HERstory

97 is hot because they'll burn in hell (now with links)

i stopped listening to the radio today. i heard something that stole my breath, it was so despicable. painfully, it came from the radio station in new york city that i once loved most, a radio station that i will never listen to again, if mocking world-changing tragedy in south and southeast asia is their idea of appropriate entertainment.

on this one-month death anniversary of almost three-hundred-thousand people, i ask for your attention, your compassion and your outrage.

go ahead, click that first link if you're somewhere where it's safe to listen. it's depraved, craven and unacceptable. that's exactly why you NEED to hear it. i will not let you be ostriches; not when it's this important. you are well within your rights to write off certain anti-indian shock-jock antics as obnoxious or juvenile, but using the humanitarian aid song "we are the world" to attack people who have suffered in ways we will never know, because of the tsunami...that's some next-level evil.

have you heard enough hatred? i have. and i have HAD IT.

i wouldn't stay with a boyfriend who called me "bitch" or otherwise disrespected me, so why on earth would i bruise my ears with the filth and degradation that seems to be far too ubiquitous lately? i don't care what you say, there is no difference, the situations are beyond analogous.

my late father once told me to "shake the dust" from my shoes and take nothing from an unwelcome town with me. those words are on an infinite loop in my head, as i stare at the list of companies that sponsored hate:

Sprint/Sprint PCS
Media Contact:
James Fisher, 202-585-1947
james.w.fisher@mail.sprint.com

Popeyes
http://popeyes.com/corp_comm.asp
Popeye's parent company:
mconlon@afce.com

Reebok
Lisa Bartlett
lisa.bartlett@reebok.com

Jennifer Hawkins
jennifer@stenderhawkins.com

Reebok International Ltd.
PO Box 1060
Ronks, PA 17573

OR

Corporate Headquarters
Reebok International Ltd.
1895 J. W. Foster Boulevard
Canton, MA 02021
781-401-5000
ask for David Pace (atty) or Paul Fireman (CEO)

McDonald's
http://mcdonalds.com/contact/contact_us.html

Coca Cola:
The Coca-Cola Company
P.O. Box 1734
Atlanta, GA USA 30301
http://www.coke.net/webapps/pubinquiry/PublicInquiry
1-800-438-2653

Toyota
800-331-4331
800-443-4999 for TDD
6:00 AM - 6:00 PM Pacific Time, Monday - Friday

For calls originating outside the United States: 310-468-4000
7:00 AM - 5:30 PM Pacific Time, Monday - Friday

http://toyota.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/toyota.cfg/php/enduser/ask.php?

many of those names make my stomach hurt; i'm not lovin' it. when i think of every indian family that owns a toyota camry, corolla or a lexus anything, the bile begins to ascend. how many millions of dollars did we give toyota, before people who shared our DNA were ravaged by a natural disaster?

i can already see the words you want to fill my comments section with: it's not like toyota composed or sanctioned that "song", etc etc. not quite, but i haven't heard their apologies. i have not seen the obligatory statements that would distance them from this outrageous incident. like that email forward about the holocaust that went 'round the world enough times to end up in my inbox thrice, if you didn't speak up when you had the chance, if you didn't stand up for what is right, you are partially complicit.

i studied PR and campaign management. i know how this system works; they have no excuse. i've given them enough time. i didn't jump on this the moment it dropped, like i did with other notable shock-jock-idiocy.

if this were a song about black people, i'd have a list of press releases to link, from vice presidents who'd want to assure the public that their companies believe in "diversity". diversity doesn't protect other shades of brown, though, does it? that's the blunt, bullshit truth. gosh "miss jones", it's okay to hate on us b/c we think we're "superior", that's how this works, right? that's how you justify your relentless bigotry?

MLK fashioned his vision around the ideas of one small brown man, clad in homespun fabric. what would he say if he saw that his dream had disintegrated, the notion of "equality" has become crass and commercialized, a hallmark'd cliche to be thought of in terms of duty and not justice. what would he think when the epiphany levelled him--he wouldn't have a dream, today.

my inner cynic wonders if miss jones et al were jealous of star and bucwild's "triumphant" return to nyc radio, via Power105. they must have been so envious of all that negative, rat-eatin' publicity. well. hot97 sure showed us! wow, what a way to prove that skits could aim even lower.

1930, 1965, 2005...

note: this post was originally a caption for this picture on fotolog. it outgrew that 5000-character space so i transplanted it here, for the benefit of the lovely people who avidly adore le flog. oh, and you. if you like. :)

putting on bangles, before going out.

:+:

so i'm a little late with this "final" picture in the "awesomest sari i’ve ever worn" series. :)

this picture was taken on christmas eve, before a dinner with about twenty people (mostly aunties and uncles).

the restaurant choice was regrettable,
the company of those who populated the "younger" span of the continuum was less than coruscating and
the menu was not interested in pleasing herbivores,
but the night shimmers forever in my memory...

...because of those six yards of silk. the most unforgettable, inimitable, matchless silk i have ever worn.

i didn't know it existed, but somehow, i don't think the converse is true. i think it was waiting for someone, and i was lucky enough to her.

:+:

"beta, why don't you stay tonight as well? don't go back so late..."

"uncle, i wish i had planned for this and packed more clothes! i'd love to go to the dinner, but i came last night expecting to leave this morning...in my pajamas!"

"you didn't bring anything else?"

"all i have is the red sari from last night...which i'm sure will be fresh in everyone's memory...and this suit i'm wearing now..."

uncle frowned. "yes. everyone who was here last night will be at this dinner...that won't do. the sari won't work."

"it's okay, uncle...another time. honestly, this is unbelievable. i always over-pack for EVERYTHING. the ONE TIME i try and be efficient...look what happens!"

though i was laughing, i was inwardly surprised that the oxblood salwar kameez i had on wasn't "good enough". it had a delicate, filigreed sort of embroidery near my neck and a smattering of flashing beads across the front. it was simple, but pretty enough for a mere dinner. what kind of event was i planning to miss?

uncle read my mind. "you can't wear that suit, either."

i could feel my sparse brows ready to collide like two metro trains on the red line...i am always over-dressed, for every event. that's just me. given the choice, i'd obviously prefer to wear something prettier than some salwar, but the vast majority of women i knew would happily adorn themselves in the finery i was now scrutinizing, for church, parties, dinners...whatever. besides, for the umpteenth time, i hadn't brought anything else! this was maddening.

in the critical second before my forehead embraced new wrinkles, uncle's eyes widened. "i've got it," he muttered. up the stairs he went, moving swiftly for a man who was as old as my father would be, were he alive today.

i followed him, but stopped shyly when he reached his bedroom door. it felt like an invisible wall stood before me. you just don't *go there*.

normally, i think my very proper, refined uncle would agree. this was the exception to confirm that rule, however.

"come, beta. look."

i hesitated for a few moments, then padded over to the largest master bedroom closet i've ever seen. uncle was to my left, moving a large box...i felt like i was in a movie. everything slowed down. i heard wind chimes in my mind, and immediately decided to fire my mental sound effects guy. how hokey.

i grew up without the benefit of grandparents; i grew up without an attic full of old clothes, i grew up with a mother who didn’t believe in saving “useless things”, things which i’d consider relics. the memory of being six-years old, at my best friend francesca’s house came roaring back…she was playing dress-up, and i was watching, too shy and unsure to join her. “what’s wrong with you,” she demanded impatiently. “i’ve never done that…” was my reply. when i went home afterwards, i shyly approached my mother in the kitchen. she was stirring a curry while looking at a different pot full of rice. my sister toddled about her legs. “mummy, can i play dress-up? do you have old clothes, too?”

“go find something that isn’t worthless to do,” she snapped in malayalam, before i turned away in tears.

:+:

my bullshit detector is exploding

How you livin', readers? Are you fine? Or are you just okay? More importantly, has your ire gone away?

Well get ready, I'm about to stir it up again. From the Philadelphia Inquirer:

WUSL-FM (Power 99) conceded yesterday that an on-air routine by morning shock jocks Star and Buc Wild was "racially inflammatory" and pulled an audio clip of it off the station Web site.

Community-affairs director Loraine Ballard Morrill, who has fielded more than 130 angry e-mails and phone calls, said the station reprimanded the employee who posted the clip on the Web...

Please understand-- I'm THRILLED that mainstream media is picking up on this very important story. I'm also heartened by the fact that Power99 is...um...starting to pay attention.

They are partially correct; the employee who chose to post that clip on the Power99 site wasn't wise to do so, and it is nice to see the station doing...something.

But something is not enough.

Power99 "conceded"? I don't need concessions, I need responsibility. Honour. Integrity. If Loraine Ballard Morrill was the ideal Community Affairs Director, she'd sincerely own the station's gaffe, she'd get it, she'd make amends. But nothing regarding this incident is ideal...

Morrill said station managers have had "extensive discussions" since learning about the clip Thursday with Star, whose real name is Troi Torain, and Buc Wild, his half-brother, Timothy Joseph.

Oh! So they actually took it up with Star? That's good to hear...

"It was made clear this is not acceptable, and it won't happen again," Morrill said.

Excellent. I'm sure the entire civilized world appreciates that.

...The employee who posted the clip on the Internet will undergo sensitivity training, she said. The station also planned to post an apology.

What the--?? The employee who posted the clip gets training? Of course he erred in judgment, but what about the misanthrope who created the content? Why isn't STAR getting training?

I'm not worried about some middling employee, I'm worried about the a$$hole who influences thousands of listeners in several cities.

She said the more serious matter was posting the clip on the Web site. "That probably made it a much more - just a worse situation. Then people could click on it and hear it. That was not cool... . He made a big ol' mistake in judgment."

..."Essentially [we're] apologizing for things on our Web site that were racially inflammatory and insensitive, saying, 'We took it off our Web site and it won't happen again.' "

This is a joke, right? She's not serious, is she?

Morrill is "essentially" saying that the problem was the clip's availability. So if a racist abuses someone in the forest, and no one is there to hear it...it doesn't exist? It's only wrong because they got CAUGHT?

Well then, I'm so grateful for a Power99 employee's stupidity-- were it not for that "mistake", this unconscionable prank would have gone unavenged. They are sorry for their website? Where is their "sorry" and consummate disavowal of Star's hatred, misogyny and racism?

I think Morrill and many of the good staffers at Power99 have their heads up their sphincters. They just don't get it.

Remember "it's the economy, stupid"? Well, it's the HATRED, stupid.

Unbelievable.

This isn't over...not even close.

this is a call.

Richard Lewis & Thea Mitchem
Power99 WUSL-FM
440 Domino Lane
Philadelphia, PA 19128

Dear Power99/Clear Channel/lowly radio intern,

How are you? I hope you are well rested and relaxed, that way the contents of this letter will be better absorbed. How am I? Why thank you for not asking! I’ll bluntly tell you; I am MAD.

Earlier this week, your prized morning “talent” Star thought it would be funny to call an Indian Customer Service agent for the sole purpose of threatening her with assault while verbally abusing her. His justification for this outrageous lack of decency was her race; she was foreign, "a rat-eater", potentially involved with outsourcing, and that made her okay to target.

Wrong.

This was inappropriate, disrespectful, violent and below you. It was below all of us. That didn’t stop you from publicizing a clip of Star’s verbal assault on your station’s website before hastily retracting it a few days ago.

Since you took the mp3 off of your site, you must be at least slightly aware that you were in trouble. Please allow me to dispel any confusion regarding this matter: you ARE in trouble. You are in trouble with me and every other good American.

Our soldiers are dying to protect our freedom and our values. Those values don’t include hate.

You can make amends.

You can take responsibility, and own your error in judgment.

You can reach out to the South Asian community and apologize for this unconscionable incident.

You can apologize to the woman that Star and his amoral crew harassed so wantonly.

You can discipline the DJ, as well as the staffers who perpetrated this revolting act.

You can clean up your own mess by airing PSAs that speak out against the ignorance and hate that YOUR programming may potentially incite.

I will conclude by stating that if you do not respond to this letter or its requests appropriately, you should consider yourself on notice: your unprincipled behavior will have social, public and fiscal ramifications and I swear to you, they will hurt. Stop the violence. Change starts with you.

With hope that you will do the right thing,

----------

listen: all you people who were or are moved by this bullshit situation, who think, "yeah...i should do something", right before you succumb to inertia and to-do lists and daily life...

that was for you.

you didn't even have to write a letter. i did it for you. now do something for me. do it for "steena" who suffered through Star's hatred for no reason. do it for your dad, because someone heckled him like that thirty-five years ago, when he came here to get rich for you. do it for your mom, who was afraid to wear indian things in new jersey, in 1987, for fear of attack from "dot-busters". do it for them all, i implore you.

however.

if you don't feel a familiar sadness whilst reading the paragraph i just wrote, if you are one of the lucky ones and you walk on streets paved with gold, and you live somewhere where it never rains, and you have always been accepted, respected and treated kindly...then may you always be so blessed. may one of us live in nirvana, where it is safe. may one of us not suffer the humiliation, the pain, the isolation that hatred brings. may one of us be so lucky.

so if you get some time in your golden, respect-laden nirvana, do it for those of us who aren't as fortunate.

do it for all of us.

in other words, do it for you.

try and choke ME, you punk.

Star, the infamous erstwhile morning host of NY's legendary Hot97 has inspired a wrath and rage within that i haven't felt in months.

now that his profane disrespect is syndicated in several cities including nearby philadelphia, this p.o.s. "radio personality" decided to threaten (with choking) and berate ("dirty rat-eating bitch") a helpless indian woman who was working at a call center for conair. "star" phoned her, broadcast their exchange on-air and offered her humiliation to his listeners as entertainment, while his staff laughed.

star: you do not get to abuse us for pleasure.

:+:

What we need is awareness,
we can't get careless
You say what is this?
My beloved, lets get down to business
Mental self defensive fitness

I'm ready and hyped plus I'm amped
Most of my heroes don't appear on no stamps

(Yo) bum rush the show
You gotta go for what you know
Make everybody see,
in order to fight the powers that be
Lemme hear you say...
Fight the Power
Fight the Power
Fight the power
Fight the power
Fight the power
Fight the power
Fight the power
We've got to Fight the powers that be.

:+:

we must rage against the racist machine:

UPDATE! Sonjie DeCaires no longer works at Power99.
PLEASE address your correspondence to Richard Lewis and Thea Mitchem

Attention: Richard Lewis / Thea Mitchem
Power99 WUSL-FM
440 Domino Lane
Philadelphia, PA 19128

General/Business Line: 215.483.8900

Studio Hotlines:

Philly: 215.263.6699
Worldwide: 800.669.99FM

if you're too lazy to write your own damn piece of snail mail, you need coffee and better priorities. this call-to-fingers may be coming to you via new media, and email may be how you do what you do, but nothing beats the impact of a physical letter (or several hundred of them). put it in writing. then it's real.

also, though turbanhead said it in a much nicer way, don't write like an illiterate jAcKaSs (LoL!). this is not AIM.

this is important.

THIS is you, standing up for your mother (country, tongue, culture).

my ire shall continue (albeit with a more professional, less derivative tone) at Sepia Mutiny tomorrow...

YOUR ire should flow in the form of the aforementioned letter. if you blog, mo' better. where's your post on this? i'm calling you out...if you don't have something to tell your readers, like SAS said, don't come around here no more.

you see, we will not get respect by being quiet.

we will get respect when we demand it. so let the demands begin.

:+:

all praise to
the head turban,
cookie,
krusty and
the geometrist for telling me and the world...

in nyc, 30 is the new 21. it so is.

as of 15 minutes ago, i am 30 years old.

(31, if we do things the indian vay.)

either "vay", this birthday looms larger than even my 21st did.

either way, the suddenly foreign-sounding phrasing of my newly-attained chronological state ensnared me to the point where google was summoned. i needed it to explain what had unexpectedly stuck in my ears, and why that which was sticking felt so uncomfortable and strange.

et voila:

Why do we say "30 years old", but "a 30-year-old man"?

by Rich Alderson

This pattern goes all the way back to Old English (alias Anglo-Saxon). It's the same reason many of us say that someone is "5 foot 2" rather than "5 feet 2".

The source of the idiom is the old genitive plural, which did not end in -s, and did not contain a high front vowel to trigger umlaut ("foot" vs "feet"). When the ending was lost because of regular phonetic developments, the pattern remained the same, and it now seemed that the singular rather than the plural was in use.

Source: [Mark Israel, 'Miscellany: Why do we say "30 years old", but "a 30-year-old man"?', The alt.usage.english FAQ file,(line 6446), (29 Sept 1997)]

okay. if i try not to think about it too much, the afore-pasted blurb nearly removes my discomfort about new sounds and newer truths.

then again, if i try not to think about anything too much, that fixes EVERYTHING.