Opposite Ends of the Spectrum A glimpse into why the Western world simultaneously fetishizes Asian women and emasculates Asian men by Justine Torres
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n Western society, there is a prevalent double standard in how Asian men and Asian women are perceived as attractive. At opposite ends of the racial spectrum of allure, Asian men are emasculated while Asian women are hypersexualized. However, upon second glance, the feminization of Asian men and fetishization of Asian women are deeply intertwined. This double standard was initially enforced by history and has been perpetuated over hundreds of years by mass entertainment and modern media. It is important to note that this article analyzes the perception of Asians and attractiveness through a largely binary lens. Much of the research and history that relate to this double standard focuses on the experiences of cisgender, heterosexual Asian men and women, failing to take into account the rich narratives of individuals from the LGBTQ+ community.
“Asian men aren’t my type.” Asia is also home to tremendous ethnic and cultural diversity. There is a tendency to group all Asians under one monolith, disregarding and diminishing each cultural group’s unique history, celebrations, and individual identities. Oftentimes, people fail to realize that there are significant inconsistencies in perception even among Asian men and Asian women. For example, although Asian men are significantly less likely than white men to be involved in a romantic relationship with a partner, an article co-authored by Dr. Grace Kao, a sociology professor at Yale University, reveals that there is a substantial discrepancy in Asian men’s odds of romantic involvement within racial subgroups. Additionally, certain
female Asian subgroups (namely East and Southeast Asian women) are more likely to be subjected to fetishization than others. Regardless, Danielle Sohn, a third-year University of Florida student, noted that “at the core of it all, all women of color are incredibly dehumanized” and that “all women of color aren’t given the credit that they’re complex individuals who lead very different lives.” Western stereotypes about Asian individuals originate back to the mid-1800s, when a major wave of Chinese American men immigrated to the United States to construct the First Transcontinental Railroad as a labor force. This demographic shift was also accompanied by an immense wave of xenophobia and, more specifically, the establishment of the “Yellow Peril,” a sentiment defined by Merriam-Webster as “the alleged danger that predominantly white Western civilizations and populations could be overwhelmed by Asian peoples.” The fear that Chinese men would steal the jobs and livelihoods of white Americans spread rampantly throughout America, culminating in the passage of a number of xenophobic anti-immigration laws. The most notable of these laws was the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, which prohibited the immigration of Chinese laborers to U.S. soil and effectively
financially support themselves, oftentimes had to take on occupational roles such as laundering, dishwashing, and cooking, roles which were often seen as “womens work,” thus emasculating Asian men in comparison to their white counterparts. Asian women were also victims of Yellow Peril. Amidst the xenophobic sentiment that pervaded the U.S. at the time, the country also passed the Page Act of 1875, which aimed to prohibit the immigration of unfree laborers and (primarily Chinese) women brought in for “immoral purposes,” further bolstering the power dynamic between Asians and white Americans and establishing the notion that Asian women are sexual in nature. After World War II, these ideas were broadcasted to the rest of the Western
“I’ve always had a thing for Asian women.” world with the rise of the “Lotus Blossom” trope, which was formed on the basis that Asian women are hypersexual, disposable objects of desire. One modern example of this is the Broadway musical “Miss Saigon,” which depicts the futile relationship between an
“I just don’t date Asian men.” established a power imbalance between the East and West that forced Asian men into positions of subservience. This imbalance was further reinforced when Chinese men, stripped of means to FALL 2021 2021 || 27 27 FALL
