White Asia
By: Sabrina Pyun, 1st Place Adult Poetry Division
Unfortunately, I must admit
I am so naturally that Asian
scheme of beauty:
Skin translucent as steamed rice,
“paler than the moon” — what Ling wants
in Mulan. I am the daughter my mother calls
“pretty white face” while my little
sister is brown as a jackrabbit.
I am the girlfriend whose boyfriend
can’t help but admire the milkiness
of her snowy curves.
And what’s not to love
but the fact that I am the face
of a worldwide marketing campaign
to scrub the blackness out of Asia.
I am pale billboard girls advertising
those euphemistic “brightening” masks.
I am the DIY citric acid facial scrub
a brown girl grinds into her face.
I am the 3 shades of peachy foundation
Etude House offers: beige, fair, and sand.
My paleness is a politicized commodity.
It is the root of East Asian Imperialism
and the cause of the Japanese occupation
of Korea and the Nanjing Massacre:
The race to be the whitest Asian country
in order to appeal to its European counterparts.
It is why today, Japanese girls use umbrellas on sunny days,
why Korean beauty products are unparalleled
and why Asia clings to its mismatched foundation.
So aren’t I lucky
I am the standard
and shouldn’t I be honored
that millions of girls want to look like me?
Well, I went to Korea
and I was admired.
How hollow a feeling it is.
About the Poet: Sabrina Pyun was born in Manhattan and raised in New Jersey. She is currently a Writing Seminars student at Johns Hopkins University. She is a lover and writer of fiction and poetry and aspires to publish a book in the future! She also shares her work and articles on her twitter @sabrinampyun.