From: parghi@cs.uiuc.edu (Amit Parghi)
Subject: From the Stanford Daily #2 (Part I)
Originator: parghi@dubius.cs.uiuc.edu
Organization: Marketing Division, Sirius Cybernetics Corporation
Date: Sat, 19 Dec 1992 20:51:08 GMT

I thought I'd save Alan Hu a bit of typing and post the second set of
articles from the Stanford _Daily_.  This is the main article that appeared
on the front page on December 1st.  The subsequent posting includes an
article that appeared as a sidebar to this one.

A lot of the issues discussed in these articles have been covered in this
newsgroup in recent weeks, but the articles are still worth a read (if
only for "Paul's" comments :-).

Amit

	Fetishes for Asian females rooted in stereotypes, mystique.

	by Carrie Chang
	Editorial staff

	When the Rev. Diana Akiyama was in grade school, a boy once
	turned to her and said, "When I grow up I want to marry someone
	like you."

	When she asked him why, he replied, "Because Japanese women
	make good wives.  They're obedient."

	"I remember thinking, `I wonder where he got that idea?  That's
	really spooky,'" recalled Akiyama, an associate dean of
	Memorial Church.

	Years later, "spooky ideas" are still floating around campus,
	say many Asian-American women, frustrating them with demeaning
	stereotypes in a scenario where sexism meets racism at an ugly
	intersection.

	"I do notice a larger percentage of Asian women with white men
	on campus rather than the other way around," said Rick Yuen,
	director of the Asian American Activities Center.  "I'm not
	sure why that's so, but one of the factors might be a
	preference for Asian women on the part of some white men."

	On an ethnically diverse campus such as Stanford, in which
	Asians make up about a quarter of the student body, dating
	between Caucasians and Asians is hardly an anomaly.  What
	stands out, however, is the preponderance of Asian woman-
	Caucasian male couples on campus.

	"In some cases, a fetish for Asian women might come into play.
	It's definitely a phenomenon," said Alice Yang-Murray, who
	teaches a class on the history of Asian-American families.

	Used both in jokes and in serious accusations, commonly used
	terms like "Asian fetish," "Eggs," "Asiaphiles," and "Yellow
	Fever" have sprung out of a phenomenon with blurred
	parameters:  Is the fetish simply a preference for a certain
	look, or is it linked to deeper stereotypes of Asian women?

	Though the issue is far from clear-cut, many students contend
	that a fetish for Asian women, at some level, does exist at
	Stanford.

	"There's no question about it.  It definitely happens at
	Stanford," said senior Dana Won.  "I've talked to white guys
	who specifically go out with Asian women just because they're
	Asian women."

	"I see it on campus and it gives me the creeps," said junior
	Carol Shi.  "Just the way they talk to you ... you can tell
	they're going for the mysterious, sweeter, subservient stuff."

	The perception of subserviency appeals to "Paul," a white
	sophomore who says he finds Asian women more "amenable."

	"If you look at the word `subserviency' in the literal sense, I
	have to say that I find Asian women to be more so," said Paul,
	who only dates Asian-American women.  "They tend to be quieter
	and they don't contradict me as much, so it all works out for
	the better."

				I can smell it

	Wary of "Asiaphiles" on campus, some women say they have begun
	to pay attention to the way various Caucasian males "operate."

	"Sometimes when I speak to someone I think, `Does this guy have
	a fetish?'  I've clued in on things like this.  I can smell
	it," said Won.  "People who say there's no such thing as an
	Asian fetish will totally disagree with me and say that I'm
	being a bitch.  It's hard to exactly describe in words what it
	is, but you can tell."

	Some cite superficial interest in Asian culture as a tip-off.

	"It comes more in subtlety in treatment.  Like he says, `Oh, I
	like people like you.'  Or he does dim sum every weekend and
	knows phrases like `Ni how ma?' (`How are you?' in Mandarin)"
	said junior Patty Tsai.

	In some cases, Asiaphiles go to great lengths of cultural
	immersion with ulterior motives, even choosing to draw into
	dorms with many Asians.

	"I know a guy who said he'd put Okada and EAST on his draw card
	just so he could hit on Asian women," said "Jeannie," a
	sophomore.  "He also manages to take Asian language courses
	every quarter for the same reason."

	"Brian," a senior, claims to have "had a preference for Asian
	women" but stopped short of claiming any sort of fetish for
	subserviency.  But that's not to say that there aren't those
	who have them.  "I've actually heard of guys who will go to a
	party at Stanford and locate all the Asian women in the room
	regardless of the way they look," he said.

	Sometimes, however, a fetish can translate into blatant sexual
	harassment.

	After being pursued and eventually threatened by a white senior
	three years ago, Asian-American graduate student Tiffany Liu
	finally reported the case to a resident dean.

	"I'm not exaggerating.  I walked in the [dean's office], and
	there were seven or eight other Asian women sitting there with
	different harassment stories," said Liu.  "He had followed
	Asian women, gone through their underwear drawers and spied on
	them as they were undressing.  He had been doing this kind of
	thing since freshman year."

				Some men prefer blondes

	Many white men contend that such extreme fetishes are rare,
	adding that their own intentions, which do not involve damaging
	stereotypes, are often misunderstood and twisted by politically
	correct attitudes on campus.

	"This whole thing is so overblown," said "Evan," a white
	senior.  "I like dark hair and dark features, the way some men
	like blondes.  At Stanford, which is so edgy and politically
	biased, it's like looked upon as `Omigod!  Asian fetish!'  It's
	really over-analyzed."

	Some argue that most attempts to explain a fetish for Asian
	women are flawed, emphasizing that attraction cannot be held up
	to analysis or interpretation.

	"I don't really know why, but when I'm walking on campus I'll
	just naturally look at Asian women," said junior Joe Gerber.
	"It's like `Why do I like the color green?' or `Why do I like
	chocolate?'  It's fully an aesthetic thing I suppose."

	"It's attraction, it's not an obsession, and I don't think it's
	frowned upon," said "Kevin," a white sophomore who added that a
	preference for dating Asian women wasn't that uncommon.

	"I've noticed a lot of white guys who also have `Yellow
	Fever.'  I know four or five like this.  Sometimes we joke
	around and say, `Oh, you have it too?'" he said.

	"Chris," a graduate student, emphasized that rather than being
	attracted to negative stereotypes of Asian women, he was drawn
	to "good values of Asian families as a result of being isolated
	from the corrupting values of American culture."

	"I think there are men out there who fit the description of an
	Asian fetish maniac, but I would hardly put myself in the same
	category," he said.

	Yet many, such as senior Harrison Hsiesh, however, still
	question the underlying motives of these preferences and
	attitudes.

	"I think sometimes there's a preference for Asian women because
	of certain stereotypes that are ingrained in their thinking,"
	he said.

				Geisha girls

	Akiyama traces such stereotypes back to the way American troops
	treated women in the Vietnam war, as well as the prostitution
	of Asian women during the war as a historical factor which
	fostered negative images.

	"I think a lot of those men came back with very fixed ideas
	about the desirability of Asian women because of their ability
	to so fully exploit women in Vietnam during that time," she
	said.

	Perceptions of Asian women are also influenced by the media,
	with images ranging from geisha girls to the exotic dragon lady
	and the frail, pathetic Madame Butterfly.

	"It's a double-bind," said Tsai.  "Because if she (identifies)
	with these images, she neglects her true identity, and if she
	defies it, she's a militant bitch."

	"It really really pisses me off there's this stereotype that
	Asian women are frail and extremely feminine and oh...it's
	binding.  I just feel a lot of pressure to be that way," said
	senior Brenda Ky, adding that she has dated white men who have
	marvelled at how "cute" and "exotic" she was.

	It's the "Asian mystique," the two-dimensional assessment of
	"exotic" characteristics that leaves many women feeling as if
	their person is being drowned in a sea of misperceptions that
	have spilled onto campus.

	"I was in Green (Library) when this guy comes up to me and
	starts saying things like `Hey I bet you make great won ton
	soup' and `How are you?' in Chinese even though I'm Korean,"
	said "Amy," a junior.  "When I told him to go screw himself, he
	looked kind of surprised, as if he didn't expect me to use that
	kind of language.  I wish people like that would just get a
	clue."

From: mirin@hpnmdla.sr.hp.com (Mirin Lew)
Date: Thu, 17 Dec 1992 23:15:34 GMT
Subject: Re: Which is it?  Sacramento or Santa Clara?
Organization: Hewlett-Packard, Santa Rosa, CA