Dug up old writer's commentary straight from the horses mouth today (Link inside)

It does go both ways, the aliens have healthy xenophobia too especially with what they considered as lesser races.

But I drew a line with slavery, genocide and racial oppression. I find its somewhat appalling how that was considered less racist to some people.. jeez... culture shock 101

'Anyway. I fully expected some people write her off as a bigot. What surprises me is that no one's pointed out that her position does have some sense. Evidently, I did something very wrong here.'
He's too hard on himself. I never considered Ashley a bigot. Rough edges and common sense are what I always got from her. Always thought it was brave of them to have a character who took that approach rather than another xenophile.

My memory it's not very reliable, but I think it was weekes?  I love Jack too, btw, I find her a little bit of a cliche, but a great example that cliches sometimes work wonderfully

I disagree... it's recognizing that sexual relations are species specific regardless of sapience.  It's quite possible for my Shepard to absolute;y trust the aliens with Normandy's technology and trust them to be allies and good friends.  He/she wouldn't sic his/her dog on a bear and run, but neither would he/she screw the pooch.  (He/she would use bear spray on the bear.)  He/she also wouldn't likely trust his/her dog to callibrate guns or make repairs to drive cores, etc.  He/she would also feel much like the dog probably does when such sapient aliens take a sexual interest in humans.  (In some countries, bestiality is considered to be a form of animal abuse... and I agree with that stance since it is unlikely that they derive the same sense of enjoyment out of it as the bestialist human does.)  So, I used the term "bestiality" because IRL terms the only cross-species on earth people can have sex with are animals so our language doesn't really have a term suitable for alien sexual relationships yet.   I'm saying he/she just wouldn't have sex with an alien because his/her sex drive/desire is geared towards other humans.  It's the pretty much the same as a straight human is not being sexually aroused by a human of the same gender or a gay/lesbian human not being sexually aroused by a human of the opposing gender.  Everyone is entitled to have sexual preferences.

I personally thought the bigotry is what embodied a lot of Ashley's character as a narrative device. Without her I wouldn't have felt a need to distinguish between humans and aliens as much, but it was important to me to have characters in the game that show signs they've not yet accepted the world as it is, and she continually questions whether humans should gel with aliens or whether God is dead just because we've crossed the heavens. Without that I wouldn't have stopped up to think about such things, even as much as I don't agree with her bigoted viewpoints at all. Her analogies about dogs or animals to aliens is definitely a "wtf?" moment, but that's great. It makes sense to me that not all humans would be okay with aliens just as it makes sense to me that there are still people in 2016 who have racist thoughts. I'm just thankful they didn't sugarcoat humanity vs aliens completely.

But really, L'Etoile should've made an arc out of it. Unfortunately she's gone in ME2 and in ME3 she got assassinated by Chris Hepler who also assassinated EDI and Emily Wong he killed on twitter.

Too little too late vindication (both he and we have left BioWare under various levels of compulsion), but "ermagherd racism" never even crossed my mind when I first romanced Ashley. If I could've talked to him back then I definitely would've told him to stay the course.

Typical. Did you even read the quote?

Everything she says is perfectly in line with what L'Etoile said and what actually is.  We don't have aliens IRL but your own species > any other species if it really came down to it. It's biology. The extra conviction is bitterness over her family history and you can talk her straight on that front.

Also, distrust =/= racism, get that PC stick out of your ass. Why not switch that around? How many mixed crews on alien ships do you see or hear about, in the entirety of the trilogy? The only one specific example of someone putting together a team like Shepard does is Garrus as Archangel. Oh and I guess Omega, the big gangs, the Shadow Broker and various nameless merc bands. But everyone that's respectable though must be racist.

And the line wasn't "all aliens look alike" but rather "I can't tell the aliens from the monsters" or (was it animals?) How many aliens has she seen up to that point, being posted in backwater shit jobs? Probably a picture of a turian, if she's lucky. Not the most diplomatic, granted, but not racist. And kind of tongue in cheek from a a meta perspective as the ME aliens are mostly animal based. Turians=birds, salarians=frogs, krogan=reptiles/dinosaurs and so on.

Missing the point of the metaphor. The point was if you had to choose between you (or a member of your species, or your species as a whole) vs an alien (or the equivalent terms) you would choose your own kind. Taking a third option is evading the question, not dealing with it. If you can take a third option, obviously you would, unless you're a dick but whether one is a dick or not was not the point of the discussion. There's also no equivalency implied. She doesn't say aliens are dogs so "but dogs can't calibrate" is not a fitting rebuttal.

On the attraction to other species, I would agree only up to a point. If one is sexually attracted to a creature wildly different from their own, I can see where the bestiality comparisons might come in. But in the case of the asari, I don't think it counts. Implausibility aside, they are for all intents and purposes blue women with tentacle like things instead of hair. Hair is one factor of sexual attraction but a pretty minor one. Physiologically asari and humans are compatible and they have (almost) all the features a human would identify as sexually interesting. So I don't think that would be qualified as the same sort of phenomena as bestiality.

During Rachni Wars the Asari, Salarians and Krogan stood together. During Krogan rebellion caused by the Krogan uncontrollable breeding and attempting to forcibly take worlds from other races the Asari, Salarian and later Turians stood together rather then feeding one race to the sharks for the others to survive.

Strike One.

Distrusting a group because they are not the same as you is a fair definition of racism. I can't trust you because your black. I can't trust you because your white. I can't trust you because your Jewish. I can't trust you because your Christian.  In fact the complete lack of trust during WW2 lead to the Japanese internment camps were entire families who were first or second generation from Japan were rounded up and forced into camps. Is that not racist?

Or how about a more recent set up? Can't trust Muslims at all. We should round them up and put them in special areas and prevent them from being allowed to come over. Because we just can't trust them not to do something terrorist related. Just like how Ash can't trust the Turians not to do something shady to the Alliance.

Yea historically speaking pirates and merc bands have been the most open of groups. They tend not to care about where you came from or what race you are. Simply if you are capable of doing what is needed. Hence why when Slavery was still practiced during the golden age of piracy. Many pirate ships had people of all races and gender working on them in all sorts of positions. They might have shot, stabbed, sank and robbed for a living but they were down right progressive on a lot of social issues.

Strike Two

The line is I can't tell the aliens from the animals.  And that has a long history of heavily racist over tones. Black people and apes anyone?  Comparing any group that wasn't a developed nation from Europe to be savages barely better then animals.  You know the kind of stupid shit racists today still spout.

Strike Three

If it was intended for her to be portrayed another way then the way he went about it was done in the most tone deaf way possible. That not only doesn't fit with lore of the game but has reactions and statements that fit coming from a racists mouths without much trouble.

I enjoyed L'Etoile's writing of the Rachni, (ME 2) Geth, the Thorian, and the Hanar & Elcor a bit more than his work with Ashely and Thane to be honest; just personal preferences there.

It was rather telling though that as soon as Chris left BioWare all of those uniquely 'alien' creations he was in charge of were quickly swept under the rug, made into joke races, or turned into Pinocchio bots. Compare Mass Effect with L'Etiole on the team to it without and it quickly becomes rather obvious that the rest of the writing team didn't really know how to write for a more 'alien' universe.

Sure, his take on aliens like the Rachni and the Geth aren't the deepest form of science fiction writing compared to several hard sci-fi novels out there; but it was certainly miles ahead of the Blasto memes, and Pinocchio/Commander Data rip-offs we got when he left.

Kind of exactly that. His sci-fi elements even compared to Drew K shines the most though I have to give it to Mac when it comes to Wrex and to some extent the Batarians of Bring Down The Sky too I think... although, Bring Down The Sky is credited as Mac AND Chris L'Etoile so I can't really know who did what, but Batarians are very Mac Walters-y. Anything that has to do with the slums of Omega or other lowlife races is very Mac I think.

But compare the Geth of ME2 to Liara or Tali in ME1, both Drew's work according to Patrick Weekes, and they just feel kind of... dungeons and dragons roleplaying if you get my drift. But then, Samara in ME2 was much better (I think that was Drew).

Overall it definitely varies and each writer probably has good moments, but I think Chris's contribution was very, very significant and Mass Effect lost a part of itself when he left because ME3 is indeed missing something vital and races do feel more pulpy and joke-y, particularly when you consider Javik for instance. Surely someone either Drew or Chris would've told John Dombrow to tone down the caricature-ness to make it more alien-like. I thought Javik was well written if it were a marvel character or something, but I was pretty disappointed to have a live prothean like that and then he was just so ordinary but just more egocentric and arrogant than most humans.

But that is exactly what the dog and the bear metaphor is. You throw the dog under the bus (AKA have it be killed by bear) to get away while bear is killing eating dog. Thus saving your own skin at the price of another. Trying to claim it means anything else is asinine. Because the entire metaphor revolves around you killing another being who isn't the same as you. To save yourself at the cost of their very life.  This was said directly in context of humans and other races.  If L'Etoile meant other wise then the choice of words were the stupidest possible ones to pick. Right up there with someone saying "I"m not racist but black people make up 70% of our nation's prison inmates. And white people only make up 30%." Even if the intent wasn't to be racist with the statement and just bring up a point about prison population it was done in such a stupid way that it doesn't seem out of place coming from a white supremacist ass hat using it as proof why black people are so terrible and why white people are so great.

Yes the Asari reacted to an unprovoked attack on one of their colonies. And the Salarians quickly followed suit. Because the Krogan were attacking their colonies. That isn't throwing anyone under the bus that is responding to an action. As well the Human colonies that were being abducted were all out side of the Council and the Alliance's region. In an area of space that the act of moving large amount of military forces could be seen as an act of aggression kick starting a galactic war. Or to put it a more simple way a group of British Colonies moving from Virginia (1610 AD) to present day Wyoming and complaining about them not protecting them from an attack by Native Americans. When the group is so far out of their reach and control there is no way to actually protect them. Not without starting a galactic war. The Quarians threw themselves under the bus. And in the process created a galactic wide threat. Then their own biology corn holed them again. Needing very specific planet requirements to settle. To the point that they now can't even exist on their home planet without suits. 

I was sticking with ME 1 because that is when the line is said and the context of is is build around that game but you want to pull the trilogy into it as well? OK. Truains need Krogan because other wise all their troops will be tied up on Palivin. Meaning they can't come to aid the Alliance. Krogan need the cure to Genophage because without it the losses they will take will result in their extinction. A Dalistrass (individual) gets butt hurt over curing the genophage because they see the Krogan as mindless brutes. And wants you to sabotage it while not telling them. And equally there are several individual Salarians that support curing the Genophage and assisting Shepard regardless of what is done with Krogan. The Asari who are one of the least militaristic races don't give any help because they are trying to use their limited military assets to protect themselves and have nothing to spare. Until the Reapers take Thessia at that point they no longer have to attempt to protect their planet and can lend support to the Alliance. Because they can now spare them.  In fact Liara's "father" even talks about in ME 2 about her talking to the Asari leaders on their planet telling them they need to have Asari spend their maiden years in military training and less shaking their ass in bars across the galaxy.  Specifically to beef up the Asari's military potential.  Which has been reduced because the Turians became the defacto peace keeping military race in the galaxy and the Salarians the espionage group.

Shepard tried to warn the Batarians about the Relay but was unable to before of events of the DLC. He didn't just decide to kill the Batarians because he can because F them they aren't human.

In none of these examples is it one race attempting to feed another race to the Reapers just so they can survive.

The Quarian and Geth issue are an exception and the point of their story. They represent the entire Organic vs Synthetic conflict. And the point of that from the first Mass Effect game is all about the inevitable conflict and ultimately destruction of either the creators or the created at the hands of the other. Usually the created destroying the creator due to their superiority.

Yes the way she is presented gives very heavy racist over tones. Stuff that an afternoon on the Mass Effect version of Wikipedia would answer. Or use what ever the extranet version of google is.

The Normandy was a joint venture between Turians and Alliance. There is no secret information to exist on it that the Turians don't know about. And considering the treaty ties between Turian, Salarian and Asari odds are they know about it as well.  And Shepard as the ships CO is capable of authorizing anyone to enter the ship and access were ever they want. Ash as a Gunnery Chief is out ranked by Shepard's Commander rank and the fact he is CO of the Normandy.  On top of the fact he is acting as a Specter on Council orders. Which is a big dose of grey area. Which would still allow him to act as he wishes and let who ever he wants to see what ever they want on the ship.

Within that context of the game yes saying they shouldn't be allowed to see stuff simply because they aren't human does come off as racist.  Again part of that sounding like something out of a white supremacist mouth when not really meaning for it to come out that way.

I read that the "I can't tell the aliens from the animals" line was only supposed to trigger near a Keeper. In which case, Ashley has a point.
Just thought I'd mention it!

That's exactly when it happens.  You have to click on a particular Keeper (the others don't make it happen) in order for the line to be said.  Visually, it's somewhat understandable.