Wow I'm fucking displeased with myself
I wasn't too keen on reading a prescribed article, "Asian Kool?" by Rupa Huq because it had to do with Bhangra dancing.
I thought it was going to be a lame reading because Bhangra dancing?
But it turned out to be such a Kool reading and the points brought up really resonated with me. I FEEL LIKE SUCH A DOUCHE.
Typically when I get assigned readings written by Westerners I don't have many expectations based on the author's nationality. As do I for Japanese and Singaporean authors. But I realised I actually do have preconceived notions based on nationality; some are supposedly superior to Singapore and some, less.
Reading one article written by two Westerners about Rock and Sexuality, I was really bored because whilst I understood what was being said, I couldn't really relate to subcultures and as I don't listen to rock, the names and images used were foreign to me. However, while I don't listen to Bhangra music as well, I think I could understand the perspective of this writer better, because she put onto paper her experiences of being categorised as "Asian" through a very Western gaze, and I guess I understood that.
Of course I understand that the terms "Asian" and "Western" are LOADED, and they in no way can represent diverse communities of different age, class, ethnicity etc., but when we are assigned so many readings written by people who are from America and Britain, we start to get influenced by the realities that they live through. They might be relatable to a certain extent but I genuinely feel like one has got to take a step and not let others' social visions and realities shape hers/his too much.
LIKE MINE. I had prejudices! Wtf Pamela Ng?
I gots to be kooler than this yo
Ugh back to mugging
