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ASIAN AMERICAN ISSUES
Kristin Kreuk: Next Asian American Beauty?
t isn't a question of droolworthiness. Her looks are dazzling enough to have locked up a lead role in each of her first three auditions, including the title role in an upcoming TV movie. It's more a question of whether most of us would identify hazel-eyed Smallville heartthrob Lana Lang as a fellow Asian.
Kristin Laura Kreuk was born to a Chinese mother and a Dutch father on December 30, 1982. She grew up in Vancouver, Canada. Kreuk, 5-4, had decided to go to college to study forensic pathology until, in her senior year, her drama teacher suggested she go to an audition for a new Fox Family series called Edgement. She was promptly plucked out of the open audition to play a Chinese Canadian high scool student named Laurel Yeung. Even as she won fans in the role, she landed the Lana Lang role for WB's dramatization of Superboy's life as Clark Kent, then the role of Snow White in the ABC TV movie set for release in 2002. Kreuk's star-quality was obvious to all who tuned in for Smallville's premiere last October. Some even proclaimed her the show's main attraction.
But many Asian American viewers didn't even suspect Kreuk's Asian ancestry. Even those who learned of her mother's nationality questioned whether she can be claimed by Asian Americans. Without an Asian surname or obvious Asian facial features, they argue, Kreuk's success would do nothing for the image of Asians in the American media. Others might argue that most African American stars are, in fact, only fractionally of African descent.
Should we claim Kristin Kreuk and other hapas like her as Asian American celebrities? Or should that designation be reserved for those with a more obviously Asian identity?
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WHAT YOU SAY
[This page is closed to new input. --Ed.]
(Updated
Tuesday, Apr 1, 2008, 06:00:16 PM)
huu76:
If you make a statement, don't try to back out of it with linguistic tricks. "there's no doubt in my mind." Having no doubt means you disbelieve the counterarguments, not that this is your humble opinion that you know could be wrong. Stand up for your opinion like a man instead of being a sarcastic bastard.
"2 asian parents are more effective than 1. When you have 2 asian parents, you learn it naturally, little effort."
Large mass of data contradicting this point. First, the majority of the ABA population has a barely acceptable level of mother-tongue ability. They are not "good enough." Also by your theory, kids raised in a household where two languages will have disadvantage in learning both languages, whereas in reality, psychological testing on household bilinguals shows the opposite.
Also plenty of kids who came over to the US in high school now speak English acceptably enough that you can't tell they are overseas-born. And on the flipside, LOTS of actors and newscasters, especially those with regional accents they consider embarassing, go in for voice and accent training.
In conclusion, all I can say is that lots of ABAs seem so desperate to discredit Ms. Kreuk on the basis of seriously flimsy evidence. Get your own lives in order before complaining other people "aren't Asian enough" because of some BS standards you hold that have nothing to do with real Asian people.
T.H. Lien
Wednesday, April 03, 2002 at 21:22:50 (PST)
Asians forever :
We definitely need to have our own tv station. Black have BET, so we should have AAT. It's really sad that we don't support our own people enough, because if we do we wouldn't be at this state where there's barely any AA on tv.
Proud AA woman
Wednesday, April 03, 2002 at 12:16:26 (PST)
And Huu76, how do you tell the sound of someone's voice being whatever ethnicity he/she is? Asian Americans/Canadians are either born or bred in the US or Canada. They're suppose to sound fluent in English! If you don't sound like a "white" person when speaking, there's something wrong with your education!
duh!
Wednesday, April 03, 2002 at 12:06:13 (PST)
Kristen does not look more CHinese. Before I knew that Smallville had a leading half-Asian woman in it, I had no clue that she was even partly Asian! I went to Smallville's website to see who was Asian and I couldn't even tell. I had to squint and second guess myself to finally figure out that Kristin Kruek was the one who was half Asian. If she actually looked more Asian, wouldn't you think that her TV parents would be at least one Asian parent? Bay Watch's half-Asian actress has a Japanese father. Why? Because you can tell she's half Asian!
duh!
Wednesday, April 03, 2002 at 12:05:03 (PST)
T.H.
Kristen was born and bred here, do you really think she needs training to sound like a white girl?
In "my mind", not T.H. Lien's or anyone else's mind. It is an opinion, not a fact. You should read more carefully.
I sound more white than my white friends. I can speak acceptable Vietnamese because my parents used it when I was young.
Yes, having 2 asian parents matters. Do you think 1 asian parent will speak english to their partner and then turn around and speak "native" to their child. They'll use the easiest way to communicate where both understand.
I've never heard of 2 white parents saying their kids need to learn Chinese. If the child wants to learn, then they, as you mentioned, will put forth the effort to learn it. These white kids never have problems learning english, just like I didn't. If you're immersed in it, you will learn. 2 asian parents are more effective than 1.
When you have 2 asian parents, you learn it naturally, little effort. It might take effort to perfect it, but you'll still be good enough (probably with an accent though). [By the way, I don't recall mentioning you had to speak both "native" and english perfectly. I said young kids coming over can do the latter and still be coherent with the former.]
However, if both parents are, say 5th generation ABC's, then yeah, their kid probably will only speak english because that's probably all the parents speak.
Anyway, why don't you educate me omnipotent one.
huu76
Tuesday, April 02, 2002 at 23:30:56 (PST)
huu76:
the sound of her voice????????? ever heard of accent and pitch training for actors?
try to stick remotely to something which resembles something which someone might refer to as a fact or fact-like statement. Having two Asian parents means nothing as to your ability to speak an Asian language. Or do you think the average ABC has an acceptable level of spoken Chinese when people can't understand him asking where the bathroom is and he writes the words of his name like he was drawing a picture? Knowing a language is about effort and personal desire, not about race, much to the dismay of a bunch of ABAs who think they're Asian just because they look like it and all their friends look like it too.
T.H. Lien
Monday, April 01, 2002 at 23:06:57 (PST)
I just watched an episode of Smallville. Kristen may look more Chinese but from the sound of her voice, there's no doubt in my mind she's a white girl.
Only kids who come over when they're very young can speak english that perfectly (and be able to speak their parents language too). These kids have 2 asian parents. I doubt Mrs. Asian Name-Kreuk even bothered trying.
huu76
Saturday, March 30, 2002 at 08:34:12 (PST)
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