The Staring Asians

April 23, 2010 7:50pm

There’s something that’s been bothering me of late, well for the past month, or heck, maybe even as long as I’ve become conscious about it. This thing that is bothering me is none other than being stared at. No, not by other “races” per se, but actually by other Asians. It happened to me just recently today when I went to the dining court. Each time I would get up to get more food, this group of Asian people, both male and female, would collectively stare at me. It was almost like I was wearing something hilarious on my head or I had something stuck on my shirt. This is just one example of the many times I’ve been stared at by Asians.

I used to think that Caucasian people would stare at me a lot, but that thought has long since been dissolved. I don’t go looking around to see if people are staring at me, but it’s just so obvious when a big group of Asians turn their head and stare at you. I’m supposed to not care, but what can I say? It really makes me feel uncomfortable. And so, I’ve developed a few theories as to why I’m being stared at, particularly by Asians.

• Theory 1 “Type Theory” – The Asians stare at me to figure out what kind of Asian I am. It’s been well known around my group of friends that while I am Taiwanese ethnically, I physically look very Korean. From this I can hypothesize that other Asians might be staring at me to figure out what kind of Asian I am exactly.

• Theory 2 “Clothing Theory” – The Asians stare at me because I’m wearing something fashionable. This theory is a big stretch considering I don’t think of myself as a “fashionista.” Sure I do like to look for certain styles of clothing and do pay attention to what I wear, but I do not go way overboard in clothing choice like what you may see from modern Designers on the runway.

• Theory 3 “Hot Theory” – The Asians stare at me because I’m too good-looking and they can’t take their eyes off me. As much as it would be cool if this theory was true, I strongly believe it isn’t. I am in no way arrogant about the way I look, nor do I know what other people see me as.

These three theories are the only possible reasons I could come up with as to why Asians stare at me. I’m also quite sure that I am not the only one who has experienced this “phenomenon.” Whether you are Asian or not, I am very curious if this has ever happened to you as well. Even if it hasn’t happened to you, it would be very interesting to me to know what you think is the reason behind this. It baffles me, and I’m sure it baffles a whole lot of other people as well.

Let me know what you think.