If you wear camouflage-inspired fashion, it doesn’t mean you want to join the army or head off into the woods to shoot deer. If you dye your hair blue, it’s probably not because you want to look like a Smurf. And if you decide to get breast implants, the world doesn’t rush in to say that you’re trying to resemble Dolly Parton. So why is it, then, that people who get Asian eyelid surgery are supposedly trying to look more Western?
Dear White People
You can count on white people to make just about everything about them. In a world of 7 billion people where Caucasians make up only 5 percent of the global population, it’s awfully presumptuous to assume that every dark-haired person who chooses to highlight their locks or every olive- or brown-toned person practicing sun protection harbors a secret desire to be as white as Taylor Swift. And, assuming that Asian eyelid surgery is solely for the purpose of making Asian people appear, well, less Asian, is not only flawed, it’s also offensive.
Beauty for Beauty’s Sake
Many East Asian people don’t have a natural eyelid fold. While many people without the eyelid fold find no issue with it whatsoever, others can feel that it makes them look permanently drowsy, poses challenges when applying eye makeup and diminishes the appearance of their eyes. Having a visible crease when the eye is open is an aesthetic that’s become popular throughout many East Asian cultures, largely because it helps accentuate the eyes. The men and women who opt for Asian eyelid surgery are not rejecting their heritage in an effort to look more like Whitey. They’re just enhancing they’re facial appearance.
So don’t worry, white people: it’s not always about you.