Julie Chen reveals workplace racism led her to get plastic surgery for ‘Asian eyes’

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am the race card PP.
I just think it sounds so stupid. She is a successful woman and all of a sudden she mentions her race and how this presumably hindered her success. Why does she do it? To let us know she would have been even more successful if she were white? Well, if she were a man, maybe she would have succeeded even more, you know?

I think you're confused. She said her Chinese looks were hindering her career - then she fixed the issue with plastic surgery. She's not saying she would be more successful than she is now. She's saying she wouldn't have been this successful if she didn't fix her "Chinese eyes."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Dont get into the most superficial job in the world and complain that they want to change your looks.

+1

This isn't about race. It's about how your appearance matters more in certain jobs than in others. There are plenty of great jobs where her looks wouldn't have been as much of an issue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The "classic" beauty ideal in countries like China, Japan, etc have always been double eye lids for almond shaped eye and a narrow nose with a pale, fair complexion for hundreds of yrs andhad nothing to do with looking Western.

You do know this is a direct result from colonialism, right. The whiter the prettier. White is right. The classical Euro features are fawned by people from Asia to Africa to South America. It is the one remaining legacy that colonialism left.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Her eyes don't look very different, her nose-job is what's obvious.

This her eyes are pretty before and after. Nose was a nose before and looks weird after.
I wanna know why her head looks so big on the show.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The "classic" beauty ideal in countries like China, Japan, etc have always been double eye lids for almond shaped eye and a narrow nose with a pale, fair complexion for hundreds of yrs andhad nothing to do with looking Western.

You do know this is a direct result from colonialism, right. The whiter the prettier. White is right. The classical Euro features are fawned by people from Asia to Africa to South America. It is the one remaining legacy that colonialism left.

No fairer skin meant you didn't have to work the fields. Also, traditional Asian beauties were plump--a sign of wealth that you could afford to eat well.

However, Julie Chen's case, she's not trying to look white, just trying to look prettier. All cultures value symmetry in what they find beautiful. Her nose was the biggest change to her face. It's still broad, but now symmetrical.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am the race card PP.
I just think it sounds so stupid. She is a successful woman and all of a sudden she mentions her race and how this presumably hindered her success. Why does she do it? To let us know she would have been even more successful if she were white? Well, if she were a man, maybe she would have succeeded even more, you know?

Actually, she's contextualizing her success. She was sharing what racist obstacles she had to overcome, from her perspective, in order to get where she is. Sharing such stories helps others who are either unaware of such struggles, perpetrate those acts, or are going through similar circumstances have an example to use for better understanding.
A really good example of this is an indepth interview NPR did a few months back with Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. She talks about workplace racism in her rise to success. Highly recommend you listen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The "classic" beauty ideal in countries like China, Japan, etc have always been double eye lids for almond shaped eye and a narrow nose with a pale, fair complexion for hundreds of yrs andhad nothing to do with looking Western.

You do know this is a direct result from colonialism, right. The whiter the prettier. White is right. The classical Euro features are fawned by people from Asia to Africa to South America. It is the one remaining legacy that colonialism left.

No fairer skin meant you didn't have to work the fields. Also, traditional Asian beauties were plump--a sign of wealth that you could afford to eat well.

However, Julie Chen's case, she's not trying to look white, just trying to look prettier. All cultures value symmetry in what they find beautiful. Her nose was the biggest change to her face. It's still broad, but now symmetrical.

Actually it's both. Fair skin as a commodity was prized as a sign of socioeconomic status...initially. However, with colonialism and the hierarchies used it also became a symbol of "idealized" Western beauty standards. This occurred in Asian and African nations as well as the Americas. Likewise with weight/body types.

Pretty is in the eye of the beholder. Was she unattractive before? Depends on how you gauge such things. However, her boss and manager told her changing her ethnic features would make her look more appealing to nonwhite viewers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am the race card PP.
I just think it sounds so stupid. She is a successful woman and all of a sudden she mentions her race and how this presumably hindered her success. Why does she do it? To let us know she would have been even more successful if she were white? Well, if she were a man, maybe she would have succeeded even more, you know?

I think you're confused. She said her Chinese looks were hindering her career - then she fixed the issue with plastic surgery. She's not saying she would be more successful than she is now. She's saying she wouldn't have been this successful if she didn't fix her "Chinese eyes."

Ok, I get her reasoning, but with all the affirmative action I don't believe her.
I mean, affirmative action outweighs whatever looks etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Um it looks like she also had a nose job.

Not ot mention she is hideous in the "before" pictures. I call BS...she definitely had it done to make herself look prettier and thats the truth.

Own it Julie Chen...she sucks by the way.

+1

(and I'm Asian, FWIW)

+2 (another Asian)

+3 (Asian)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wasn't there an episode of The Talk when the women hosts revealed how they look without makeup? I didn't see it, but wonder if that episode helped to notice her eyes; just to to take a look at her whole face, too, and see her features as they are now.

Yes. To me, the biggest difference between the two pictures is that she obviously got a better makeup artist. Look at the lipstick in the first picture!

[Anonymous]

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned how much darker she is in the second picture. I guess the "european" she is aiming at is more Italian than British.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dont get into the most superficial job in the world and complain that they want to change your looks.

+1

This isn't about race. It's about how your appearance matters more in certain jobs than in others. There are plenty of great jobs where her looks wouldn't have been as much of an issue.

So by that logic, only people who fit a certain model of beauty should work in those fields. Those who don't fit this model need not apply? And who decides what is beautiful? Acceptable? Based on what values? What criteria? If that criteria includes a perceived culturally normative standard of beauty based on Eurocentric features then yes, racism is at play.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am the race card PP.
I just think it sounds so stupid. She is a successful woman and all of a sudden she mentions her race and how this presumably hindered her success. Why does she do it? To let us know she would have been even more successful if she were white? Well, if she were a man, maybe she would have succeeded even more, you know?

I think you're confused. She said her Chinese looks were hindering her career - then she fixed the issue with plastic surgery. She's not saying she would be more successful than she is now. She's saying she wouldn't have been this successful if she didn't fix her "Chinese eyes."

Ok, I get her reasoning, but with all the affirmative action I don't believe her.
I mean, affirmative action outweighs whatever looks etc.

So unattractive minorities have a leg up on attractive whites because of affirmative action?
Why do you think this? Based on what? The high number of unattractive minorities working as tv anchors and tv hosts that far outnumber attractive whites? This logic just doesn't track.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Um it looks like she also had a nose job.

Not ot mention she is hideous in the "before" pictures. I call BS...she definitely had it done to make herself look prettier and thats the truth.

Own it Julie Chen...she sucks by the way.

+1

(and I'm Asian, FWIW)

+2 (another Asian)

+3 (Asian)

+4 from yet another Asian

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The "classic" beauty ideal in countries like China, Japan, etc have always been double eye lids for almond shaped eye and a narrow nose with a pale, fair complexion for hundreds of yrs andhad nothing to do with looking Western.

You do know this is a direct result from colonialism, right. The whiter the prettier. White is right. The classical Euro features are fawned by people from Asia to Africa to South America. It is the one remaining legacy that colonialism left.

No, it's not. If you look at Chinese art from 2000 yrs ago when China was a world power, they had the same standard for beauty: Fair, pale skin, double eye lids and a narrow nose. Same for Japanese and Korean paintings before the Europeans became a world power.