Someone posted this on Facebook.
I’ll admit I didn’t read the whole article. I skimmed the first page, and the only thing that caught my eye was this:
As far as I can boil it down, Bernstein wishes to argue that the history of liaisons between Eastern women and Western men should not be condemned out of hand. In spite of the undeniable backdrop of injustice and exploitation, some of these encounters have been a Good Thing, offering to the men a reprieve from the repressive sexual morality of the Christian West and to the women a chance at a less traditionally patriarchal relationship than they might have had with many of their countrymen. There may be manifest inequities between these couples, but their trysts have sometimes blossomed into real affection, tenderness and love.
You know, I’m tired. Tired tired tired of all these rice chasers and their Dairy Queen White Chasing girlfriends, waxing poetic about how free and beautiful their love is and how they’re the vanguard of a new kind of post-racialism. I’m tired of them trying to justify colonization. I can’t even post the picture on this blog post because it looks like nasty graffiti. You’ll notice that in my podcast section, I have a podcast on IR, an Asian male podcast on IR, and an Asian female podcast on IR. I don’t waste my time dealing with the Rice Chasers and White Chasers because, quite frankly, you can get that drivel anywhere.
The title of the page is White Male Seeking Sexy Asian Women. Why don’t we see articles about Asian Men Seeking Sexy Asian Women?
Seriously, to all the Rice Chasers and White Chasers out there, where and how can I get a break from you people?
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Zhang Zhi Yi, I am so very hurt by this one.
regardless of how real it is, its about the perception.
then there is the Carradine’s with the 22 year olds, (assumption)
can we consider that cradle robbing?
Memoirs of a Geisha was taken out of context.
should we let the white women take care of the problem on their end?
Grace Park? not about the show, its about Maxim.
Tila Tequila ? she is more a victim now.
Actually, I think we don’t see articles about Asian Men Seeking Asian Women because that’d be like seeing an article about White Men Seeking White Women. However, what bothers me about that excerpt is that it says:
In spite of the undeniable backdrop of injustice and exploitation, some of these encounters have been a Good Thing, offering to the men a reprieve from the repressive sexual morality of the Christian West
That pisses me off because it implies again the sexual myth of the Asian female.
I agree with P2H, you don’t have to read too far betwen the lines to undestand that they are pretty much saying that Asian Women will do certain things that White women would not do for reasons of morality.
was this in regard to me comment about the girl guy ratio previously at 2 to 1?
importing and exporting girls worldwide? or the trafficking story? or the random asian attacks? IR relations?
american males go abroad to teach english, then date the former students.
is there a special gaol for these guys? lets have them become eunichs prior to employment.
its all about the girls. just the girls, sad some are killed off.
“Asian Women will do certain things that White women would not do”
…oh, but we do.
In spite of the undeniable backdrop of injustice and exploitation, some of these encounters have been a Good Thing, offering to the men a reprieve from the repressive sexual morality of the Christian West and to the women a chance at a less traditionally patriarchal relationship than they might have had with many of their countrymen.
This notion of reprieve from “the repressive sexual morality of the Christian West” may have been true in the distant past but is sorely outdated today. The West is neither particularly “Christian” nor is it sexually repressive. Gender relations in the West is in a state of disarray because of Political Correctness and the residual effects of feminism. By speaking of a “sexually repressed Christian West” the author is implying that the East is somehow less sexually repressed. Surely she must not be referring to the uptight Confucianism-based societies of East Asia?
Many Westerners are very ignorant about Asia but will insist on writing about it anyway. Asian-Americans, for their part, are also ignorant about Asia and are frequently in no position to intelligently critique such pieces based upon an objective understanding of Asian culture and history. Both Asian-Americans and Asians in the English-speaking world suffer from the dilemma that this space tends to be dominated by Westerners who are very talented at misrepresenting huge swaths of people and geographical areas based upon a very skewed understanding. I do not believe that what goes on in Asia itself is always entirely relevant to the Asian-American experience but it is worthwhile to possess a keen knowledge of our heritage and culture in order to put articles such as these in their proper places.
I wish to deconstruct the concept of “Asian Patriarchy” within the context of this discussion. I will focus on Korea because that is a topic I know best but I believe it is also applicable to other Confucianism-based Asian societies as well.
Feminism and gender equality is a function of gender relations as it relates to the Darwinian mating struggle. When distilled to its most fundamental state: Men prize physical beauty and sexual appeal in the opposite sex. Women prize earning potential, power, and prestige likewise. The former can be denoted as ’sexism’ and the latter ‘reverse-sexism’. Each has a positively reinforcing and synergistic escalating effect on the other. This Darwinian struggle exists in a heightened state in South Korea, for example. It is one of the reasons why cosmetic surgery is so endemic. Sexism exists in direct proportion to reverse-sexism. Male sexism exists as a given. Women can combat sexism and demand more equality. But women forfeit legitimacy to claims for egalitarianism when they engage in reverse-sexism. I believe that Korean society is still very sexist and patriarchal. But in a land where a Korean man has to have graduated from one of the top Seoul universities and be a doctor, lawyer, or at least a Chaebol man in order to be considered marriageable material in proper society is NOT going to be also a place that is brimming with gender-based egalitarian enlightenment. The fact that Korean men are obliged to spend three years in the military, while women are free to do whatever it is that women do (travel the world, spending money on clothes as a “parasitic” single, what have you) also doesn’t help the egalitarian cause.
I have noticed that many White guys suddenly turn into improbable feminists upon their arrival and stay in Korea. It is evident in their express outrage over seemingly ubiquitous prostitution, abundance of room salons, love motels, “special” barber-shops and such. The White foreigner makes it his business to become an expert on these matters. When it comes to the exposé and self-righteous indignation over the sins of sexism of Korean men…oh boy, White dudes can be very outspoken. One doesn’t know whether to laugh at the inherent irony of White guys as feminazis or cry over what this implies about Korean society itself. However, it is mostly a ploy. The “liberation” of the Korean woman with pseudo-feminist characteristics by White dudes is his way of legitimizing his “ownership” and “rights” to Korean women. I have coined a term for this: the “White Dude’s Burden”. A red-blooded male with feminist pretensions is actually a wolf in sheep’s clothing; ultimately he’s really out to just score some pussy. Either that or he’s probably gay. We already figured this out (sort of) in America during the 60’s social movements (women’s rights/sexual revolution/free love) and is pretty much why all that ended up in the toilet eventually. White men’s relations with repressed Korean women in patriarchal Korea are like the 60’s movements writ small. Naïve women with little or no experience with the opposite sex have difficulty understanding this because, well, they’re not men. Only women who have learned things the hard way via a long process of trial and error realize this and they become jaded and cynical (ie. hardened Western woman with a man-repellent bitch-shield and chip-on-shoulder attitudes).
I believe that Korea society is very patriarchal and sexist still. Many observers think it has something to do with Confucianism. I do not believe that is so. Classical Confucianism established the framework of relational hierarchy between man and woman, ruler and subject, parent and child, master and slave, etc. However, it also it also stresses reciprocity. Meaning these relationships are also to be governed by a code of virtue. “Equality” is not recognized in Confucianism; a man is destined to lead over a woman but the man is also supposed to be virtuous. Hundreds of years later, during Qin Dynasty’s bid to unite all of China, Legalism emerged and took root. Eventually, Legalism seeped in to Korea as well and became institutionalized in Chosun since the rise of the Yi Dynasty in 1390. Legalism emphasizes a strict automatic and mechanical adherence to long established custom and rules. It gutted the original relational framework of the imperative towards virtue. It left the “weaker” parties of the relational balance at a disadvantage; reciprocity became a one-way street. Man did not necessary have to be virtuous but woman still had to obey him according to the rules and custom. Likewise for ruler and subject, etc. In any case, Confucianism did not leave behind any meaningful mechanisms to enforce virtue beyond a superficial ethics based on shame or loss of face. This is due to the basic Confucian axiom that Man is inherently good. If Man is inherently good, there is really no compulsion towards developing a robust system of checks and balances. This in contrast to Christianity which holds that Man is inherently sinful. Post-Confucian Legalism is also also echoed in the Christian theological understanding of the dangers of emphasizing the letter of the law over the spirit. When we revisit the words of Christ within this context of comparative cultural study, he being the original feminist at a time when such notion was other-worldly alien, telling the Pharisees (Legalists) “those of you without sin cast the first stone” when they brought the adulteress before him, we understand the meaning of “the letter of the law versus spirit”, the inherent sinfulness of Man, and perhaps even feminism in a new way. Western civilization owes an enormous debt of gratitude towards Christianity, which has presided over the agony of transforming pagan barbarians into Europeans for nearly two millenium. While Western civilization has been experiencing a liberation of the mind and questioning authority since Galileo, up to 70% of Koreans were slaves (nobi) as late as the 19th century. Present-day Koreans are only one generation removed from peasantry and the slave mentality is still felt in the modern Korean psyche.
The trials of modern times made some things worse. Endemic Korean prostitution, for example, is a legacy of Japanese imperialism and US military occupation.
The fact that Asian women see white guys as their ticket to a more normal existence is an expression of this slave mentality. But this is what largely passes for “feminism” in Asia.
Great points, everyone!
P2H: But there are TONS of articles about White Men Seeking White Women. Look at Maxim, Men’s Health, Men’s Fitness, GQ, etc. I think every issue has at least one WMSWW article. They even come with photos.
I agree with you on the Asian female thing. It’s that whole Orientalist Essentialism thing. And as Kobukson mentions, it’s outdated.
Kobukson,
Thank you for your excellent and thorough description of “White Dude’s Burden”. I saw the exact same thing in Japan. Some of these guys had no interest in feminism, minority rights, social issues, or politics before, then all of a sudden they’re supposedly outraged over the supposed oppression that Asian women face in Asia. I wouldn’t be surprised if the book above made some of those claims.
I think Kobukson just summed it up very quickly. The problem is, Asian American women in America believe this; not just in Asia.
can women join the army?? taught self defense against the rise of non asian males that would pick up the pieces after a failed korean male? can the women just say no to the white guy? or black guy?
should there be a para military society where everyone is in the army till say 25?
look at nazi germany, ww2 japan? modern isrealis?
eastern philosophy like confucius is largely based on hear say now. even if there was a set standard, who read the book, understood the book, re read the book and was absolutely sure there was just one book? how much is dogma?
males do whatever, justify whatever, to stay in some larger control of the situation. Christianity came into korea; countered this argument and was built off the “truth” compared to eastern philosophy.
i dont want any woman going into a relationship for financial security alone; but this is not economics, its a racial thing here. what about the English Teachers travel and work in pairs male and female? males teach males, females teach females.
is this a better solution?
That argument from the Bernstein book sounds like a lot of self-serving rationalizations. Surprise, surprise.
For the West (which is largely code for White males), sexuality has traditionally been one way to assert social dominance over other cultures.
Apparently not satisified with the military, political, or economic colonization of the non-Western world, this type of White “will to power” even extends to the most personal and intimate of all human relations–sexuality.
And as Jaehwan mentioned, this thing is “celebrated” in American pop culture and media.
So it bears repeating: White (male) supremacy ain’t just about “fringe groups” like the KKK. Not even close.
It’s first and foremost about Mainstream America.
The difference between the two is that the latter hides behind a mask of “diversity and colorblindness,” while the former has no such pretense.
Ultimately, the question for Asian (Americans) is this: What are we going to do to end their system?
Great post….
The only one main way to overcome this, is to build up Asian American or AzN culture and identity (OR/ the cultures and national identities of cultures in Asia.)
If you build up the culture then our people will have our own heroes, stories, narratives, role models, relationship models, people to aspire to, and look to ourselves for guidence.
Practically i think it comes down to supporting AA artists, singers, actors, movies, art groups, plays,production companies, websites, businesses. That way we can see stories written by AA for AA reflected on screen/media and AA children see a more secure way to live/right way to live with exploitation/neo colonialist/racist culture of the caucasian west.
Do you think that if all the superheroes on U.S television were Asian, AAs would be so “white worshipping?” modelling is a powerful tool through culture.
Support AA / Azn culture, i say….
what is asian american culture?
you look at asian pop, asian rock?
asian hip hop? is that asian culture?
asian fast food? is that asian culture?
asian american baseball players?
asian american basketball players?
asian american football players?
what are the positions of half “asian”? mom or dad? this is important
what are the positions of half “black”? mom or dad? which is higher?
what are the positions of half “white”? mom or dad? which culture?
the latino community regardless of color or country follow language or religion.
asians have become generic substitutes for everything; items made in china, japan, korea, SEA. asian people work hard, and relatively cheap. slave or scab?
if every asian person was skilled in language and martial arts, is that culture?
do asian people have a single unifying language? like the latinos with spanish?
what is an asian religion? philosophy? Christian? Buddhist? look at Tibet.
in many cases when you look up asian advocacy outside of US you see Indian asians. is that included in “asian”? or “indian”?
beijing olympics meant a lot more.
Maybe we need charm school for men and women. Sometimes people just don’t know the proper way to act.
The last time an Asian man asked me out on a date was 2001. As far as my ovaries are concerned, that is eight dozen good wasted eggs. I should have sold them to a fertility clinic and bought breast implants.
Aw, come on. We Asian men were just saving our pennies, knowing with foresight what W was about to do to our economy….
Larry and Anna,
I agree with both of you. One thing I would say is that it’s important to have a substitute for the status quo. That is to say, we need to have people ready to step in to take the place of the Orientalists. In terms of the arts, I think that could easily be a grassroots project.