Mr. Speaker, the popular TV show "Frasier" recently carried a joke with the punch line "For an additional $5,000 you can get a brand-new wife from the Philippines".
This comment has enraged thousands of Filipino Canadians. The painful echo of this contemptuous remark will resonate loud and long, long after the canned laughter has faded away. By maligning an ethnic group, by exploiting women and by refusing to make amends, the NBC network has shown an utter lack of sensitivity.
There is no humour in racism. There is no humour in sexism. There is no humour in degrading any human being for profit. The comment offends common decency. It offends Canadians who do not suffer bigotry willingly, who cannot allow a laugh to be gained at the expense of an entire community, at the expense of an entire people.
Apologies are indeed in order.