On Wednesday, February 15, in Walls Lounge, Bucknell welcomed author Shirley J. Lim to lead the conversations on “Legacies of Race and Hollywood: Anna May Wong.” With Lim leading the discussion, we reviewed her book, “Anna May Wong: Performing the Modern.”
Lim is an author, professor of history, women and gender studies, Asian and Asian American studies, and Africana studies at Stony Brook University. Also in attendance were our own Bucknell professor Carol Whyte and author, columnist, teacher, journalist, and TV critic for NPR, Eric Deggans. Lim’s discussion of how Hollywood sidelines actors of color and suppresses creativity was enlightening and beautiful as we enter a new generation of film. Lim covered Anna May Wing’s journey from a child worker to an aspiring actress to a fashion icon to her current status: an inspirational Chinese American woman worthy of her face on an American quarter as of 2022. Lim passed around one of the quarters that honors Wong and it felt powerful to sit and watch as American culture changes its perception of what stories should be told.
It is still too optimistic to assume that things are progressing as state legislatures are actively pushing back and banning talks of critical race theory that mirror Lim’s discussion and research on historical Asian American leaders. Deggans also discussed racism’s rhetoric and the myth of the Model Minority. We see this in Europe’s acceptance of Wong or Josephine Baker while also harboring racist ideals of other people in the ethnic group that they do not deem beautiful, exotic, or worthy of equality. The subject of how featurism, colorism, texturism, and “pretty privilege” work in harmony to further systemic racism and white standards of beauty. Lim’s book goes into depth on Wong’s racial experiences in Europe and I encourage anyone to read her book in full and in conjunction with viewing the film “Daughter of Shanghai” starring Anna May Wong.
– Michaiah Augustine