New York: A popular New York radio station Hot 97 and one of its hosts are under fire for airing a racist song that mocks victims of the tsunami tragedy. The song includes hideous lines like, “You can hear God laughing, ‘Swim you bitches swim.’”
The grotesque piece, dubbed the Tsunami Song, sparked immediate outrage from listeners, who demanded that radio jockey (RJ) Miss Jones be fired, but the song was aired for another four days before the station finally pulled it.
Ironically, the song was sung to the tune of the 1985 hit We Are The World, proceeds from which were used for famine relief in Africa. The Tsunami Song used racial slurs to describe people swept away in the disaster, made jokes about child slavery and people watching their mothers die.
Hot 97’s parent company, Emmis Communications, has since issued an apology and said Miss Jones and the rest of the show’s seven-person staff has agreed to contribute one-week’s pay to tsunami relief efforts. But none of them have been sacked.
The piece drew wide criticism from Albany to New York’s City Hall, with many lawmakers calling on the US Federal Communications Commission to fine Hot 97.
“At a time when virtually the entire world has come together to help in the tsunami tragedy relief, employees of Hot 97 have come up with this song,” said New York State Assembly member Jimmy Meng, a Democrat from Queens. “We are disgusted and demand immediate action by the FCC.”
“Clearly, if the FCC can level a $5,50,000 fine for a wardrobe malfunction (Janet Jackson’s infamous ‘nipplegate’ at last year’s Superbowl) they certainly can address this kind of absolute indecency,” said John Liu of the New York City Council.
The piece was also denounced by the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations, which said it had received calls from Muslims offended by the piece.
Jameson Gong, with the Organisation of Chinese Americans, said, “People from all over the community are talking about what to do; rallies, protests and sending letters to the FCC.”
As the protests built last week, Hot 97 first played it cool. Morning team member Miss Info, who is of Asian descent, distanced herself from the song, but Hot 97 played it and posted it on the station website.
“That song is really offensive to me, and I opted not to involve myself,” Miss Info said.
Jones replied, “I know you feel you’re superior because you’re Asian, but you’re not.” Later, co-host Todd Lyn, incensed at Miss Info’s criticism, said, “I’m going to start shooting Asians.”
On Friday, as protests got louder, Miss Jones called it “my first boycott”, and said she’d play the song once more just to show that protesters can’t dictate what goes on the air.
A few hours later, the station posted this apology, which the morning team repeated on Monday: “Hot 97 regrets the airing of material that made light of a serious and tragic event. We apologise to our listeners and anyone who was offended.”
Racist lyrics that mocked tragedy
There was a time, when the sun was shining bright So I went down to the beach to catch me a tan. Then the next thing I knew, a wave 20 feet high Came and washed your whole country away. And all at once, you can hear the screaming chinks. And no one was saved from the wave. There were Africans drowning, little Chinamen swept away. You can hear God laughing, ‘Swim you bitches swim.’
[Chorus] “So now you’re screwed. It’s the tsunami, You better run and kiss your a** away. Go find your mommy. I just saw her float by, a tree went through her head. And now your children will be sold into child slavery.”
http://www.mid-day.com/news/world/2005/january/102302.htm
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