University Professor Responds to Racist Rant

By Louis Chan
AsAmNews National Correspondent

A professor of English at the University of Houston received a rambling message from a distressed resident questioning the loyalty of another Asian professor.

The message was intended for Professor Ling Zhu who teaches political science at the University of Houston. Zhang has a doctorate degree from Texas A&M in political science and a masters degrees from both Purdue and Fudan University in Shanghai.

The caller presumes that because Zhu has been educated overseas that she is not American. The caller also jumps to the conclusion that Zhu lacks loyalty to the United States and questions whether such a person “should be a permanent fixture of a public institution.”

The message somehow ended up on the voice mail of Professor Karen Fang who teaches English at the University of Houston.

You can listen to the message below.

yesterday my work phone got a rambling but confrontational 3.5 min voicemail from someone questioning my legitimacy to teach based on my presumed #citizenship and #ethnic identity. You can hear the full message here: https://t.co/cQEk718Vqe

— Karen Fang (@KfangKaren) June 20, 2018

Fang included her outrage to the message.

the caller seems to have found the name of an #Asian #faculty person w/ a degree from Shanghai, so questions that faculty’s authority to teach based on #citizenship and “#loyalty to the #US” #AAPI @AAUP @arissaoh @jwassers @angryasianman

— Karen Fang (@KfangKaren) June 20, 2018

this kind of ignorance and suspicion RE #ethnic #Chinese professionals is typical of #antiAsian #racism, and a disturbing indicator of today’s civic climate @morenoreads @shotinshanghai @nancywyuen @GeneforTexas @AAFederation @whkchun

— Karen Fang (@KfangKaren) June 20, 2018

while every #AsianAmerican is used to being confused with other random #Asian people, the larger issue here is not uninformed sloppiness but the fact that some people think an international degree means non-citizenship–or that #citizenship is required to #teach

— Karen Fang (@KfangKaren) June 20, 2018

AsAmNews has reached out to both Professors Fang and Zhu and will update this story if necessary.
 
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