Ah, Miley, Miley. All right, I suppose one could call these photos that have just emerged showing Miley Cyrus (of Hannah Montanafame), 16, with boyfriend Justin Gaston, 20 making slit-eye gestures with some friends as they're being photographed "just something a teenager might do." On the other hand, as someone in the public eye, she needs to be more careful, as although she may not be racist, the gestures are definitely offensive.
Interestingly, one of the friends in the photo, via The Improper, is obviously Asian. Thus, the implication that Miley Cyrus is not racist, just a teenager. The thing is, much like Spain's basketball team who posed the same way last year, goofing around shouldn't be an excuse for offensive behavior, particularly for a celeb.
Karen Narasaki, of the Asian American Justice Center said:
"It's hard to imagine the context where this would be okay. It's offensive and disappointing."
Similarly, the OCA, a national organization dedicated to advancing the social, political, and economic well-being of Asian Pacific Americans in the United States said:
"The photograph of Miley Cyrus and other individuals slanting their eyes currently circulating the Internet is offensive to the Asian Pacific American community and sets a terrible example for her many young fans. This image falls within a long and unfortunate history of people mocking and denigrating individuals of Asian descent.
"Not only has Miley Cyrus and the other individuals in the photograph encouraged and legitimized the taunting and mocking of people of Asian descent, she has also insulted her many Asian Pacific American fans. The inclusion of an Asian Pacific American individual in the photo does not make it acceptable.
"OCA hopes that Miley Cyrus will apologize to her fans and the APA community for this lapse in judgment and takes the opportunity to better understand why the gesture is offensive."
As I said, Miley Cyrus is probably not racist. But she does need some lessons in good judgment.
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