Asian Students Protest Characterization Of Hasty Pudding's 'Ed Foo Young'

Members of the Asian American Association (AAA) will meet with producers of the Hasty Pudding Club (HPC) musical, "A Little Knife Music," on Wednesday to discuss what the AAA has called a "racist, humiliating and dangerous portrayal" of an Asian character, Michael T. Hsieh, '80, an AAA member, said yesterday.

Hsieh said his group may distribute leaflets protesting the character of "Edgar Foo Young" at future performances, M. Florence Houn '80, president of the AAA, said yesterday she had spoken to leaders of the Black Student Association, La Organisacion and Raza, about a cooperative protest.

Representatives of the AAA and the Hasty Pudding have met twice since the AAA sent a letter to the Pudding on March 7, requesting the revision or removal of the Foo Young character.

"The Pudding suggested that they would print an apology and the letter we wrote them in the (show's) program," Houn said, but she added that the AAA will insist that the producers "de-ethnicize the character."

Charles A. Milot '80, co-producer of the show, and David Levi'80, president of the HPC, declined to comment yesterday on the AAA protest.

Bad Humor

But Milot did say, "We gave every character in the play a great deal of consideration." Neither the play nor the character were intended to create a bad humor in the audience."

Andrew W. Sellon '81, the show's script writer, said yesterday that he "had not expected," any problems with the character, adding that the part "was making fun of the stereotype at the expense of the people who make stereotypes."

Good Humor

A revision or ommission of the controversial character "would improve the humor of the play," Houn said.

"To shuffle racial ridicule in the category of innocuous humor is not only a show of disrespect to another ethnic culture but it also demonstrates a real insensitivity to the problem of racial tension in this society," Hsieh said.

"Knife Music" will continue to play at the HPC through March 19.