Margaret Cho has a response to critics who considered her Golden Globes piece to be racist.
The 46-year-old comedian joined hosts Tina Fey and Amy Poehler on stage at the 2015 Golden Globes and dressed as a North Korean general Cho Young Ja, a fake member of the Hollywood Foreign Press.
However, critics did not find Cho's cultural humor amusing and have criticized the actress for being insensitive. But the "Drop Dead Diva" star is fighting back against her critics and defending her own nationality.
"I'm of mixed North/South Korean descent," Cho wrote on Twitter. "You imprison, starve and brainwash my people you get made fun of by me #hatersgonhate #FreeSpeech."
She jokingly continued, writing, "I'm not playing the race card. I'm playing the rice card. #hatersgonwait #winnersgonpun."
Cho further detailed her explanation in a phone interview with Buzzfeed.
"I'm of North and South Korean descent, and I do impressions of my family and my work all the time, and this is just another example of that," she told Buzzfeed. "I am from this culture. I am from this tribe. And so I'm able to comment on it. I can do whatever I want when it comes to Koreans - North Koreans, South Korean. I'm not playing the race card, I'm playing the rice card. I'm the only person in the world, probably, that can make these jokes and not be placed in a labor camp.
"When we have British people playing American icons, there's no backlash. But for Asian Americans, it's a very particular set of expectations that we are set to maintain, and that in itself is racist.
"If it's Asian Americans making fun of Asians, we're claiming our own voice, we're claiming our heritage. We're claiming all of the aspects of our own culture, and we're allowed to. Even though it may get us put in a labor camp. If that happens you have to send Bill Clinton to come and get me," she joked.
