Problem
Odyssey Dance Theatre performer portrayed Asians as head bowing, hands in prayer, tiny stepping stereotypes. ODT dancers dressed in Asian costume in their portrayal of Chinese women.

Please note the tiny steps the dancers made in "portraying" Chinese women and remember that, while exaggerated, that way of walking was the result of the practice of "foot binding" which left women with crippling pain, disease and a permanent disability. It was a way of subjugating women into subservience by committing violence against them.

Claims of artistic integrity fall flat in the face of ODT's willingness to alter a performance to avoid offending or harming their audience (ODT altered their performance of Thriller in the wake of the murder of a University of Utah student). While we applaud ODT's sensitivity, we also note the hypocrisy in light of the current issue.

According to ODT's website, this production of Nutcracker is brought "to life in the present day". Yet, in their interpretation of "present day", they chose to incorporate the cultural insensitivity of the time of the Chinese Exclusion Act and "Yellow Peril".

Solution
We need to demonstrate our unity as a community to state clearly that such portrayals of Asians is intolerable. Please sign this petition to join us in condemning dehumanizing racial stereotypes and ask ODT work with the community to portray Asians in a truthful manner.

Personal story
Art can and should be provocative, innovative and seek to push the boundaries of social norms. Odyssey Dance Theatre's portrayal on KSL on November 14, 2018 was none of those things and hopefully does not reflect the views of the ODT Board of Directors. We respect ODT's freedom to present their version as they see fit. We acknowledge and defend their right to maintain it as they wish while retaining our right to, with equal vigor, object to it and to point out the harm that is being done to the Asian & Pacific Islander American community.

We are not asking ODT to remove the Tea dance from their performance. We are not saying that the dancers or directors of ODT are racists. They have, however, clearly demonstrated their ignorance of the harm such negative and false stereotypes through their non-apology apology. Regardless of their intent, reinforcing these stereotypes dehumanizes people and reduces them to exaggerated caricatures instead of three-dimensional people. Our shared history is replete of examples of very real harm when we don't see each other as people and single out a group for ridicule and shame. From the Chinese Exclusion Act, the internment of Native Americans and Japanese Americans, human rights have been ignored, dignity sought to be taken and families injured.  We hope that through creativity and cooperation, we can find a way to enhance this performance, not censor it.

We accept at their word that it was "in an improvisational moment" and not planned. That said, it is telling that the dancers spontaneously and uniformly adopted the stereotype. Bowing heads, hands in prayer, hopping and taking tiny steps are all false exaggerations. 

Having the right to do something, doesn’t always mean what you’re doing is right.

Michael Kwan                                                Max Chang
President, CRWDA                                        Spike 150 Foundation

On behalf of:
Chinese Railroad Workers Descendants Association
Crystal Young-Otterstrom
Asian Association of Utah
OCA - Asian Pacific American Advocates - Utah Chapter
Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs Association (APAPA) - Utah Chapter
Chinese Association of Science & Technology of Utah
United Chinese Association of Utah
Utah Asian Chamber of Commerce
Jung Hing Lion Dance Association
Philippine American Association of Utah (PAAU)
Kulturang Pilipino Ensemble of Utah (KPEU)
The Vietnamese Community of Utah
Representative Karen Kwan
Floyd Mori
Terrence Chen
Spike 150 Foundation
Plan-B Theatre
UTAH PACIFIC ISLANDER CIVIC ENGAGEMENT COALITION
Pacific Island Knowledge 2 Action Resources (PIK2AR)
Utah Chinese Folk Orchestra
NAACP - Salt Lake Branch
UCLR | Utah Coalition of La Raza
Utah State House of Representatives Minority Caucus