Verywell / Madelyn Goodnight
I grew up in a predominately Caucasian community.
I remember hanging his poster up and thinking he was the perfect man.
As I entered high school, I started watching more Hollywood movies and television shows.
Verywell / Madelyn Goodnight
This was also around the time when folks my age started dating.
The infatuation tapered down when I began university.
Being surrounded by more Asian males, I realized we had a lot in common.
While most of my friends dated outside their race, I stuck to my own.
Despite what the media says, Im physically attracted to Asian-looking men.
My husband is visually pleasing in my eyes.
However, that wasnt what most people assumed about me.
When they see a picture of my husband or meet him in person, theyre usually surprised.
They thought I would be married to a white person.
However, that number decreased from 25% to 20% for Asian male newlyweds.
Specifically, Asian women marrying white men occurred more often than Asian men marrying White women.
Or perhaps it was of a simple, tried-and-true concept called love?
He can relate and resonate with mydual identity struggles.
He understands how our parents show their love through food and the value of preserving certain traditions.
He can seamlessly join in on my familys conversations without having me translate.
We share inside jokes about Chinese idioms and phrases that lose their meaning when translated to English.
When they see a picture of my husband or meet him in person, theyre usually surprised.
They thought I would be married to a white person.
The stereotype that Asian men aremisogynisticand dont treat women well isnt true.
My husband and I divide our household chores and share childcare duties fairly and equitably.
He is growing up in a very different time than me.
Fortunately, the current media has become more inclusive in its representation of Asian men.
Although the current trend fares better than my childhood, it doesnt mean stereotypes dont exist.
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Pew Research Center.
Social & Demographic Trends Project.One-in-seven new U.S. Marriages is interracial or interethnic.
Fryer RG.Guess whos been coming to dinner?
Trends in interracial marriage over the 20th century.Journal of Economic Perspectives.
2008;7(3):391-413.
