Actor Kal Penn Slams TIME Magazine for Racist Article
Credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
Looks like actor Kal Penn learned a lot from his job in Washington, D.C..
After TIME magazine published Joel Stein's "My Own Private India" -- which mocked the growing Indian population in the author's hometown of Edison, NJ -- Penn wrote a scathing response in the Huffington Post.
Penn -- who was named Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement by Barack Obama in 2009 -- wasted no time calling out Stein and TIME for using ethnic stereotypes to get a laugh.
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In Stein's article, he took jabs at the Indian residents of his hometown, writing that they looked "like the Italian Guidos I grew up with in the 1980s."
"Gags about impossibly spicy food? I'd never heard those before! Multiple Gods with multiple arms? Multiple laughs! Recounting racial slurs like 'dot-head?' Oh, Mr. Stein, is too good!" Penn wrote.
"Critics might call Mr. Stein's humor super-tired or as played out as the jokes about that cheap Jewish car that stopped on a dime to pick it up, or that African American kid who got marked absent at night school," the actor continued. "Although unlike Stein's Indian American piece, in 2010 those other jokes don't show up in mainstream media like TIME magazine. I wonder why that is..."
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Though a rep for TIME issued "no comment" on Penn's piece, the magazine did apologize to readers who found Stein's satire insulting.
"TIME sincerely regrets that any of our readers were upset by Joel Stein’s recent humor column 'My Own Private India,'" the rep tells UsMagazine.com in a statement. "It was in no way intended to cause offense."
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After receiving widespread criticism for the piece, Stein, 38, issued his own apology via TIME's Web site: "I truly feel stomach-sick that I hurt so many people," Stein wrote. "I was trying to explain how, as someone who believes that immigration has enriched American life and my hometown in particular, I was shocked that I could feel a tiny bit uncomfortable with my changing town when I went to visit it."
Tell Us What You Think
38@208rants GO TO HELL KUNNT! who are you to decide who are the established groups ? we are your DOCTORS and ENGINEERS - dont forget that you LOWLIFE! if this article was written about blacks/latins or Jews - all HELL would break loose you childish, hateful prick.. die you bastard
Mummy, mummy. The big bad white man is saying nasty things about Indians. Where is Gandhi? With all this whining over satire by Stein who has a legitimate right comment on his hometown, Indians appear as an immature immigrant group. If we want to join the adults (the established immigrant groups), we need a more sophisticated, "adult" response. http://wp.me/ZzTc
@ Chris...let's see you bashed a President and an actor--I bet your fat a** just sits around and "comments" all day...HMMMM thing I'll take the President or the actor...LOSER!!!!
WOW!!! @ Chris-any relation to Mel Gibson you jerk?? Your mom ever teach you that it's okay to disagree but do it with some respect?? Probably not..only small minds name call and insult--it's the only way ignorant people can get their point across...
I'm appalled at some of the comments I'm reading on this board. I, too, have been a long time reader of Joel's work but this last piece of his is unacceptable. Perhaps we Asians have been silent for too long of all the mockery we've had to endure but we're done with that. So forgive us for making ya'll uncomfortable and calling you out on your BS racist ways.
That guy is an actor? That's funny. He is exactly why Obdumbass needs to go. Hey nigga, who should we put in that canbinet post? OH!!! how bout an actor with no political experience? Sounds great boss! //SIGNED// 8 million jobs lost and counting while he vacations
Kal Penn plays a stoner, I think the point of him taking the role was to play against type. The young man is intelligent but money is money. If you want to see him in a more serious role you should pick up the movie The Namesake. Mr. Stein made a few not quite thought out observations and Time printed them. That is their right it is called freedom of speech. Same goes for Kal Penn. Now we are even...let's eat, I'm hungry.
I would say Joel is very very smart guy since he chose to be critical about peacful and tolerant indians and not those violent middle east people. By this way he served his agenda of getting the spotlight and he is still living without fear unlike the denish cartoonisht. Too good Joel !! And what an apology in which there is no "apology" or "sorry" word.
Hmmm... If having less-than-ebullient opinions about behavioral tendencies of other races is racist, and playing the race card is racist, and being a racist is the most evil thing of all time, then we should all kill ourselves right now...or better yet, a racist should do it...I vote we clone Hitler from his DNA remains and he can put us out of our racist misery.
To make a fair comment about this I should probably read the article first. But. . . being familiar with Mr. Penn's work and intelligence, I would have to support his stance. And since this is Us Magazine, I have to say: Kal Penn just got a little bit hotter. ;)
Bstew: I completely agree! The VERY ROLE he played in the movie that made him a name, could be said to be belittling his people! OMG!!!! I agree with JUST STOP IT too, he saw an oppotunity to get some publicity and took it! It is the politicians that say out one side of their mouth racism and prejudice should stop, but they do stupid s h i t like this when it should have meant nothing and yell racismn out the other!!!! THIS MAN IS AN IDIOT!!! regardless of what the h e l l he is!!!
shut the hell up kumar! u just came into politics but we are suppose to listen to u. get over it and let the guy(joel stein) be a comdian like he is!!
coming from the idiot who did white castle. who is he to come out and say anything? just because he became a politician overnight gives him the authority. their are more important things to worry about than an article written by a comedian!
This is really unfortunate. I regularly read Joel Stein's column in Time and he's anything but racist. He's funny and often says things that most people are thinking but are too PC to say or write. I can see how someone who doesn't know his style could take offense, but seriously, he would not have intended offense. He cracks enough jokes about himself and his jewish background. Humor is the best tool to having a vibrant family and community. If everyone stopped taking everything so seriously and laughed at themselves more often, and if we joked about stereotypes until they became exactly that, just jokes, we could take huge strides into bridging cultural divides. There is definitely real hatred and racism out there. Let's aim at that, instead of a harmless humorous article by Time's resident funny guy.
i'm an indian... and i think this aint cool. i know indians are poor, cheap n all. but thats the way we've been brought up. there's nothing to be made fun of. its just lucky that u americans live in a beautiful country where there are so many facilities, there's law, etc. here, the corruption is so damn high. cash cows everywhere. thats why ppl want to live in countries like the states, UK, etc. you racists are sickening.
Seriously, this article was more funny than offensive. I really didn't find it offensive at all, but then again you have to be intelligent to understand satire and sarcasm. Kat Penn is REALLY one to complain, since he makes hisliving playing STUPID stereotyped dumb Indian roles in films like Kumar...whatever gets laid or whatever! Can't think of the titles...but he plays stupid roles anyway.
Yep, people constantly belitte white people but GOD forbid a remark meant as NO HARM towards another race, and HERE WE GO AGAIN!!! This guy is just looking to get back in the spotlight, and he so an opportunity. I am sick of people of all races playing the race card1
vanessa, go back to europe you racist pig! look at some of the doctors and plastic surgeons in a America, they have Indian ancestry, they aren't just there to benefit themselves. as a moroccan woman with a boyfriend who is white, i love white people. but the one thing i despise are racist whites, remember whites invaded south africa and brought apartheid, they went into india and again placed themselves higher than indians, they went into america and killed many native americans. now that we are finally living as one, there still remains a few backward people like you vanessa, do us a favor and disappear because you will not be missed!
Sorry, Jane. Not funny !
Rumor has it that Joel Stein has been traumatized by the numerous torrid sexual affairs his wife has had with curry-eating Indian immigrants who dress like guidos.To make matters worse, she has been complaining to her girlfriends about Joel’s deficiencies if you know what I mean. So poor Joel can’t stand the sight of Indians – in fact he has nightmares in which he sees his wife enacting Kama Sutra with Indian dudes. Poor Joel! Give him a break. PS. This is my attempt at satire. Enjoy!