N word first, think about the consequences and act accordingly. Or at least do what Michael Bay did with the Autobot twins in Transformers and make the racism subtle but not too subtle.