The hidden juxtaposition between the surge of Asian media in the West and the reality of Asian racism and hate
By Ava Yu ‘22 and Emma Song ‘22
From the hypocrisy of Hollywood and the rise of anti-Asian violence, the superficiality of the recent popularity of Asian representation in the media is a weak plot to garner views and diversity points. The racist history of Hollywood's representation of Asian characters has harmed the greater culture's perception of Asian Americans.
But now, Asian media is praised and hugely popular, when Asians were shunned in the media and presented as stereotypes only a decade before. This world of both praise and fear associated with identity is one that Asian Americans must navigate.
We spoke with Catlin Gabel School (CGS) teachers Traci Kiyama, Kenny Nguyen, Krystal Wu, and comedian and writer Jenny Yang to gain perspectives on how representation of Asian Americans evolved and criticism on where it is now.
An incredible surge of Asian media and pop culture has taken America by storm within the past few years. With the recent popularity of "Squid Game," huge anime audiences, and K-pop groups like the now household names of BTS and Blackpink, Asian influence is at an all-time high.
The influence also comes from trends on social media and beyond: Asian beauty trends, bubble tea, and Asian fashion. Asia has a vast wealth of its own culture, and now it seems America has become enthralled by its media.
However, this phenomenon is not technically "recent." Asian media has been gaining in popularity since the last decade.
For example, Korean artist Psy released "Gangnam Style" in 2011, paving the way for the now-dubbed "Korean wave": introducing K-pop, K-dramas, and even K-beauty to the eyes of Americans.
The staple streaming service, Netflix, holds a seemingly endless itinerary of K-dramas, C-dramas, and anime. This newfound accessibility to Asian media has opened a whole new world of entertainment and culture.
"Parasite" became the first foreign film to win the Oscar for Best Picture, a pivotal point in solidifying the influence. "Parasite's" director, Bong Joon Ho, in his Oscars acceptance speech, famously declared a quote that encapsulates America's newfound acceptance of Asian-produced media.
"Once you overcome the one-inch-tall barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films,"
As for American media, there has been an increase in western-produced movies starring Asian casts. Such as the groundbreaking "Crazy Rich Asians," the poignant "The Farewell," and the blockbuster superhero film "Shang Chi." Within the past few years, Netflix released the infamous three-part love series, "To All the Boys I've Loved Before," and the coming of age comedy TV series, "Never Have I Ever."
This new wave of Asian entertainment is breaking the traditional stereotypes of Asian Americans in the media. Hollywood has come a long way since its sparse representation. Racist archetypes of Asians to the likes of Mickey Rooney in "Breakfast at Tiffany's" and seemingly has a new agenda pertaining to Asian representation in the media: erasing the painful history of racist archetypes of Asian characters and making money off of the gaping hole of Asian roles within the media.
Traci Kiyama, Kenny Nguyen, and Krystal Wu, Members of Gen X, gavet their insight into the current and past role of Asian American influence in Western culture.
Kiyama, Nguyen, and Wu grew up when Asians only got minor, stereotyped roles in mainstream television.
"How do I describe it- Gedde Watanabe, 'Long Duk Dong'? So he was in [1984 movie, "Sixteen Candles"], as this total stereotype, these awful accents, he's not really a character of any substance."
Kiyama referred to Long Duk Dong, portrayed by Asian American actor Gedde Watanabe, who was emasculated and exoticized. Having a thick accent and "oriental" soundtrack differed him from all the other white characters, alienating and poking fun at his Asian features and nature.
Kiyama drew connections between the caricature of Long Duk Dong to Mickey Rooney's portrayal of Mr. Yunioshi in the wildly popular "Breakfast at Tiffany's" (1961). Rooney, a white actor, played a Japanese man, ridden with an overexaggerated accent, squinted eyes, and buck teeth; a gross stereotype of Asian features.
"That character [archetype of Mr. Yunioshi], just in more contemporary outfits- it was still the same thing."
Nguyen also pointed out the negative connotations surrounding media from Asia.
"Anime at that point [the 80s-90s] was considered obscene. It was either really childish, like Sailor Moon, or like this weird thing that 'Asian people do' and it wasn't considered mainstream or even something that you talked about"
Instead, they found solace through literature authored by Asian American writers. Kiyama, Wu, and Nguyen all mentioned "Joy Luck Club" by Amy Tan and its impact on their lives.
"I was like, oh my god, this is my experience! And somebody had finally articulated this thing for me." Nguyen exclaimed.
Kiyama, Nguyen, and Wu found common ground on what books or role models they had growing up, granted the limited resources they had. Books like "Joy Luck Club," "The Woman Warrior" by Maxine Hall Kingston, or "Rice" by Su Tong were all small pieces of media that they could connect to.
These authentic pieces of media contrasted to the portrayals they saw on the big screens, such as the character of 'Short Round' in "Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark" (1981), a simple Asian Boy with limited language capabilities, or 'Data" from "The Goonies" (1985), a similar character.
"I did not see anything that reflected an actual experience that I knew or understood. It was all through this stereotype through white people's eyes" Kiyama said.
We interviewed comedian, writer, and public figure Jenny Yang regarding her own experience with Asian representation in the media. Having grown up in Southern California and surrounded by people of color, Yang expressed that she lacked role models presented in the media.
"Even though growing up, in the media I didn't really see people who looked like me, what helped a lot was that I had peers and people in real life that I could look up to and relate to."
Yang's experience of seeing a representation of Asian Americans growing up was similar to Kiyama, Wu, and Nguyen's experiences of seeing mainly Asian stereotypes portrayed in movies and films, yet she found a sense of community and belonging within her local community.
As for her perspective on the current Asian representation in Hollywood, she agreed with Kiyama and Nguyen's sentiments.
"I've been seeing that there have been more successful Asian American stars, platforms, and stories being told, and that's been great. It's probably the most that we've ever seen since Hollywood started."
But to what standard should Asian Americans hold Hollywood too? The movies and TV shows mentioned in this article are pretty much the only pieces of mainstream media Asian Americans have.
"There's so few movies that are mainstream, so those movies that are there, end up being held up to everything we've ever wanted" Traci Kiyama expressed. She criticized the limited scope of representation Asian Americans have access to.
"We've been waiting years and years and years for this… Disappointing that this one movie can't be everything I've ever wanted."
"Crazy Rich Asians" took a step in the right direction in progressive representation, having an all-Asian cast and depicting Asians [in a non-stereotyped way]. However, Kiyama raised the concern of how the movie does not represent Asian Americans but rather the elite class of Singapore. In addition, using only light-skinned East Asian actors raises another question of the representation of Southeast Asians, Pacific Islanders, and the diversity of Asian ethnicities.
"We have to be really critical about what measure we're using for success," Wu added. "It's almost a form of assimilation, so if you get your own movie, like having these Asian blockbuster stars, then therefore you've made it…. Why is that the metric by which we're measuring ourselves?"
"I want to see those things continue, but with a greater lens on how we can empower Asian Americans and how we can not disempower other groups that have been lost in the wake of all this." Kenny Nguyen said
Coexisting with the wave of Asian culture in American media in the past two years, Asian Americans made headlines across national news for a different reason. Xenophobia towards Asians and Asian Americans rampaged, and instances of hate crimes scattered across news outlets of all sizes, local and national.
Videos of Asian citizens being violently attacked and harassed spread like wildfire across social media platforms like Instagram and Twitter. COVID-19 related xenophobia against Asians stemmed from terms like the "Chinese Virus" or "Kung-Flu" pushed by Donald Trump, the former US president.
"We will still be seen as scapegoats, we will still be seen as outsiders who could be the targets and the place where you can project your anger and frustration about whatever's happening in life. Unfortunately that has been the history of Asians in America." Yang powerfully expressed.
Although there may not be a clear correlation between the rise of Asian American hate and the upward trend of Asian culture and influence, there is an evident clash of ideas. Asians are attacked and shunned for their identity, while the mainstream culture ignores these issues and continues to enjoy Asian products and media. Thus, it questions whether the representation and recognition of Asians and Asian culture addresses, educates, and condemns these issues of racism and xenophobia.
Although we see public figures speak on the issues of xenophobia, these movies, and television production companies aim to make money rather than change.
"The reason that we have diverse casts in mainstream movies today (E.G., Black Panther, Crazy Rich Asian) is not because it's 'good' or 'morally right' for society, but it's because it makes money," Wu emphasized.
Similarly, Yang expressed how there is no correlation between representation and change.
"As much as representation is important, it's not the answer to changing people's behavior; there isn't a direct line."
There comes the point where the popularity of Asian culture crosses the line of appreciation and recognition. The saturation of Asian influence in Western media has resulted in different reactions from some people; the fetishization of Asian women, the fox eye trend, Asian fishing, and cultural appropriation, all highly problematic and racist, whether intended or not unintended.
As the popularity of Anime and K-pop became more widespread, so did the hypersexualization of idols and Asian women. Issues like the fox-eye trend and Asian fishing were all over social media last year. The fetishization of Asian women, also known as "yellow fever," has been the root of some significant issues that gained attention across America in the past year.
Last year in the Atlanta Spa shooting, a shooter killed eight people, 6 of which were Asian women. He admitted that he killed the women to eliminate his sexual temptations.
Not only does the fox eye trend fetishize Asian features, it undermines the fact that many Asian Americans were bullied and taunted throughout history for their eye shapes and features. The uprise and appreciation of Asian music, pop culture, and representation doesn't validate or justify the underlying racism behind these social media trends.
These issues cannot be ignored or buried by the recent success, recognition, and representation of Asian Americans, and Asian culture and media. This is not the first time we have seen this rhetoric that there are no issues and struggles behind success and this is not the last. Hollywood and American culture will continue to churn out media that earns diversity points, but misses the overarching problem of historical and hidden racism Asian Americans face every day. It is not enough to have few movies and pieces of media representing the entire experience of Asian Americans. There must be a change in America’s perception of Asian representation.