MERGED: Protest against Desperate Housewives

[rambutan]

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link to ABC News
'Housewives' Filipino Joke Draws Ire

"The producers of `Desperate Housewives' and ABC Studios offer our sincere apologies for any offense caused by the brief reference in the season premiere. There was no intent to disparage the integrity of any aspect of the medical community in the Philippines," the statement said.

http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory?id=3686747

[gareb]

this got me thinking on a few things.

1.) thanks to the Net, i've heard of (and read) a lot of racial and ethnic slurs coming from different parts of the world directed against Filipinos. these point out certain physical and cultural aspects that we have; the former they find funny, the latter strikes them as too alien that they often misunderstood it out of its context and therefore they maligned us for it.

but the Desperate Housewives remark does not even go anywhere near either a racial or an ethnic slur. it is not a question of biological appearances nor cultural practices, but competency of our educational institutions.

2.) i find it quite funny that most of us Filipinos would react immediately to such issues and label it as a racial slur, when there was nothing racial, even ethnic, about it. if not for the fact that it compromised the already-shaken status of the Filipino medical community in the US, then this would be pure entertainment for me.

but really now. a few years ago, my Anthropology prof introduced us to the clearly racist and never-say-die Art Bell article and solicited our views and reactions out of it. it was quite easy to expect that the whole class was enraged over the article. the good prof asked us if there was not a grain of truth in the article itself, sans the racist remarks and ethnic slurs. he even went further to ask what can drive someone to make such an article.

3.) but what is even funnier is that we respond with knee-jerk racism and prejudice ourselves. scan back a few comments in this thread and the unmistakable signs are there. curiously, the same thing happened with the art bell scandal, and even the Malou Fernandez debacle; this time the racial slurs were replaced with uncalled remarks about her physical figure.

does that make us better people that those whom we direct our comments to?

4.) for sure, the Desperate Housewives remark is crass, callous, and uncalled for. the production team deserves a reprimand for such treatment of the subject. granted that the Filipino medical community has it's own share of shortcomings that has seriously imperiled its reputation world-wide, this does not give license for anyone to use the issue as a stuff of humor; not a few dreams of a better life were shattered by the scandal that has beset the Filipino medical community's credibility. it is easy to laugh at other people's misery, up until they laugh at yours.

Susan's remark may or may not reflect the existing feelings about Filipino doctors and nurses, but the fact that such views exist should be addressed by improving on the credibility of the Filipino medical community.

And also basic education of the the kind of unmistakable ills that we as a people possess, the kind of ailments that cannot be easily dismissed. the kind of disease that haunts us wherever we go. the kind that no doctor or nurse with pristine credibility can cure.

[borgy1981]

that's why we need to strive harder and prove to them we kick a**

[edgeowns]

Why do we get offended? It was a half-joke. If you know you truly are a good nurse/etc., then nothing can stop you and you can prove them wrong. Its not as if it really happened in real life.

And as if we dont crack our own jokes on Americans and such.

[shaxyra]

grabeha sad ato oi

[JX]

kadto bag.o pa lng nag.practice ako tita sa states, bsan nag.agas daw ang dugo sa pasyente, mangita jud daw ang pasyente ug american doctor.. wla nlng pod daw namugos ako tita, pro sa dihang wla jud available, nsugot nlng daw ang patient, g.stitch pa nya w/o local anesthesia.. hehe,
kaniadto pa man cguro na, naa jud mo.discriminate, karon n.retire nlng ako tita, naa ghapon.. tsk2x..

[bongjo]

giingon man 'some medical schools', aw basin sad diay tinuod,

[cebu-future]

She did say "some medical school" hehe. Means not ALL medical school

[tokidoki]

I'm not signing that petition. Reasons:
1.) Childish ra kaayo. If apektado kaayo ta ani ambot lang.
2.) Pinoys in the US have no right to make demands. Maskin di na mabuhi ang US nga wala sila they can tell them all to leave. But I will assure you walay usa ana mamalik diri. Naghangol man gani ta panglayas sa Pilipinas nya sila maghawd2x didto? Kita man bisita didto. Kita pa ang nagpakalooy or hangyo paramakasulod didto so they hold all the cards.

Did it ever occur to you that things like these happen all the time? It's a line to compound the personality of the character. I know that Terri's character is a housewife. Like most common housewives mabaw ug pangutok. Her character is also known to be somewhat obnoxious. It wouldn't surprise me if she said comments like that. Remarks like that are made about blacks, asians, whites, latins. Why aren't we supporting their complaints? Ngano ang ato ra man gisupportahan? Kai tungod na igo ta? In fact, there are harsher comments made to other people than that.

Simple solution: Ignore. "If the following scene offends you, don't look at it."

[zmoktyok]

why masuko man ang uban nga tinuod man sad bah, sa akong na obserbahan lang kuwang pa jud og knowledge ang mga doctors dri puro lang pamasin