the pale people

Generally, models in advertisements don't look like normal people. It's sort of like society's majority opinion of what beautiful means, and then amplified to hyper-unrealistic levels, misrepresenting what people look like.


On the Skytrain in Bangkok, you'll notice glowing porcelain Thai models in cosmetic advertisements, especially for skin and nipple whiteners. These models are usually only half-Thai (maybe less). Some of these models are so not-Thai that on the streets of Seattle, I would probably just think they were a strange variant of white. They look nothing like the Thai people on the street.


It is all part of Asia's unfortunate perspective that white equals beautiful. Some Thai women wear sunscreen simply for their commute to work everyday. For the past few years, the winners of the Miss Thailand and Miss Universe contests in Thailand are frequently won by girls not even from Thailand; born and raised in America by at least one white parent and unable to speak a word of Thai.


Skin whiteners have become extremely popular in Thailand. There are black market products that contain powerful bleaching chemicals, which sometimes leave people with disfigured skin.


I was a little distressed to see advertisements for nipple bleaching creams. I wonder how this barrage of *white is beautiful* advertisements affects the minds of women growing up in Bangkok. Even I was starting to feel a little down!