china plays the "acting white" card and calls departing u.s. ambassador a rotten banana...,

seattletimes |  A major Chinese government news service used a racist slur to describe the departing U.S. ambassador in an editorial Friday that drew widespread public condemnation in China.

The editorial — which called former Washington Gov. Gary Locke a “rotten banana,” a guide dog for the blind and a plague — reflected Chinese nationalists’ loathing for the first Chinese American to have been the nation’s top envoy to Beijing.

Locke’s ethnic background particularly interested the Chinese government and people. Locke won public applause when he was seen carrying his own bag and flying economy class, but he drew criticism from officials in Beijing as his demeanor became an unwelcome contrast to Chinese officials’ privileges and entitlements.

In Washington, Secretary of State John Kerry paid tribute to Locke as “a champion of human dignity and a relentless advocate for America’s values.” Asked about the China News Service commentary, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters Friday: “We are not going to dignify the name-calling in that editorial with a response.”

In his 2½ years in Beijing, Locke oversaw the defusing of two delicate diplomatic episodes, when a powerful police chief fled to a U.S. Consulate and later when a persecuted blind activist sought shelter in the embassy. The Chinese public also credit him with making them realize the harm of the tiny particulate pollutant PM2.5 and the severity of China’s foul air by posting the embassy’s hourly readings of air quality.

Meanwhile, editorials in Chinese state media turned from initial reservation to unfriendliness and to the insolence of the final piece.

“I think it shows the unfriendliness and impoliteness by the Chinese government toward Gary Locke, and it is without the manners and dignity of a major power,” legal scholar Hao Jinsong said. “It is unfitting of China’s status as a diplomatic power. As a Chinese, I am very angry and feel ashamed of it.”

The editorial “Farewell, Gary Locke” took direct aim at Locke’s identity as a third-generation Chinese American, calling him a “banana,” a term for Asians identifying with Western values despite their skin color.

“But when a banana sits out for long, its yellow peels will always rot, not only revealing its white core but also turning into the stomach-churning color of black,” read the editorial.

The author Wang Ping — likely a pseudonym — slammed Locke’s portrayal as an official judicious with public funds and called him hypocritical as he retreated into his multimillion-dollar official residence and specially made, bulletproof luxury vehicle.