Noboru Taguma and Hideo Takeuchi (Morris Weintraub / Bee file, 1999)

Slurs have a history, even if we forget them with the passage of time.

Then suddenly, there it is – ancient invective carried via modern technology. We witnessed it last week when a college student from the Sacramento area posted a video on YouTube that gave new voice to old prejudice.

Alexandra Wallace, once of Fair Oaks and Bella Vista High School, covered a lot of ground in that three-minute video, in which she disparaged the parents and extended families of Asian students at UCLA. She complained about being unable to study at the university library while students with relatives in Japan called to check on family in the aftermath of the disastrous earthquake and tsunami there.

She mocked the way Asian people sound to her ears: “Ohhhh. Ching! Chong! Ling! Long! Ting! Tong!”