The following was a note posted via facebook by one Katherine Fan or Ming-Shing. Did I say that right?

So a few days ago, Texas representative Betty Brown gave minorities something exciting to buzz about.

Here’s the quote.

“Rather than everyone here having to learn Chinese — I understand it’s a rather difficult language — do you think that it would behoove you and your citizens to adopt a name that we could deal with more readily here?” Brown said.

Brown later told [Organization of Chinese Americans representative Ramey] Ko: “Can’t you see that this is something that would make it a lot easier for you and the people who are poll workers if you could adopt a name just for identification purposes that’s easier for Americans to deal with?”

I’m too lazy to watch the video, because I can’t hear her at all anyway… but here’s the visual context of the quote, live from Texas.

Are Asian Americans/Democrats/minori

ties/naysayers making a mountain out of a molehill? Yes and no.

Of course, there are vast political motives for Democrats to oust her, and this slip-up is a great opportunity for them to do so. And yes, it does seem like “such a small thing to get upset about.” So then… why am I?

I keep flip-flopping regarding my reactions to what she said. On the one hand, I get what she’s trying to say. From my preliminary skims through news articles, here’s what she’s upset about. Many Asian-Americans (like myself) have a legal name (Ming-Shing) on their official documents, yet go by a common name (Katherine) that’s used exclusively for social contexts. This leads to huge potential identification issues. So in that sense, sure, I agree a little bit. It would be way the hell “easier” if we were all Katherines and Jennifers rather than Ming-Shings and Mei-Lings.

In addition, a lot of people in America don’t have very much familiarity with ethnic last names. Most proably can’t even spell common Anglo first names correctly – how many variations of “Katherine” have you seen? Let alone names like “Nguyen” or “Gutierrez” or “Krasinski.” All of this combined definitely leads to a lot of anxiety and potential confusion come voting time. The average volunteer in a polling precinct very likely did not sit through “Ethnic Names 101.”

All Betty Brown meant to say was this: “Hey, there’s a lot of potential confusion involved here. Here’s a suggestion to improve matters.” And if she’d phrased it better, I would give her a Facebook “Like.”

But my real beef is with who said it, and how she said it. I expect my state representative to represent ME, Ming-Shing (Katherine) Fan, a Texas resident and a U.S. citizen, when she speaks in political circles on behalf of Texas. Her unfortunate choice of words makes me question that advocacy.

Texas has some of the most diverse communities in the United States. Within the South-East Asian race alone, Texas boasts citizens and residents of Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese, Taiwanese, Cambodian, Thai, Chinese, Malaysian, and Singaporean descent. Some are immigrants, who hold residency status. Some are naturalized citizens. And some, like myself, are citizens by birth.

In addition, not everyone who looks “white” is of Mayflower descent: Desi Americans, Latin Americans, European Americans, and African Americans also call Texas home, as well as the Native Americans who really should be the ones calling the shots if we’re basing “the right to belong” on seniority.

I don’t think it’s impossible for an Anglo-American to properly represent the interests of all these minorities, but I at least expect more sensitivity to the issue of ethnicity. In one fell swoop, Betty Brown lost the respect of millions across the state and nation with her offhand remarks. Her wording forms the bulk of my personal disappointment. Yes, I realize it was a casual comment. Yes, I realize there was no harm or offense intended. …But that is why it is all the more inappropriate.

By using such terms as “you and your citizens,” she’s suggesting that Chinese Americans do not belong in her mental category of “American” – which I’m assuming would be Anglo? Since “Caucasian” is not actually synonymous with “more common names.” Furthermore, she consistently uses the terms “we” and “you” – probably not to represent the state lawmakers vs. the common people… but to distinguish between “the people with names easier to deal with,” and “the people whose names are not easier to deal with.” In essence, this is a thinly veiled echo of colonialism with its overt “Us” and “Them” mentality.

In some Texas communities, some long-term resident families span three generations, all of whom speak English brokenly at best. I hear this happens in places like California Chinatowns and Koreatowns as well. And I don’t like it when Michael makes this comment, but I agree with his point: If you want to live in America, learn the language and adapt the culture. It’s not that difficult to reconcile the culture of your ethnicity with the culture of your citizenship – people manage to grow up cross-culturally all the time. And those who refuse to assimilate at least to a certain degree create a huge strain on the cohesiveness of the country at large.

But there’s a vast difference in dealing with pockets of minority communities that all refuse to learn or speak English, and suggesting that ethnic groups Anglicize their names for the sake of public convenience.

Names are a deeply personal source of individual identity – else why would parents spend months agonizing over their unborn children’s name spellings, name cadences, and name pairings? Why would entire tribes celebrate rites of passage with naming ceremonies? Names reflect family, significance, personality, heritage.

I GET that Betty Brown was not trying to say, “Your kind are invading my land, and the least you could do would be to make it easier for me to identify you.” But it sure feels like it.

I also think her comment demeans the hundreds upon thousands of Anglo Americans who valiantly attempt to learn as much about other cultures as possible. She makes it sound as if learning a few unfamiliar syllables is downright impossible for the Americans whose convenience she champions. I find this personally offensive to a lot of my Caucasian friends, who have always wanted to learn as much about my heritage as possible.

I’m not calling her a racist. I just think she’s an ignoramus. And it’s not OK for my state rep to lack exposure – at the very least, in an intellectual sense – to the minorities within her jurisdiction.

Texas is a state that bears deep pride in its culture. We disgust non-Texans with our constant “Texas > you” jokes. Texas is the only state allowed to fly its flag side-by-side with the Stars and Stripes. We chant “Remember the Alamo!” and mean it, whether or not we had ancestors in that battle. We are passionate about our freedom, and aren’t afraid to fight for it.

I appreciate Betty Brown’s effort to improve the voting process in Texas – all sarcasm aside, I’m sure she had some great ideas and suggestions. And I don’t hold her unintentional ignorance against her in a personal manner. But because of what and who she [did not] represent, I feel that she should no longer hold her position in office.

Catch Katherine Fan and her awesomeness over on facebook.