Lessons in courage and sensitivity

By Tim J. McGuire

The last time I communicated with a large group of ASNE members I had tears of joy and emotion in my eyes. I was on top of the world. Jay Harris had just delivered a powerful speech about the severe stresses in our profession between Wall Street and journalism. Our society had saluted the courageous leadership of David Offer at Stars and Stripes and Dave was overwhelmed in a way that affected me deeply. And then the ASNE membership humored me by singing Happy Birthday to my 22-year-old Down Syndrome son, Jason, a moment neither Jason nor I will ever forget.

The day you become ASNE president is a very busy day and what I had not done that day was read the ASNE Reporter. Thus I had missed the powerful column written by Amy Leang, a photographer for the ASNE Reporter.

In that column, Ms. Leang took all of us to task for laughing at a skit by the Capitol Steps at the Tuesday night reception. She wrote that the skit, which portrayed two Chinese officials talking to President Bush, was demeaning and stereotypical. She said she had trouble sleeping and the next day she cried.

Nobody mentioned her dramatic column to me that day and I left Washington full of myself, thrilled to be President of ASNE, and completely unaware storm clouds were forming.

By Friday of the following week I felt under siege and the thrill of being ASNE president was faded.

Many of you are unaware until now that you, if you laughed at the skit, your organization and your officers have been under attack for about four weeks because of our perceived insensitivity during the Capitol Steps skit.

The president of AAJA, a group of Asian journalist alumni of the ASNE Reporter, the president of Unity, and even a representative of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission, have taken ASNE and me to task for not apologizing for allowing the skit and for not walking out during the performance.

I have written a letter of apology to Amy Leang. I told her I am very sorry that she was subjected to personal hurt at the ASNE convention and that as a father of a daughter her age, I shudder at the thought of her going through such personal pain. I also told her that her courage is the real story of this event.

I have also made it clear to all those who have inquired that ASNE remains strong in its opposition to stereotyping and derogatory racial imagery in any form.

I have also told our critics that continuing to focus on what editors should have done that night will not accomplish what needs to be done now to make sensitivity and diversity real. I am sure that anyone aware of Ms. Leang’s column, or this incident, especially those of you who saw the show, have reflected carefully about how you reacted and how you will react in similar cases in the future. I know I have.

I have told the people who are angered over ASNE member’s response to the skit this: “Sensitivity, diversity and tolerance are borne of experience and mistakes. The other officers and I have grown deeply in all three areas in the last three weeks and it’s our job to make sure the entire membership grows in the same way.”

I have learned a lot over the last few weeks. I have learned once again that until I walk in someone else’s shoes, I simply cannot appreciate how stereotyping must feel.

Most of us saw the Capitol Steps skit as political satire and parody. We accepted it as such and that construct allowed us to laugh.

It was not until I read Amy Leang’s words that I realized that skit could look profoundly different to someone who saw it as making fun of them. I am convinced few of our members saw that skit as mocking Chinese Americans but at least one Chinese-American did and that matters. Our critics would argue that our sensitivity antenna should have been on and they are probably right.

Another learning for me has been the importance of balancing competing values. As this situation developed, I was very intent on protecting the First Amendment right to speak out in satire and parody. Those values are important, but we can’t ever lose our focus on the feelings and perceptions of those people who have historically been subjected to demonization, ridicule and stereotyping.

I know some ASNE members will wonder what all the upset is about. Some will believe they and our organization did nothing wrong that night. I believe they will be missing the point. If people took offense then we have to ask why.

The point I’ve tried to make to our critics and the point I want to share with you is that it is through courage such as Amy Leang’s that we all grow in understanding and appreciation of each other’s needs.

ASNE is an organization committed to enhancing diversity in our newsrooms and in our newspapers. If we are serious about that commitment, we have to learn from people who feel stereotyping and discrimination in ways we have not and cannot feel.

McGuire, ASNE president, is editor of the Star Tribune, Minneapolis.