On the Desperate Housewives "Racial Slur"

ABC Studios has already apologized for the controversial joke made by Teri Hatcher's character in Desperate Housewives. As a little backgrounder, here's the scene that started this brouhaha:



In response to the doctor who suggested a medical checkup, Hatcher replies that she wants to check his diplomas first to "make sure they're not from some med school in the Philippines." This remark has sparked the ire of the the Filipino online community. An online petition demanding an apology from ABC and Desperate Housewives was started and, to date, it is close to 80,000 signatures-strong.

As a minor aside, I don't watch the show but I was intrigued with this controversy. And I understand that my position on this is seemingly, relatively unpopular (alright, shoot me). I'm not sure if it really is a "racial slur", maybe it is and maybe it isn't. But when I heard the line, it struck me as alluding to the "credibility issues" that the Philippine medical profession is experiencing. Let's admit, we have our problems about the fake diplomas in Recto, as well as last year's nursing exam controversy. We do not exactly have a squeaky-clean image. How else would the writer get his inspiration, albeit a poor one at that?

It was a joke, but not a funny one. But like most jokes, it has some grain of truth.

With the ABC apology, I think the issue is pretty much settled (unless it doesn't get accepted by the petitioners). So what am I hoping to see after this? I sure don't give a dime about politicians expressing their disgust over the show and proposing to ban it. The people already did the former (through that online petition) and can do something that will almost have the same effect as the latter (by choosing not to watch the show). Unfortunately, these are just what the politicians are doing: see here, here, and here.

Well, to some extent, demanding a formal apology is a legitimate course of action for the goverment if it so chooses. But I do think a proposal to ban the show is unnecessary.

However, I am a bit disappointed that no one in the government has stepped up and acknowledged that, despite how lofty the praises we accord ourselves, we have some credibility issues to iron out. What legitimate steps have we taken to recover from the aforementioned nursing fiasco that perhaps tarnished even the reputation of future graduates and examinees? And going beyond the medical profession, how about the fake diplomas being sold explicitly in the streets? Doesn't their presence alone conjure a negative signal to foreign institutions and create some doubts when they encounter Philippine diplomas? That's not even going to the issue of diploma mills and the overall state of higher education.

In the end, I'm a bit disappointed that, so far, those who have the voice and power are speaking only the words that we have already said and those that we wanted to hear. Not the words that we needed to hear.