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ASIAMS.NET |
ASIAN AMERICAN ISSUES
The White Stuff: Whiting Wongs & Wonging Whites
hey're our neighbors, buddies, allies, enemies, clients, bosses, employees, lovers and spouses. Many of us have more daily contact with Whites than with other Asians. Consequently, we often feel we know them better than they can ever know us. Maybe that's at the heart of our frustration as Asian Americans. They are as ubiquitous and pervasive as the air we breath while to them it seems we are eternal curiosities, outsiders, exotics.
Bridging the gap?
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And so we sometimes find ourselves lashing out with nasty generalizations about the people we blame for all that seems wrong with American society and, more specifically, our place in it. They are ignorant, shallow, boorish, smelly, sneaky, treacherous, malicious, dumb, weird -- in short, all the labels we feel have been so unfairly slapped on us.
But even as we hurl such epithets we cannot forget the countless acts of kindness, warmth, generosity, friendship, passion and love that we have enjoyed from these very same people. As our anger and frustration subside, we recognize that our fates are inextricably intertwined, not merely in sharing a world, a nation, a society, an economy, a culture -- but often in sharing even our most intimate lives. One in five of today's Asian American marriages are to Whites. And contrary to the imbalance of the past, the ratio of new AM/WF marriages to new AF/WM marriages is steadily approaching unity.
So we naturally have a strong interest in decoding the other side of the equation. Understanding is a two-way street. Fortunately, there are Whites who have enough interest in us as individuals to share their perspectives on us and on their interactions with us. This page is for those who -- as corny as it may sound -- have chosen to serve as bridges.
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Discussions posted during the past year remain available for browsing.
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WHAT YOU SAY
[This page is closed to new input. --Ed.]
(Updated
Wednesday, Jan 22, 2025, 06:38:55 AM)
i'm not really understanding much of these egg accusations. i'm a college guy and even without a psychology course i can tell that all of these labels come down to one sentence. "you like this, then you must be this." i doubt these javelins puncture pidgeonholes, and in the larger scope i think all this stereotyping is ridiculous. i mean, i love french films, with or without subtitles, and one day i hope to be in france during or after im done with my career. that makes me what? a frenchphile? come on, guys nobody is believing these lists anymore.
redscrape
Saturday, March 23, 2002 at 01:38:48 (PST)
First, I'd like to say that I'm glad this page exists now. As for the conversation already started, reading Andrew's first post was very funny for me. I'm completely "white" (though easily darker than many Asians and some Latinos even without a tan, which goes to show how useful such labels are), and as I was reading down the list, I'm thinking, "Hey, I drink loose leaf Jasmine tea, I love red bean ice cream, I saw CTHD in Chinese and though I do need the subtitles I much prefer them to dubbing, I don't have a desk so the exercise balls are on my bookcase, I have bok choy in my fridge right now, and I sure as h*ll don't connect much with 'regular' Americans." I know that it sounds cheesy, but I honestly do feel that every culture has its strong points and its weak points, and that Asian culture in particular is beautiful and has a great deal to offer. I'm sure I'll say more on this page later, but my typing is disturbing my bf's sleep right now.
Ahankara
Friday, March 22, 2002 at 21:38:56 (PST)
Teacher Kwan:
"Go learn calligraphy , play computer ,and advance in science like the mainlander chinese!"
Yeah, that sounds preferable to being illiterate, not knowing computers, and ignoring science. Just so I can avoid being perceived as a FOB.
Fuzziness:
Sometimes having some absolute standards can be very useful, ya know.
T.H. Lien
Friday, March 22, 2002 at 19:51:59 (PST)
I find a lot of AFs are incredibly snobby, look me up and down because oh my god I"m a white girl that's wearing a Vuitton bag! They walk around with such an attitude and their noses in the air. You just don't matter if you're not wearing the right accesories. I think they're jealous of WFs. I'm curious- what is WITH the attitude??
don't like them
Friday, March 22, 2002 at 13:29:36 (PST)
Andrew Xialiang Campbell,
I CANT LIGHTEN UP!!
Teacher Kwan
Friday, March 22, 2002 at 11:38:26 (PST)
Andrew! and Fuzzy Logic.. You gave me the best laugh today! As a WF married to an Asian man, I think I am guilty of "egging out'!! I began to notice it mostly when with my parents and family, when I would get strange looks for calling friends Auntie, and saying " Thats a perfectly good chicken bone!! Aren't you going to suck the marrow out of it?". Anyway, I am printing up that list Andrew. Too funny! : ) hehehe
Happy Clam
Friday, March 22, 2002 at 11:11:54 (PST)
andrew,
You forgot to mention:
You tend to take off your shoes whenever you go to people's house.
Most obvious of being an "egg" is that you
don't perceive things in your life as a boolean type (if-then, 1-0, black/ white, and etc). You tend to view life as not consisting of right or wrong, but rather different shades of grayness. The maximum of intellectual perception is 0.5, in other words you have achieved the optimal fuzziness which signifies state of Nirvana within you and the universe.
Fuzzy Logics
Friday, March 22, 2002 at 08:03:32 (PST)
Teacher Kwan:
Obviously you didn't figure out this was a piece of humor. That's why I said it at the top. You need to lighten up!!!
Not all Asian people are visible yellow any more than all White people are visibly pale. Both races have huge variety among them, but the term "egg" gets thrown about in the same way the term "banana" or "oreo" does as well--it's meant to imply someone who looks one way but either has cultural elements or stereotypical attributes of another. The point being that you CAN'T cast all White or Asian folks into one mold for one race.
As for slurping noodles--I hear lots of folks slurping them at Pho 79, Chinese Café and Kim Son here in Houston, mostly by Asians. And the Lucy Liu comment would fit more Asian or White Americans who admire her on some level or other.
Once again, lighten up already!
Andrew Xiaoliang Campbell--the EurAsian Egg and Banana custard mix
Friday, March 22, 2002 at 07:59:38 (PST)
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