So Asians specifically taiwanese in western countries are the only ones allowed to sell bubble tea products?
I’m south east Asian myself, Filipino to be specific, and I see a lot of bubble tea products and stores here. While I don’t know the ethnicity of the owners of these stores but I would guess 90% are Filipinos. Are we culturally appropriating the product?
This is like when Disney promoted the director of the Eternals, Chloé Zhao, as a woman of color.
Which, technically might be true, in the American context. Except that she’s Han Chinese, from China, and the daughter of a Chinese steel magnet and private equity investor.
I don’t think billionaire heiress was the image that came to mind when people heard the Disney PR machine pat themselves on the back for hiring a woman of color director.
Just like I don’t think this is what the concept of cultural appropriation was meant to address.
Should a bunch of Hanks and Jimmy-Rays start yelling about how Chinese restaurants, in China, have changed American cuisine to better suit the local market? Is that appropriating American culture?
Personally, I think that’s just as dumb as what Mr. Liu is claiming.