Click Me!
It’s got the J-blogosphere a-buzzin’. It’s making people laugh, cry and possibly seethe with rage. It’s keeping me up too late at night when I know I have to teach seven genki (energetic) five and six year-olds first thing in the morning.
I’m talking about Loco’s (of Loco in Yokohama) breakout book, based on his controversial and provocative blog series: Hi! My Name is Loco, and I am a Racist.
I…love it. Seriously. The man can write! The way he turns a phrase makes me want to cut off all my fingers so I’m never again tempted to litter the internet with my measly attempts at blogging, practically transparent compared to his…just kidding. I need my fingers for other things, for example licking after eating KFC.
Anyway, in his book Baye McNeil (Loco’s “Clark Kent” identity) gives a new meaning to the word “candid”. His every emotion – from joy to lust to heartbreak – is saturating the pages, and it’s addicting to read. I couldn’t wait to whip out my iPhone on the train and dig in. Poetic prose blends harmoniously with his natural, down to earth, conversational tone to deliver entertaining anecdotes and unique insights about racism. One of two things will happen when you read this book: You will stop and think, “Huh, I never thought of it that way before.” Or you will stop and think, “Finally, somebody is saying this out loud!” I certainly did many times.
The book is about…actually this kind of thing is always better coming straight from the horse’s mouth. Yo, Loco!
Whoa, whoa, whoa…just what the hell is this book about?
Loco Says: As the title suggests, the book is a story about a racist named Loco! And that’s me. But more specifically it’s about my mental and emotional response to the behavior of people here in Japan, which can get beyond outrageous at times. No one can say with any certainty — except maybe a mind reader – what is prompting this behavior, of course. Some say it is due to their racism, others distinguish racism from xenophobia and call it that. Some of my Japanese friends like to call it Iwakan, or a feeling of “incompatibility” or a “malaise” whenever they’re near a foreigner. Whatever it is, it’s definitely derived from an unwarranted and unprovoked fear and inspired by my presence. And, naturally I didn’t like it. In fact, I hate it. You can’t always control people or situations you find yourself in, but I’m of the mind that you ought to be able to control your response to them. I noticed during my tenure here that I had lost or surrendered control and in my search to understand why I had, I learned that, in no uncertain terms, I was a racist. This book is about my efforts to find out why and to regain control over these racist responses of mine.
Why write about racism? It’s such a downer man. People don’t want to think about all that heavy stuff.
Loco says: Well, that’s a shame, because to me this is the issue that defines us as a species. And until racism is resolved the world will never be the way I presume we all would like it to be: A place where all people can live together in some semblance of harmony, without one group’s idea of the natural order of things clashing with another group’s. I’m talking about mutual respect for one another’s dignity and rights as a human being. I’ve simply taken this belief of mine to the next step and documented my struggles, so that people can see that racism, while it’s certainly a dark social virus and a very bad thing, is not something relegated to ”bad people.” I certainly don’t consider myself a bad person, no more than an alcoholic is a bad person. Just an afflicted person. And yes afflictions do tend to be “heavy stuff.” But, there’s no reward without risk and no gain without pain. Just imagine the world on the other side of victory over this malady, the same way you imagine that six-pack when you’re sweating out your crunches, or clean air when you’re tediously separating garbage for recycling. It’s the same idea. Not a downer, I say it’s an upper!
Do you think we’ll ever rise above racism?
Loco says: If we ever reach the point where we all agree that it can and must be risen above for the sake of the survival of the species, then yes. If not? If people continue to believe in pseudo-science that says racism is part of our DNA, or that humans are naturally afraid of humans that look different or have a different lifestyle, despite the preponderance of proof that this whole idea of race is a construct developed by human beings, then it will be a long battle with a predictable outcome. If history is used as a precursor of what’s to come, then it will be another genocide, ethnic cleansing or variation on manifest destiny that awaits us.
I highly recommend this book, so get on over to Amazon to get your copy now!
Great review of a must read book. Glad to see it is doing really well, too
Japan Australia
As am I
…and eattin’ watermelon!
After reading the first few chapters in the Amazon preview, I was hooked. Gonna spring for the ten bucks. Thanks for the heads-up on this.
Do I detect false modesty in the self-deprecating description of your writing?
The way he turns a phrase makes me want to cut off all my fingers so I’m never again tempted to litter the internet with my measly attempts at blogging, practically transparent compared to his…just kidding. I need my fingers for other things, for example licking after eating KFC.
…and eatin’ watermelon!
[rimshot]
That almost went over my pea-brained head, but I managed to catch it. You know you’re good, and in case you don’t, I’m tellin’ ya. Hugs.
Well thank you! And glad to hear you’ll buy the book!
Well done Amanda and thanks for having me! Thanks JA for calling my book a “must read” and thanks Peter for pickign up the book. Don’t forget, you guys, that this is an indie project and ink is precious!! So please leave a review on Amazon and tell the world what you think about the book! Your boy Loco will be grateful beyond words!