I use a similar product to treat skin hyperpigmentation that causes weird dark blotches on my face. It has other uses besides all-over skin lightening to try to look pale.
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I feel like you’ve done a lot of heavy lifting, especially lately. But I’d like you to know your contributions have certainly helped me expand my understanding and perspective in many areas over the years.
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I’ll bet that she came up with that line!!
Not just the nose. Search for “oriental upper eyelid surgery”.
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No need for surgery, you can get can a special glue or tape strips.
I think I remember reading somewhere that Nichelle Nichols did indeed ad-lib that line, she is a gem to be sure.
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I think the disconnect is that we might be looking at, but forgetting to be specific, the two sources of skin tone differences: genetic and exposure to sun. I would associate racism with the first and classism with the second. In the Western world, we have historically tied racism to genetics. In Asia they have historically tied classism to sun exposure.
In my mind, it makes no sense to describe something as racist when two people have the same skin tone genes, but are treated differently.
But, mea culpa, I decided to check the definition of racism. Turns out it is a very flexible term that can cover any separation of people into groups for any shared characteristic (and not just genetic). I honestly thought it had a more specific meaning given the common usage of Black vs White and the more specific meaning of race. The watered down definition seems … disappointing.
My intent wasn’t to minimize racism, but to highlight that skin whitening in Asia is more associated with indoor/outdoor than genetics. And by naming the source of discrimination, we are better armed to fight it.
It’s also not just skin color Asia. In the 10 years I’ve been working in China, I find it infuriating that engineers will refuse to get their hands dirty (literally or figuratively). It’s below them. They won’t touch anything and give orders to technicians to do it. Workers get their hands dirty. The upper classes don’t. Yes, people are still that class sensitive there.
Don’t even get started on tea and liquor rituals.
And yet, even having read the expanded version of racism, I can’t bring myself to call these actions racist. It just doesn’t seem like the right word to describe what happens.
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I can see your reasoning but the two ideas are intertwined, especially in more racially diverse Asian societies…
The debate on Racism is heavily focused on the US and White on Black racism which gives some societies a blindness to their own flavor of racism.
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A couple years ago I was at a comic book convention and saw her sitting all alone at a table, trying to sell her book. Strangely there was no line of fans or people paying much attention to her at all. (Maybe not the ideal crowd as it wasn’t a sci-fi oriented show). I felt really bad and was considering going up to say how awesome she was, but felt weird about it, especially because I wasn’t prepared to buy her book. Oh well, hopefully lots of other people already told her how awesome she is and she didn’t need any validation from a rando like me to know it.
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Thank you for saying so; that’s very kind of you.
The first step is realizing that your personal perspective is NOT the end-all, be-all.
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I live in Mainland China, where skin-whitening products are very popular. Many Chinese women do not like dark skin because farm workers have dark skin. Having light skin shows status that you are not a menial labourer and don’t go out in the sun.
What’s a madien?
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Um… so? Our beliefs don’t just emerge out of thin air, dude. And race and class aren’t disconnected.
But hey, I’m a woman, so invoking women is a great way to discredit me, right? After all, our years of work are only worth half of existing as a man quoting other women, right?
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Prejudice based upon skin tone, in other words; give it a name, the bigotry at the core is still the same.
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Sorry, but what the hell are you talking about? I live in China and am passing on what women in China have told me about why they lighten their skin and now I’m part of a grand scheme to discredit you? No ulterior motive. Didn’t even look at your name when I posted this.
Yes. I’m sure they reveal their inner most thoughts to you.
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Class-based prejudice against darker skin has already been discussed in this thread so your comment isn’t adding anything new and, furthermore, could be interpreted as a denial that racism is a factor in China.
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Do I want to know how much time, money, and other resources were spent on these projects? No, I really don’t. All that effort fueled by an unwillingness to accept inconveniences that come with a skin color that too many people are killing themselves to emulate, because some of those born with it are vain and want to look different? 
As was pointed out elsewhere, this is a symptom of the underlying problem with how beauty is defined in societies and marketed as an industry. It’s led to promoting unhealthy and unrealistic goals, confusing wants with needs, and convincing people to make appearance a higher priority than health. If only those resources could’ve been used in the fight to find a cure for cancer. Because fuck cancer. I’m trying hard not to extend similar sentiments toward those who fund this research.
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Egads. I’ve been under the knife a few times, but it’s always been for medical necessity (fake hip, screw in my foot, shoulder cuff repair (twice), spine protrusion, lung thoracotomy). I don’t know why someone would think they need cosmetic cuts.
Although I have been to a barber every now and again so I guess that’s somewhat hypocritical 
If they’re in Asia, it’s often because they want to look more “Western.”
I won’t reproduce photos here of jaws butchered into more narrow “beauty.” They’re easy enough to Google.
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