Is Hank Azaria's Depiction of Apu Racist?

I know plenty of Indians who have arranged marriages, and a fair number who own or work in convenience stores. (Though none with octuplets.) I think it's fair to say that Apu is characterized by various stereotypes of Indians. But I also think it's fair to say that *everyone* on the Simpsons is based largely or entirely in stereotypes - and many of these stereotypes are demeaning. I don't need to make a list; it's obvious - the rural hillbilly family, "Lurleen" the country star, Groundskeeper Willy, various gay and lesbian characters, the Albanian exchange student, the "industrialist" Mr Burns, the very Jewish Krusty the Clown, the "geeky" scientist guy and so on. I'd be concerned if Apu were singled out for this sort of treatment, but he's not. Some of the stereotypes in the Simpsons have to do with race, creed and color, some don't. But it's all fair game - I think they do a good job of making fun of all of our little quirks and stereotypical ideas and behaviors, and you'd have to be a bit of a lunatic to think that there's a bias there towards or against any single group. Interestingly, on the Simpsons' 20 anniversary special, it was pointed out that Apu seems to be the only character who actually works hard at his job.

The stereotype exists in the writing to start with, but I think only on the surface. Once you've spent some time with the character he goes beyond the stereotype to become a very well-rounded and sympathetic person. There's no implication on the show that Apu by virtue of his race is inferior to anyone else on the show. If anything, he may occasionally be used to point up racist attitudes in the other characters.

I don't think the problem is with Azaria doing an Indian accent. The problem is that Apu owns a convenience store and has an arranged marriage with a woman who bears him octuplets.

Some Indian folks think it's racist. And some Indian folks seem to think it's funny, as evidenced by the time I walked into an Indian restaurant in Studio City and Hank Azaria was sitting there and the Indian waiter and host both asked him to do Apu, and they all stood around laughing merrily. This may say more about the eternal weirdness of living in L.A. than anything else, I admit, but there's another bit of anecdata for you.

" if you want to have an Indian character on a parody show, how else would you do it?" Hire an Indian actor?" Does that mean that Bart being voiced by a woman is sexist? They should fire Nancy Cartwright and hire a ten year old boy?

Well, look at it from this angle: if you want to have an Indian character on a parody show, how else would you do it? The thick accent is pretty much required to show that he's a native Indian, and we probably all know or have known some shopkeepers from that country. It's a very common thing, so it's easy to riff on... it gives them the Quickie Mart to play with as well, so they can occasionally beat up on 7-11, or on the dumb people who eat the crap they serve. :) It would be racist if they were demeaning; if Apu was stupid or an asshole or extremely greedy or something, and it was projected that this was because he was Indian. But as wabbittwax says, he's on equal footing with practically everyone else, and in many ways is a more sympathetic character than the leads themselves are. Somehow, they manage to both wildly exaggerate Apu, and yet treat him with a fair bit of respect. So, no, I don't think it's racist, just parodic. A slightly different angle again: after you watch a show with Apu in it, do you feel any less inclined to like real Indians you know? Do you feel that Apu is insulting to them in any way?

Are you really concerned about this? As if the the green can tell you definitively whether something is racist. Are you really hoping to have a definitive, "more PC than thou" answer? You won't get one. Answering the question, for myself, no. Actually, I'm more likely to think the white-trash portrayal of the hillbillies is more troubling. Apu is hard-working and earnest, the white-trash are stupid leeches.

There seems to be a misunderstanding of the term "racist" here. To be "racist" there needs to be a belief or intention to depict negatives to being of a certain race. Ummmm, no. "Asians are good at math" is totally racist even though that's not at all negative, because it reinforces the notion that all people who look a certain way behave a certain way.

The problem is that Apu owns a convenience store and has an arranged marriage with a woman who bears him octuplets. How grotesque. No Indian even ran a convenience store or entered into an arranged marriage, and anybody who does is surely beneath contempt. I think the test is whether the person is perpetuating a stereotype, particularly a demeaning one. No, the test is whether a particular race is maliciously singled out and held up for ridicule. Every race, culture, creed, gender, sexuality, occupation, age etc is held up for ridicule by The Simpsons in one way or another, and there's not an ounce of malice to any of it. They even refer to it directly by breaking the third wall ('thisa olda Italian stereotype'). You'll be telling me Krusty is anti-Semetic next.