Racial discrimination not part of aesthetics

One cannot twice step into the same river, because the world is constantly changing and waters forever moving downstream. However, the more things change, the more they remain the same.

For, a company can twice commit the same wrong. As Dior has done, triggering fierce debate through an advertisement for its makeup product where a model was shown pulling the corners of her eyes upward in a manner that gave her a squint. The brand recalled the image after a storm erupted over discrimination against Asians.

The incident comes not very long after Dior had faced a global backlash in November 2021 for a poster showing a Chinese model with freckled dark skin, gloomy squinted eyes, heavy dark makeup, long artificial nails, Qing armor and other distorted elements.

Dior seems to have a short memory. In less than a year and a half the brand has once again come up with a similar poster and similar model, displaying the same discrimination against Asians.

The only plausible explanation for this could be that Dior cares little about the feelings of Asians. Despite all the anger its earlier poster triggered, they have learned nothing.

Possibly because of the way Asians are portrayed in Western societies, and for far too long, too many brands care about the feelings of every race except this most populous one. Even those who otherwise come across as politically correct, avoiding any racial slur in their content, seem to openly discriminate against Asians, as if their feelings don't matter.

What is needed is for Asians to stand united against any form of discrimination. Dior's second case of being insensitive should serve as a reminder to all brands that have shown Asians in a discriminatory way before to never do it again. Unless they want a taste of Asian anger, like Dior twice has done.