I have to admit that when I rolled in at 9 p.m. yesterday, slightly braindead, I ended up watching the second hour of Cycle 6 of America’s Next Top Model while making up a comforting dish of Linguine in Lemon Butter Sauce.
You see, of course I immeidately noticed from the trailers that two of the girls are of Asian heritage (Jade and Gina). Of course I was more aware of their interview clips, what other contestants said about them, and what the hosts said about them. And, oh, did one of them so underrepresent. I mean, I was 21 once, and going through an identity crisis about being an Asian woman in the Americas, but I had that canned answer, “Being Canadian is the opportunity to grow up in both my ancestors’ culture and that of Canada, then being free to form my own identity that is a personal blend of the two.” The wrong answer is, “I don’t know who I am! I don’t know what I think!”
(Turns out they’re both still in the game and both really need attitude adjustments.)