I am an Asian girl.

I am not a delicate, docile little blossom with blunt, straight-across bangs, speaking broken English and giggling with a soft, tinkly little voice. I am also not fierce and intimidating, and I cannot kill a man with a bat of my lashes, a flick of an elaborate fan and a few well-executed karate chops.

I am not a china doll or a dragon lady; I am an Asian girl.

I want you to think about all the movies you have ever seen. Hard, right? Now, think about all the movies you have seen that prominently features an Asian woman; that probably makes things much easier. Finally, consider how these  women are portrayed in the films. If the movies you are thinking about are anything like the vast majority of motion pictures in Western society, then I'm willing to bet that the Asian female characters in them can be largely categorized into two stereotypes: the submissive, passive 'china doll' and the femme-fatale 'dragon lady'.Although the two generalizations promoted by the media and society seem to contrast starkly against one another, they have several common elements; both attach the value of an Asian woman to her sexuality, erase her individuality and perpetuate racism and the objectification of women.
Nearly everyone has heard of Gwen Stefani - the platinum blonde pop icon, the voice behind the legendary song "Hollaback Girl", the lead vocalist of the band No Doubt -  and a shameless supporter of the ‘submissive Asian girl’ stereotype. Since 2004, Stefani has been working with four Japanese backup dancers called 'Harajuku Girls'. The Harajuku Girls dance with Stefani onstage, follow her everywhere she goes, and are contractually obligated to speak only Japanese in public. They are merely props in Stefani's performances and public appearances, and their shadowing of Stefani promots the image of a subservient, inferior Asian woman. They pose in the background as she is interviewed, walk behind her on the red carpet and even bow before her onstage, as though they are worshipping a god.They even have sickeningly sweet, submissive-sounding little names to match their degrading roles: 'Love', 'Angel', 'Music', and 'Baby'. Isn’t that just adorable?. The 'china doll' stereotype of Asian women says that we are all subservient, gentle little creatures who giggle softly behind our hands and exist purely to serve others. Like china dolls, we are all passive, delicate and exude a childlike innocence. Gwen Stefani's Harajuku Girls are a prime example of how this image is promoted in today's society; in an attempt to appear cultured and eclectic, Stefani has appropriated Japanese culture and painted Asian women as cute, docile and infantile little girls. In a world where women and people of colour constantly struggle to be taken seriously, it certainly isn't helping that so many women of colour are commonly viewed as obedient and timid children because of stereotypes perpetuated in the media.

On the other end of the spectrum, there is also the common 'dragon lady' stereotype - think Lucy Liu’s roles in Kill Bill, Charlie's Angels, Ally McBeal, et cetera, et cetera. While the 'china doll' ideal portrays Asian women as subservient, gentle little flowers, the 'dragon lady' is ruthless, manipulative and seductive.She can lure any man with her sultry gaze,and she can just as easily kill him with a graceful medley of kicks and flips. Because, you know, of course all Asians can perform martial arts. At first glance, this generalization seems much more empowering than the china doll stereotype. However, the image of Asian women as exotic femme-fatales is every bit as problematic as any other assumptions made about females of Asian descent. Although it does not take away an Asian woman’s power by painting her as a weak, delicate little blossom, it still attempts to cram all women of this race into a pre-made, one-size-fits-all mold, thus completely erasing any individuality. The “dragon lady” stereotype is also problematic for another reason; it tells the world that an Asian woman’s power lies exclusively in her sexuality. This contributes to society’s hyper-sexualized view of Asian women, and it also promotes the objectification of women as a whole. As if women in Western society could possibly be objectified more!

Though the descriptions for each of these generalizations seem to contrast greatly, there is one common component: both the 'china doll' and the 'dragon lady' are irresistible to men. Both stereotypes tie the value of an Asian woman directly to her sexuality – the docile, sexually submissive little girl and the seductive, dangerous vixen. The fetishization of both 'types of Asians’ in the media promotes a skewed image of Asian women; whether we are shy or fierce, our race makes us inherently sexually desirable. The sexualization and stereotyping of Asian women doesn’t only happen in the media – any Asian girl will tell you that. Now, allow me to entertain you with a little story. When I was fourteen, the summer before I started high school, I spent a month at a summer camp. I vividly remember walking along a trail one afternoon, and one boy turned to me andinstructed me to say “me love you long time”. I didn’t get it, and so I said nothing. The boy was laughing, evidently finding this hilarious, but I was perplexed. Eventually, another guy, who had apparently heard this exchange, came to my rescue and accused him of saying that purely because of my race. I still didn’t quite understand, and I would not come to comprehend this little event for a long time. What was so funny about someone saying "Me love you long time"? I have since learned exactly what the boy meant that day, and I can honestly say that I have never felt so disgusted or so offended in my life("Me love you long time", as I have discovered, is a crude, vile reference to Vietnamese prostitution during the war). The problem is, this is not an uncommon occurrence – countless other Asian girls and women experience similar things every day. Because of stereotypes, regular, run-of-the-mill women and girls are objectified and sexualized purely because of their race.

Yellow fever, according to the World Health Organization, is an "acute haemorrhagic disease transmitted by infected mosquitoes". However, in popular culture, the same term is used to describe a phenomenon in which Asian women are fetishized by men and are considered more sexually attractive than other women of different races. "Wait," you might say. "What's wrong with being considered sexy? Isn't it kind of like a compliment?" Although being thought of as sexy and attractive is not a bad thing in itself, the problem with 'Yellow Fever' is that it puts Asian women on a pedestal for all the wrong reasons. Men are not attracted to a woman of Asian descent because they think she has a unique, interesting personality or even because they think she herself is particularly beautiful. To them, she is not an individual woman; she is merely an exotic Oriental woman, interchangeable with any other Asian woman in the world. Simply put, men who 'have a thing for Asians' see nothing but race and stereotypes; looking at an Asian woman, they see only a subservient, passive little doll. The phenomenon of 'Yellow Fever' essentially means that Asian women are desired purely for their supposed obedience. Not only does this promote a false generalization of a group of people, it also reinforces a society in which men are always dominant, with women as their inferiors.

Generalizations, as a whole, serve no purpose but to erase one’s individual identity and make them part of one indistinguishable mass of people, all interchangeable and replaceable. The 'china doll' and 'dragon lady' are no different. These stereotypes do not acknowledge the fact that all Asian women are individual people with unique personalities and features. Through ideals like these, the common mentality that “all Asians look/act/are the same” is reinforced. Furthermore, the stereotypes and the resulting sexualization of Asian females contributes to rape culture, a society in which women are constantly viewed as sexual objects.Like all generalizations, the two common stereotypes of Asian women in media and society contribute to a plethora of different societal issues; and so, these ideals need to go. Stereotypes don’t disappear overnight – it takes time, and more than anything, it requires awareness and activism. As a society, we must begin the long journey toward the abolishment of the stock images of Asian women, as well as countless other harmful generalizations, in order to improve the world around us. Porcelain can shatter and dragons can be slain; likewise, the stereotypes of the 'china doll' and the 'dragon lady' can also be destroyed.