Hank Azaria willing to 'step aside' from playing Apu on 'The Simpsons'

[IronLionZion]

https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/25/entertainment/hank-azaria-apu/index.html

(CNN)Hank Azaria says his "eyes have been opened" and he's willing to "step aside" from playing his controversial "Simpsons" character.

The actor appeared on Tuesday's episode of "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" and talked about the fallout surrounding the character he voices, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon.
Comedian Hari Kondabolu's documentary "The Problem with Apu" debuted last November and looked at the character as a negative, stereotypical representation of South Asians.
Nahasapeemapetilon, a Indian-American character with a thick accent, operates the Kwik-E-Mart convenience store in the fictional town of Springfield. The show recently aired a response to complaints about him.

Azaria voices multiple characters on the show, including Moe Szyslak and Chief Wiggum. He told Colbert he just wanted to be funny.
"The idea that anybody, young or old, past or present was bullied or teased based on the character of Apu, it just really makes me sad," Azaria said. "It was certainly not my intention. I wanted to spread laughter and joy with this character and the idea that it's brought pain and suffering in any way, that it was used to marginalize people, it's upsetting."

Which DUer will be first to whitesplain to me to lighten up when you haven't experienced a lifetime of bullying and discrimination and marginalizing millions of brown Americans who have American accents and work normal jobs like anyone else in America?

#WhitePrivilege

[hueymahl]

1. Have you ever watched the show?

Apu is a pretty complex character. He has a "funny" accent, but that is not all he is. EVERY character on the Simpsons, regardless of what color they are drawn, is a caricature. The show is satire. So, yeah, lighten up.

[IronLionZion]

2. Winner!

Congrats! You win a lifetime of marginalization with no positive caricatures to be found anywhere in pop culture.

[hueymahl]

3. Thank you.

Last edited Thu Apr 26, 2018, 01:41 PM - Edit history (1)

I accept this award proudly on behalf of everyone who has not had their sense of humor surgically removed!

[LanternWaste]

4. it can be difficult to accept, or even realize, that bigotry has often been used as humor.

No doubt, it can be difficult to accept, or even realize, that bigotry has often been used as humor. So we ask ourselves-- do we sacrifice the bigotries we justify as humor, or do we defend those race-based insults merely as "I was just being funny"?

I'm not surprised at all that humor predicated on bigotry is often conflated as humor in its entirety though... as it's much easier to rationalize our biases in doing so, and gives us one less reason to reflect on the theme.

[mokawanis]

5. Perhaps, in the future, what's acceptable now will be deemed offensive

that's what Maher thinks anyway.

http://www.indiewire.com/2018/04/bill-maher-molly-ringwald-john-hughes-the-simpsons-apu-1201952796/

[hueymahl]

6. He is one of the last voices of reason out there

Hell, sometimes he even makes me mad, and that is hard! Maher is doing something right.