Plastic surgery eliminates ethnicity?

[Natee471]

I watched Good Morning America do a bit on women having plastic surgery to change their ethnic features - like, a most common surgery among Asian women is to lift their eyes and add an eyelid crease, which makes them look less Oriental. There was a black woman who wanted a nose job, feeling that her nose was too broad, saying that she didn't wanna look caucasian, however, if it ends up looking caucasion to look "better"... Is this about self-hatred, or is it simply about enhancing the way you look?

It should also be mentioned that while minorities are trying to look less ethnic, whites are trying to look more ethnic and less pale wasp white, but the emphasis is always placed on what non-whites are doing. Caucasians have embraced big lips, big butts and tanning - but they won't talk extensively about that because it would call into question white superiorty. Whites are never accused of trying to be non-white no matter what they do.

Let me reiterate: White privilege and power have "normalized" and "naturalized" Whiteness, making them the standard against which all else, and most particularly anything "ethnic," is judged.

Towards the end, they "touched at" white women who are getting butt and lip implants, but they didn't focus on that too much (because, of course, like when they are getting a tan, they're "not trying to look black" (although ethnic women are "copying" them!)

When whites are having plastic surgery done they are ameliorating and enhancing what nature gave them, but when minorities do the same exact thing, they are self hating people destroying what is natural. Something is wrong in that thinking because identity is more elastic than that.

There shouldn't be a double standard...white women have plastic surgery more than any other ethnic group, does that make them "self hating"? Only when a woman of another race has plastic surgery do people assume it's because she's trying to look "non ethnic"?

Caucasian women have nose jobs, face lifts, cheek/buttock/breast implants, lip enhancement, but ethnic women are supposed to keep all their natural features? If you think about it, it's so ridiculous.

[Moongirl]

I think if a person decides to get plastic surgery, it's entirely their decision; that being said, there is a big difference between saying "I want to get my eyes done because my eyelids sag" as opposed to "I want to get my eyes done to look less Asian". The latter, I don't agree with.

[greeneyedbeauty]

Whatever makes them happy. I highly doubt there are too many people that get surgery to look less like their heritage though. I would bet most people just want to "look better" and don't think to them selves "oh, I don't want to look Asian, or black, or white (or whatever the case is)".
That is so stupid.

[Mira]

This is a complex issue, in the Western world it's about altering yourself for appeal that will feed profit. It's very telling that the people of color who make it huge are considered really pretty (like Jamie Foxx and Halle Berry). Jamie Foxx doesn't have white features IMO, but Halle as a child of mixed ethnicity does (though she did have rhinoplasty... no?) Still, she looks exactly like her mother's daughter, with or without the rhinoplasty.

There's a double standard when it comes to facial features and weight. Men say they like certain features even though what sell big is the exact opposite of what they choose in real life.

My children are mixed race (I'm white, and one of their paternal grandparents is Middle Eastern, the other is Kazakh). They both turned out better-looking than both their parents. I think this happens a lot.

[SVZ]

You also have to look at our ideals of beauty. Very rarely is it an ethnic woman. Even in other countries, magazines in Asia use mainly mixed models or sometimes just white ones.

[AliceInWonderland]

it doesn't erase ethnicity, but it tries to hide it!

and its so true about the some white/caucasian women doing this trend too in the opposite direction. I know I want a bigger butt and bigger lips! and some bronzer would be nice but it always comes out looking shitty

but really i have been focusing on my ass practically exclusively at the gym for 4 months now and its sooo frustrating! i used to have the biggest baddest butt and now its going all "white girl" on my and flattening out and sinking... I would consider butt implants but i heard they're the worst when it comes to healing properly; i guess b/c you sit on your ass all the time so they would be.
And i wanna get my lips done but i dont wanna look like a freak like lisa rinna or angelina...

[Mira]

You can have my butt Alice but you can't have my tits

[AliceInWonderland]

^ ok its a deal then!

[moomies]

Originally Posted by SVZ

You also have to look at our ideals of beauty. Very rarely is it an ethnic woman. Even in other countries, magazines in Asia use mainly mixed models or sometimes just white ones.

You know an interesting thing, Lux shampoo (for those who don't know, it's a Japper hair care line) always uses Brunettes in their ads (even though most of the time they use Western celebs) and never a blonde. The ones I remember are, Penelope Cruz, Anne Hathaway, Natalie Portman, I believe Jennifer Connelly did it, also. So even if Asian culture idealized Western beauty, there are still certain ethnic qualities valued IMO.

[AliceInWonderland]

well we're all gonna be a light brown someday anyways; so its kinda funny how we're speeding up the process by trying to look like somewhere in the middle using plastic surgery!

[PlasticGirl]

UGH, i doubt that anyone going for surgery does it for ethnic reasons - white or black/ asian or whatever. We take our individual features and change them to look our best. Moderation is always key, nobody wants HUGE lips, but full ones are nicest, nobody wants a HUGE butt, but a moderate non-flat one is nice. Geez - why is this always a racial thing...

[SVZ]

Originally Posted by PlasticGirl

UGH, i doubt that anyone going for surgery does it for ethnic reasons - white or black/ asian or whatever. We take our individual features and change them to look our best. Moderation is always key, nobody wants HUGE lips, but full ones are nicest, nobody wants a HUGE butt, but a moderate non-flat one is nice. Geez - why is this always a racial thing...

Because in some cases it is...a lot of the surgical techniques and studies used to talk about mimicking caucasian features in ethnic patients

And don't forget the effects of war, etc. Medial canthoplasty and asian blepharoplasty were developed during WW2 during the American occupation.

[darksithbunny]

This upsets me when people are that unhappy with the way they look. This also makes me devastated and so angry that this is what society throws at us so much so that my daughter hates herself and selfmutalates and tells me she is going to get surgery on every part of her body when she hits 18. Why is it we put ourselves through this? Beauty is within. AND if you are ugly inside, nothing can fix that.

[McJag]

I cannot think of a single race that does not have some staggering beauties in it. Sure, the majority are normal,pleasant looks. Still EVERYONE wants to be staggering-it just can't be, even with surgery.
Surgery does not put the patient on equal footing with a natural beauty. Can't happen. There is something always just a little off. They were better off before,IMO. I think the best thing is for everyone to appreciate what THEY have. I have noticed that there are women who are not beauties by any means, yet carry themselves in such a way that everyone agrees with them-and so they are! In other word, if you walk like a Beauty and Talk like a Beauty the rest of the world will accept you as just that! Darksithbunny is SO right: Beauty starts within. It radiates OUT.

[lisalucy69]

it seems sad to me, because I find such beauty in exotic, ethnic features.