At some point in the six months since summer 2000, IMDiversity's Asian American
Village website switched to dynamic content generation using Active
Server Pages (ASPs), which means their URLs have all changed:
In looking through the archives to update my links, I came across
the article below. Any thoughts on this?
Aryan Asians, Japa-Nazis, and Invisible Identities in Cyberspace:
How Do You Sort the Real from the Fake in Online Ethnic Communities?
by Yayoi Lena Winfrey, AAV Contributing Editor
She's a tiny thing, barely five feet tall and weighing less than
100 pounds soaking wet. But this sansei (third-generation Japanese
American) has a mouth that often gets her into trouble. A radical
feminist and champion of yellow power, Irene Kuniyuki dabbles in
photography, graphic design and videomaking. She also publishes
several online magazines including Shoyu, Pour It On!
Recently, Kuniyuki started her own web site for Asian and Asian-American
photographers "to post their work and support each
other with shared stories."
"I was sick and tired of typing in "Asian American" (in search engines)
and getting routed to a porn site," Kuniyuki says, disgust
thick in her voice.
I have to admit that whenever I use "Asian American" while writing
an email, my spell checker tells me that I've misspelled the word,
automatically substituting it with "African American".
"The search engines don't recognize the word 'Asian American',"
claims Kuniyuki.
In retaliation, she created a community for Asian and Asian-American
photographers. The first step for potential members is to apply to
MSN Web Communities for a "passport," which is then forwarded to
Kuniyuki for acceptance or rejection. Since there is a restricted
membership, Kuniyuki's approval is required before a new member can
be accepted. On the application form is a space requiring the
applicant's ethnicity.
For Josh Lee, the answer was simple: "I am Korean and would like to
see your community."
Kuniyuki replied with an approval letter informing Lee that she
started her community after her work was rejected for being "too
edgy" or "too ethnic."
Asiaphiles: Keep Out
"I was forced to make [the site] private in order to keep out weird
white guys wanting lotus blossoms...or sending obscene email," says
Kuniyuki. "That's why I'm asking for the ethnicity right up front,
so I know I'm not accepting some Asiaphile."
MSN reveals a sender's email address only if Kuniyuki accepts their
application. Therefore, she approves applicants who don't answer
her race question so she can send them a letter asking them to
reapply.
To further ensure that only "authentic" Asians apply for a passport,
Kuniyuki posted this bold message at her site:
"If you ain't yellow, or you're a banana or looking for an Asian
date, this ain't the place."
Because of the anonymity associated with the Internet, creating a
false identity is easy. We've all heard the haunting tales of
innocent teens "meeting" lustful old men in chat rooms. What's to
stop a non-Asian from lying about his race in order to get over
with a fragrant little Cherry Blossom?
Kuniyuki says she can tell the difference between a real Asian and
a fake because the fake ones will write, "I want to meet Asians"
or "I am very much involved in and interested in Asian culture."
"You know they're somebody white when they try to write in bad
English and use some Asian-sounding name, but when I click on to
reply, their real (non-Asian) name appears," she chortles.
Exclusion Acts?
Although she had "the best intentions" in mind, Kuniyuki quickly
ran into opposition in the person of a Tokyo-based magazine editor.
For several days I followed their arguments through emails that
were cc'd to me.
"I am annoyed by the passport rule," said Atsuko Fujimoto, who
lives in Japan. "I asked Irene where she draws the line when she
says 'Asian'. Are Iranians Asians? How about half (biracial people)?"
She's been accused by Fujimoto, Kuniyuki says in her own words,
of being an 'Aryan Asian,' to which Kuniyuki shoots back, "well,
she's a Japa-nazi."
According to Kuniyuki, people like Fujimoto thinks she's overzealous
in her mission to judge just who qualifies as being Asian, thus the
Aryan tag. The "Japa-nazi" refers to Fujimoto "not accepting me as
Japanese," but a "watered-down American version."
Perhaps being Japanese raised in Japan among mostly Japanese
prevents one from understanding the importance of identity in a
society where you are in the minority. Perhaps not.
"I have been thinking about my ex-roommate Miranda," says Fujimoto.
"She's a (Brit) who spent most of her life in Japan. Emotionally,
she is more Japanese than British ... if she wants to join such a
community (and) share her Japanese-ness or whatever, but is
excluded because of her (race), I think I have to say the community
is racially biased."
"They can start their own thing," retorts Kuniyuki. "British Girls
That are Born and Raised in Japan -- but not in my place…I started
this web site ... because a lot of those web pages when you go to
join their site, they say 'we're not taking any more photographers
right now' when they find out you're Asian."
A [Cyber] Room of One's Own
For all the controversy, only 14 Asian-American men have applied
so far. The applicants include a macro-cellular biologist who's
also a University professor. A single female was accepted and
signed up, but has not been heard from since. At the time of this
writing, Kuniyuki's photos and "Josh Lee at Graduation" were the
only pictures posted at the site.
"I can see what she's trying to do...to help Asian-American
photographers," says Doug Ing, a filmmaker originally from Hawai'i.
"She has a right to be exclusive, but...she needs to be more
tactful. She's within her rights. You can't call it racist...
It's not like her web site is the only web site in the world for
photographers. Then, it (excluding non-Asians) might be racist.
But there's tons of web sites."
Tomiko Fujihara, a Seattle-born graphic designer, isn't sure if
the issue is so simple. "I don't know. It's sort of weird. How do
you prove you're Asian (if no one can see you)? I mean, I guess
that it's okay, but at the same time, what if you want to
participate in the discussion, but you're not Asian?"
"It's really good that she developed this web site just for Asian
Americans," says Carol Vu, editor of a Seattle-based Asian
newspaper. "We need a forum where we can just talk about issues
that are most important to us...things we deal with that otherwise
don't get talked about. As long as the motives are not cruel, like
white supremacists who tend to be malicious."
Lee Butay is Caucasian and a new mother of a daughter whose father
is a Hawai'ian-raised Filipino American. "It's her business and if
the Asian community goes for it, then it's great. I would like to
know how she's going to tell a real Japanese person from a
non-Japanese person. How could Irene know if Fiona (my daughter)
was half Asian if she grew up in America with me as a parent and
Percy as a parent who is as haole (white) as me? He even calls
himself a coconut. How would she be able to distinguish a
multicultural (person) like Fiona if Fiona chooses to be Asian
and the Asian community decides she's not?"
Butay then directed her husband to get online to see if he could
pass Kuniyuki's litmus test.
Can you?
All Asian-American photographers are invited to give it a shot at:
http://communities.msn.com/AsianAmericanPhotography/home.htm
Subject: Re: Aryan Asians, Japa-nazis
Keep in mind that I write this from the perspective of a white man who had
a lot of Chinese and Japanese influences in my youth, among them being raised
as a Shintoist. Though American-born, I tend to describe myself (and this
is probably incredibly pretentious) as a "Citizen of the World" and not
"American." I also have a lot of blood relations who are not 100% white,
so I have an odd view on race relations. In other words, I have my own filter,
which may make me a bit biased.
I've also only quoted those elements of the article I thought necessary to
comment on.
> Any thoughts on this?
Several! :)
In general ... while I think Ms. Kuniyuki is within her rights to create a
site for Asian photographers, her methods and her comments make her seem
racist -- she's not saying "I'm sorry, but this site is only for Asian
Photographers to post", she's saying "If you're not Asian, you don't belong
here. Get out."
> "I was forced to make [the site] private in order to keep
> out weird white guys wanting lotus blossoms ... or sending
> obscene email," says Kuniyuki. "That's why I'm asking for
> the ethnicity right up front, so I know I'm not accepting
> some Asiaphile."
Hmm. So, in Kuniyuki's mind, anyone who is not asian, but likes Asia, is a
creepy person? Or just those who might be interested in a "minority" voice?
She seems (and this may be the author's fault, I don't know) to dislike
anyone who is not of her "race" and yet is interested in what she has to
say. Sounds pretty racist to me.
> "If you ain't yellow, or you're a banana or looking for
> an Asian date, this ain't the place."
Ok, I can see keeping out those who only wish to join to meet Asian men or
women to date -- she's not running a dating service, after all. But ...
"if you ain't yellow" ... sounds racist to me.
> What's to stop a non-Asian from lying about his race in
> order to get over with a fragrant little Cherry Blossom?
The writer really annoyed me here. All non-Asian men who like Asiam women
are suddenly denigrated. Perhaps a bias on the author's part, or just a bad
turn of phrase?
> Perhaps being Japanese raised in Japan among mostly
> Japanese prevents one from understanding the importance
> of identity in a society where you are in the minority.
> Perhaps not.
Bad writing! The author makes a point, but in order to remain apart from
the point, adds in "perhaps not." If you believe something, have the guts
to declare it openly.
> "I have been thinking about my ex-roommate Miranda," says
> Fujimoto. "She's a (Brit) who spent most of her life in Japan.
> Emotionally, she is more Japanese than British...if she wants
> to join such a community (and) share her Japanese-ness or
> whatever, but is excluded because of her (race), I think I
> have to say the community is racially biased."
>
> "They can start their own thing," retorts Kuniyuki. "British
> Girls That are Born and Raised in Japan -- but not in my place.
> I started this web site ... because a lot of those web pages
> when you go to join their site, they say 'we're not taking any
> more photographers right now' when they find out you're Asian."
So, because others have been racist, Kuniyuki feels she can be racist? This
echoes for me Spike Lee's comment of several years back. He put forth the
idea that Blacks cannot be racist because they are not in power. To me this
is absurd -- if you discriminate against someone else because the color of
their skin is not the same as yours, you are a racist. End of discussion.
The term "reverse racism" also irritates me. Racism is racism, no matter
the skin colors involved.
> "I can see what she's trying to do ... to help Asian-American
> photographers," says Doug Ing, a filmmaker originally from
> Hawai'i. "She has a right to be exclusive, but ... she needs
> to be more tactful. She's within her rights. You can't call it
> racist."
Yes, you can. She doesn't want non-Asians involved. If she didn't want
men involved, I'd also call it sexist. By Mr. Ing's logic, a white man who
doesn't let Asian artists on his website wouldn't be racist. Of course it would.
> It's not like her web site is the only web site in the world
> for photographers. Then, it (excluding non-Asians) might be
> racist. But there's tons of web sites."
Irrelevant. Whether there are tons of websites or not isn't the point.
The point is her methods and her manners are not those of a concerned artist.
> Tomiko Fujihara, a Seattle-born graphic designer, isn't
> sure if the issue is so simple. "I don't know. It's sort
> of weird. How do you prove you're Asian (if no one can
> see you)? I mean, I guess that it's okay, but at the same
> time, what if you want to participate in the discussion,
> but you're not Asian?"
Exactly. Not all of us non-Asians are bad people who want a "cherry
blossom" bride. Yet, in any discussion forum I try to take part in to
indulge my interest and further my studies of Asian culture and history
(Japanese Language and Literature is my Minor), there are about 60% of
people who think I shouldn't be there because of my race. Now, I could
easily create a web-identity, call myself Michael Takehashi or something,
but why? Why can't I just be Michael Atreides, who speaks a bit of
Japanese?
I don't hold anything against non-whites who like to discuss and study
Celtic history with me.
Perhaps I'm just a little bitter due to the insular nature of many Asian
subgroups I'm aware of. My boyfriend is Chinese, but acts much more white
than even I do. He has little to no interest in his culture, though he
does
find Japan fascinating and wants to go there. We tried to join a Japanese
discussion group here, and the hostility was so apparent we never went
back.
The one person we knew there was dumbfounded that we were treated as we
were, and he's now left that group, but ... it hurts.
Though I have to admit, when I lived in San Francisco I never felt this
kind of hostility.
> "It's really good that she developed this web site just for
> Asian Americans," says Carol Vu, editor of a Seattle-based
> Asian newspaper. "We need a forum where we can just talk
> about issues that are most important to us ... things we
> deal with that otherwise don't get talked about.
And if these things are not talked about with the people who apparently
commit them, and if these things are only mentioned in an insular
community,
how does that help, really?
> "As long as the motives are not cruel, like white supremacists
> who tend to be malicious."
Doesn't matter. As long as her method of "selection" remains, race
relations in this country cannot be improved. I don't care how benign the
motive, as long as we draw lines between "us" and "them" there can be no
endto this nonsense.
Subject: Re: Aryan Asians, Japa-nazis
> while I think Ms. Kuniyuki is within her rights to
> create a site for Asian photographers, her methods
> and her comments make her seem racist
>
> > "If you ain't yellow, or you're a banana or looking
> > for an Asian date, this ain't the place."
>
> "if you ain't yellow"... sounds racist to me.
> if you discriminate against someone else because the color
> of their skin is not the same as yours, you are a racist.
> End of discussion.
Her attitude is extreme; we are given some insight into where
it came from, but two wrongs don't make a right.
> Perhaps I'm just a little bitter due to the insular nature
> of many Asian subgroups I'm aware of. ... We tried to join
> a Japanese discussion group here, and the hostility was so
> apparent we never went back. The one person we knew there
> was dumbfounded that we were treated as we were, and he's
> now left that group, but ... it hurts.
I hope that the lack (so far) of other responses to your post
have more to do with unspoken agreement with your arguments,
or simply people being busy, than insularity like that you say
you have experienced. Care to tell more about what happened in
that discussion group?
Subject: Re: Aryan Asians, Japa-nazis
> Care to tell more about what happened in that discussion group?
Well. Mainly it was a case of being ignored, with a few dirty looks thrown
in. I don't think it was racial hatred being evidenced, I should point
out -- just that we didn't "belong", in their opinion, and were made to feel
as if we were somehow inhibiting the conversation. This was not, by the
way, any kind of official group - merely a group of JA youth (mid-20s) who
gather regularly to discuss things. I will also mention that we tried
another, similar group in our area later, which turned out to be much more
integrated, with members from all over Asia as well as other races.
We had a much more pleasant experience.
Last updated 29 April 2001