The Slants Too Controversial, Says Oregon Commission On Asian Affairs

The Oregon Commission on Asian Affairs, a committee put together by Oregon governor Ted Kulongoski, recently pulled funding from the non-profit organization Asian American Youth Leadership Conference (AAYLC) for involvement with founder and bassist of The Slants, Simon Young. The AAYLC committee had originally chosen Young to be the keynote speaker for this year's leadership conference, with this year's theme "Aspire to Inspire." The Slants were also scheduled to play the youth leadership conference.

The AAYLC is an annual summit that allows youth to learn leadership skills, to provide career guidance and opportunities, and to foster a sense of culture and self-pride among students. The goal for this year's theme was to inspire students to rise above any obstacles they might face when trying to fulfill their dreams, especially those related to their ethnicity.

Paul Van Mai, Chairman of the AAYLC, stated that "I think Simon and groups like The Slants represents a new generation of Asian Americans who are more assertive, media driven and not afraid to face-up on the typical stereo-typing that many AA/API go through."

However, the OCAA withdrew support of the event because they found The Slants' name to be offensive towards the Asian community. Fearing that the action would trigger similar responses with other supporters, the AAYLC had no choice but to select an alternate speaker and cancel the band¹s appearance.

"The primary reason for me being chosen to begin with was the relevance and positive impact that The Slants have made in the Asian American community," commented Young on the decision. "Now I am being alienated from the very people that I am fighting for."

Young also wrote in a recent blog, "What I find discouraging is that there is an organization (the OCAA) that exists to protect the rights of Asians, appointed by the Governor and state legislators, which is now interfering with the rights of an Asian group to make their own decisions. It's a sad day to live in where my rights are being trampled on by people who are offended on my behalf yet who don¹t understand my culture to begin with."

The Slants are known primarily for their involvement with the Asian community, performing at Anime conventions nationwide and some of the largest family-friendly Asian American celebrations in the world, such as the Asian Street Heritage Fair in San Francisco, CA.

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