Issue 94 | is the "representation economy" exploiting us?
A conversation with Frankie Huang, a Chinese American writer, editor, and illustrator whose work focuses on diasporic identity and feminism
Dear Cosmos Community,
I’ve wanted to do interviews in The Care Package since its inception four years ago, but I’ve been struck down by imposter syndrome — doubtful of my abilities, as a writer, transcriber, editor. Can an interview feel like a conversation with friends on your couch long into the night? Can an interview feel like movement forward, like we’re figuring something out, together? Can talking lead to revelation? Can I do that?
My imposter syndrome stayed dominant until a few weeks ago, when I read Frankie Huang's tweet on an idea I’d never heard of, but instantly wanted to talk about: representation economy.
Frankie doesn’t shy from confronting issues that are crucial to a nuanced view of Asian America but still rarely discussed. She is a Chinese American writer, editor, and illustrator whose work focuses on diasporic identity and feminism. You may know of her as the deputy editor-in-chief of JoySauce, a new Asian American media platform that makes space for complicated, nuanced stories.
You can find an edited version of our conversation below! We discuss the mainstream palatability of Asian America, the sexualization of Asian men vis a vis K-pop, the eerie capitalism of “representation,” and if there’s a viable alternative (spoiler: there is!)
I’d love to hear your thoughts at karen@jointhecosmos.com.
Karen: What does the term “representation economy” mean to you?
Frankie: As progressive politics surrounding representation for marginalized groups becomes more mainstream, there’s a market for it. “Representation economy” is made possible by people who isolate the mainstream palatable narrative of what it means to uplift marginalized groups and then fuse that into their marketing, communications, and branding to capitalize on the money of said marginalized groups, but also mainstream groups as well.
K: The “mainstream palatable narrative” of uplifting marginalized groups is something I’ve been concerned about in building The Cosmos. I often feel conflicted about whether I’m producing what the mainstream wants to see of Asian America, or whether it’s really what the community wants. What are some “mainstream palatable narratives” of Asian America on your mind these days?
F: One thing I notice is the sexualization of East Asian men, as related to the rise of K-pop, and how that reverberates through the American pop culture landscape. You now see East Asian men getting cast in certain roles, and it’s trendy for non-Asians to thirst for these men.
Previously the versions of Asian men that were selling were the nerdy and unsexy men, and now we’ve moved on to the handsome K-Pop look.
So the commoditization of Asian male tropes, and really, Asian people in general, is ongoing.
There are people in our community that are thrilled that the sexualization of East Asian men is a positive stereotype instead of a negative one. Like this is something I enjoy, I’ve wanted, so why ruin it? Well, in reality it doesn’t move us any closer to being humanized by mainstream society.
K: Is there such a thing as a positive stereotype?
F: People would argue that Asian men being sexy is a positive stereotype in that you are fetishized instead of denigrated, but you could say the same about the sexualization of Asian women. And some people would frame that as a positive stereotype because we are put on a certain kind of pedestal, but you and I understand that this is terrifying and horrible and unwanted.
K: Do you think we as viewers are complicit in the distribution of these tropes? We’re clicking, we’re showing our tastes, so are studios and the powers to be just responding to our behavior?
F: To a certain extent our taste is always influencing what marketers give us. But as someone who has worked in marketing, a lot of data gets condensed down and erases very important nuances in what people want or need. I don’t like to place the onus on “us” to signal the correct treatment of us.
K: One of the complications of defining “representation economy” is that it’s now spread across so many outlets, not just critical reviews. Social media has become a platform to cancel or support certain types of representation. Gold House has certainly emerged as a major player. Do certain platforms have more “currency” in the representation economy?
F: There's certainly more power in the hands of deliberate players -- the ones who are thinking about growth, paid partnerships, scaling up, and profit. They are very good at taking a strong popular narrative from the community and distilling it into something more marketable – a slogan, an icon, visual identity, consistent tone – such that the everyday person can’t see where the community aspect of it ends and where the ad campaign begins.
I don’t want to demonize people who are trying to make a living, but yesterday I read a heartbreaking article about the founders of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation buying a 20-house mansion for six million dollars with donated funds, and it made me really angry. That is how the representation economy can go wrong. But it doesn’t have to get that far to become problematic. It’s already an issue if marketers are taking something that comes from the hearts of everyday people and selling it back to them for profit.
It’s concerning that marketers assign more power to representation than it can actually accomplish for the community in reality.
Yes, Shang-Chi will make some kids feel proud and make us happy in an abstract way, but Shang-Chi is not going to show up in New York and protect our elders or keep me from getting pushed off the subway platform.
K: In your original tweet, you point out that the scarcity messaging of representation is problematic (“If you don’t support this movie, no more Asian films will be made”). I’ve definitely felt shame, guilt, even fear, when such messaging is employed. It’s very effective at tapping into my child-of-immigrants scarcity mindset.
F: When I hear people use that rhetoric, I can never tell if the speaker buys into what they are saying, or they know how effective it is to guilt people into showing up. Working in marketing opened my eyes to how the sausage is made. You (myself included) become an expert in manipulation, and you employ fear. It’s a powerful emotion to tap into, and there’s a lot of fear in our community, especially with the anti-Asian sentiment putting us in harm’s way.
K: The specific word economy reminds me that the representation economy operates in a capitalist system that historically excludes Asians and folks of color. I’m worried that we aren’t questioning it. Are you?
F: When we talk about the capitalist nature of representation economy, we have to think about how it actively rips us off. My parents used to say we have to work extra hard so that people will employ you. So then when I was young, I thought working hard was my superpower, but when I got older, I realized, no, my superpower is putting up with being ripped off [laughter].
I want more people to think about how the representation economy is an Asian tax rather than an opportunity. I understand how this system works, but it’s not on us to prove our stories are worth telling, our men are worth fucking. When people refuse to acknowledge that, that’s racism.
Sorry I went on a rant!
K: No, this is part of the conversation! So is there an alternative to this system?
F: On top of recognizing that the representation economy within a white supremacy system is a bad deal, people from our community with money need to invest in projects for us with fewer strings attached, without angling for white approval. The end goal cannot be whiteness; it cannot be white adjacency. If you need white people to approve of you to feel like you made it, you’re never going to break free.
I want us to come up with our own systems of recognition and honor and to value them as highly as an Oscar or Pulitzer.
I work for Joysauce which is an Asian American media outlet funded by one person alone. He is not taking on any additional investors; he’s spending his own hard-earned money to do this. I am in charge of the editorial, and I am actively commissioning Asian writers to tell their stories. With all the writers I work with, I say, forget about trying to represent everyone, forget about trying to make this resonate with the maximum number of people. If it doesn’t, if this is your story that a lot of people haven’t heard, that’s great too. I’m happy to make space. I’m here to address stereotypes and break them when it’s appropriate. Spaces like Joysace are valuable and I want there to be more of it.
K: To get the Asian community to really question the system and invest in alternatives, what needs to happen?
F: I think a lot of people from Asian America still believe in Hollywood and still think that’s the quickest and best path forward to make things better on the representation front. I partially grew up in Asia so I have a more transnational lens. People like Michelle Yeoh and Tony Leung have been stars for decades! Hollywood recognition isn’t the gold standard. In order to help more people see that, it’s necessary to have things that, for example, Black and Latinx folks have been doing – organizing their own award shows and creating cultural institutions that celebrate their own excellence. It’s a way of telling the white establishment we don’t need you. Nobody is stopping us from doing our own thing!
K: So that leads me to my final question: what’s your unrealized project?
F: My ultimate dream is a publishing house for Asian American works run by Asian Americans, where writers don’t have to be told that their work is too esoteric or not relatable to white people. When I started freelancing, I was writing for both Asian-specialized and mainstream publications. Once, when I was writing an article for The Atlantic, the editors took out so many interesting details from my earlier drafts. They said, we’re a mainstream publication and we need our readers to be able to follow along. That left an impression on me.
Is it too much to ask the mainstream to work a little harder, to do a little homework to acknowledge there’s more of a reality than the white Anglo-Saxon world?
I want to create that space for myself and for others where the most interesting aspects of our stories aren’t compromised for people who don’t understand or care about how our humanity manifests.
K: How do we keep pushing for this, yes to institutions, but also within the Asian American community? Sometimes I’m afraid to be too outspoken or perceived as “critical” of an Asian American-made work. But if it’s repeating a trope, or just aligning with a mainstream palatable narrative, then maybe it needs to be called out. Maybe someone needs to ask the hard questions about which side of the representation economy it’s on…
F: In the piece I wrote for Medium last year, I said that I respect Asian artists and creators too much not to critique them with the same rigor that I do for everything else I see. For me it’s a form of honor and respect to look at their works with the same sharpness. That’s what a real critic does, that’s how you help them get better. I think a lot of people are still convinced that critique would set us back, or take money away from future investments.They aren’t completely wrong – so that is the dilemma – but I’ve always been a critic. I want to contribute to things being good. We need more of that, and we need spaces to do that in.
Speaking of alternative models of celebrating our stories, applications forr The Care Fund are open until THIS WEDNESDAY May 11!
The Care Fund is a creative aid fund for Asian women creators and storytellers. Our mission is to support MORE stories from our community — yes, that means yours :)
The application is short and sweet — there’s only one open-ended question about the story you want to tell. We intentionally don’t ask for CVs, references, or credentials — you don’t need any of that to get a grant.
🎈WHO SHOULD APPLY?
We accept all mediums (art, music, writing, performance, food experience, event, blog, video, podcast, etc) and creators at all stages, from not started to ready for the spotlight. If you are unsure if you're a fit, email thecosmoscarefund@gmail.com with your idea!
💌 HOW IT WORKS
Grantees are selected by a Community Reading Committee composed of folks from The Cosmos Community. At least 10 people will be funded!!
💸 IF YOU GET FUNDED
📺 You’ll get a special feature in an issue of The Cosmos Care Package and the @jointhecosmos Instagram. You’ll get the funds by end of May!!! No delay!!
💜 There are no strings - use the funding as you wish!
APPLICATIONS ACCEPTED UNTIL THIS WEDNESDAY, MAY 11 AT 11:59 PM ET!
Please share this with anyone you think could benefit from this opportunity :)
COSMOS MERCH SALE!! Tees are $20! Totes are $22!
Because it’s our mf’ing month, everything is 50% off (no code needed) plus FREE SHIPPING on all orders!
May 11 | Cosmos Reading Series No. 3 at Yu and Me Books
6-7 PM at Yu and Me Books
**The Reading Series will be taking a summer break until Fall 2022, so this is the last event for a while!! A few tickets are still available!**
The Community Reading Series for Asian Women Writers is a monthly series for Asian women writers in New York City to share their work and support one another, hosted in partnership with Yu and Me Books! Tickets are by donation ($5 or $10), and all proceeds directly support The Care Fund!
May 15 | THE COSMOS BOOK CLUB presents: May Book Swap
10:30-12:30 PM in Prospect Park
Grab some coffee on your way, bring lots of snacks (since food is a very Asian love language), and come hang with Cosmos community members in the New York area!! Come to talk about books and leave with a new book :)
A reminder! This is a book swap, not a "get rid of stacks of books you don’t want" event!! Please be mindful about the books you decide to bring and share, as I’m the one that has to carry stacks of unwanted books out of the park!!!!
*Exact address in the park will ONLY be sent to those who RSVP below*