Tony Hinchcliffe Photo: screenshot of video posted on Twitter

A video clip showing US comedian Tony Hinchcliffe calling Chinese comedian Dang Peng a "filthy fucking little chink" and verbally abusing a Chinese audience member went viral on social media platforms on Tuesday, leading to wide condemnation and calls to boycott the comedian for being racist.

A recording of a stand-up comedy show featuring Hinchcliffe was reposted by both Dang and another Chinese stand-up comedian whose stage name is "Wangtian Xiaotianwang" (Wang for short) on platforms including Sina Weibo, Instagram and Twitter on Tuesday. The clip has been viewed more than 590,000 times on Dang's Twitter account.

According to Dang's post, both he and Hinchcliffe were invited to attend a stand-up comedy show in Austin, Texas on May 6, with Dang performing right before Hinchcliffe. 

After applause for his performance, Dang introduced Hinchcliffe to the stage, after which the US comedian's first words were "how about one more time for the filthy fucking little chink that was just up here?" 

Speaking with the Global Times on Wednesday, Dang noted that during his 10 years' living in the US he had never experienced anything like what happened in the video. 

Hinchcliffe then kicked off his routine by talking about how he has previously insulted Chinese people attending his comedy shows, such as how he told one Chinese people who objected to his racist routine to stay away from him and take a seat as "this is how the coronavirus started." 

This is not the first time Hinchcliffe insulted Chinese people during his performances. Wang sent a clip to the Global Times on Wednesday that shows the comedian saying "chink" on his Kill Tony Show while Dang said that Hinchcliffe often uses insulting Chinese people as a means to try and get audiences' attention.

"His actions and speech are not jokes or comedy anymore, they are racist," Wang told the Global Times. 

"He and his fans use 'comedy has no limits' as an excuse, but they don't dare insult African Americans, while they easily say words like 'chink' because they believe Asians do not speak up for themselves," Wang said.

However, this time Chinese comedians are refusing to stay silent. Wang has launched a campaign with the hashtag "#CancelTonyHinchcliffe" on social media platforms including Instagram and Twitter which has been met with warm support by netizens. The campaign calls for Hinchcliffe to no longer act as a scriptwriter for shows on platforms like HBO and Netflix. 

"There is so much about this that sucks, and I'm so sorry you have to spend YOUR time thinking about, and responding to, what HE did. Cretins like this are total vampires. May the community support you so you can focus on your art & craft," one netizen commented under Dang's tweet.

Talking about Hinchcliffe in a post on Instagram, Wang wrote "he knows hurting Asians with 'chink' won't hurt his career. That just says a lot about how weak, lonely and little support us Asians have in this society."

The campaign has captured Hinchcliffe's attention, who came to Wang's Instagram account and read many posts, as Wang said.

According to Dang, Hinchcliffe's management company is aware of the boycott and may cut ties with the comedian.

The tough situation Asians in the US face can be reflected by the position of Asian people in the entertainment industry, Dang noted.

He said that Asians, especially Asian men, have few opportunities and are in a weak position in the US entertainment industry.

"Asian people are used to bearing insults when they experience unequal treatment," Dang added. "But they should speak up bravely instead of just being afraid."  

Hinchcliffe, 36, is a US comedian and writer. He has been on the writing staff of the Comedy Central Roast series.
 
Although the boycotts of the comedian and the campaign have gotten warm support on social media, the story has not been picked up by US mainstream media such as CNN and the New York Times.