Dartmouth students have joined a nationwide chorus of protest against popular clothing maker Abercrombie and Fitch, which has been accused of anti-Asian racism and stereotyping in a recently-released line of t-shirts.
Among the seven different t-shirt designs at issue -- all of which the company has chosen to recall from its stores -- is one featuring caricatured Asian men beside the words "Wong Brothers Laundry Service: Two Wongs Can Make It White."
Another features an image of the Buddha along with the slogan, "Buddha Bash -- Get Your Buddha On the Floor."
National Asian advocacy groups as well as college students responded soon after the first shirts arrived on the shelves last week, flooding Abercrombie and Fitch with angry calls and boycotting some West coast stores.
At Dartmouth, the Pan-Asian Council held an emergency meeting last night, bringing together around 30 students to discuss their reactions to the t-shirt designs. Anger over the issue began last week, however, when circulating e-mail messages alerted campus groups to the shirts' existence.
"I think these images are very troubling and dangerous for everyone in society because they perpetuate stereotypes," said Nora Yasumura, Asian and Asian-American students advisor.
Others drew parallels between the images portrayed on the shirts and past racist depictions of Asians.
"I think the most blatant thing is the caricatured figures with slanted eyes and pointy hats," Morna Ha '04 said. "It's so reminiscent of the stereotypical images we haven't seen for a century."
During last night's meeting, participants echoed these views, with theater Professor Framji Minwalla accusing Abercrombie of perpetuating racist attitudes through their advertising, which he said "lacks any ethnic representation."
Abercrombie and Fitch, however, has maintained that the shirt designs were not meant to be taken seriously.
"These graphic t-shirts were designed with the sole purpose of adding humor and levity to our fashion line," Abercrombie spokesman Hampton Carney told Reuters. "We thought everyone would love them, especially the Asian community."
Other students agree that the critics of the company have gone overboard in their accusations of racism.
"It seems to be a case of over-sensitivity on their part," ChienWen Kung '04 said. "People should learn to relax and lighten up a bit ... politically incorrect t-shirts are not race crimes."
Yasumura said she was concerned that the images on the shirts "send the message that it is socially acceptable to make fun of people and commercialize culture, race and religion."
Kung, however, felt that "people are intelligent and mature enough not to simply accept the images of other cultures" presented on an article of clothing.
Those who attended last night's discussion were unanimously in opposition to the shirts, though suggestions varied as to what response students should take now that the merchandise has been taken off store shelves.
Among the proposed measures were newspaper opinion columns and poster campaigns aimed at alerting the campus, while others advocated alliances with other minority groups.
Yasumura called for "more coalition building" to assert the rights of Asian-Americans, who she said have historically been "the least united" minority group.
Though no longer available in stores, the shirts have since resurfaced on ebay.com, where recent bids have exceeded $200.
Controversy has been no stranger to the Ohio-based Abercrombie and Fitch. In 1998, a catalog spread featuring alcoholic drink recipes drew the ire of Mothers against Drunk Driving. Just a few months ago, the company came under criticism from Christian and women's rights groups for featuring overly suggestive poses in its advertisements.
