Star Gazing...

Hollywood dazzles our senses with its silvery spectacle of fantasy, drama, and special effects. Despite its glamorous reputation, the movie industry is far from perfect. The depiction of Asians and Asian Americans in Hollywood is symptomatic of our society’s “colorblind mentality.” (See January 28th posting.) I believe that the movie industry quarantines Asian Americans as uni-dimensional and reinforces inaccurate stereotypes of Asian Americans.

Throughout history, the film industry has encouraged shallow stereotypes of Asian Americans. Asian males have been portrayed as ninjas, power-hungry villains, and socially awkward sidekicks. Asian females have been cast as exotic “creatures” and submissive women. In addition to these stereotypical roles, very few “A-list” Asian American movie stars exist. Take a moment to list as many prestigious Asian American movie stars…It can be quite a challenge.