compadre,
if i injected my flesh with silicon
did hundreds of situps a day
wore lacey push-up bras
got surgery to correct my Asian single-eyelid
wore subtle lipstick, concealer, and gloss
made my gaze bruised with shadow and mascara
wore dainty stiletto heels and flippy skirts
got some hips
would you buy me then?
hermano,
does market follow demand, or demand follow market?
i want to be the white girls of your wet dreams with million-dollar
prosthetic bodies, $40,000 makeovers, features imprinted on your cock
by billion-dollar industries
I am beautiful in my mind
until you choose them instead
slap my ugliness to my face
and you tell me you don’t understand this kind of competition!
i didn’t write the rules
of this game you don’t recognize
you just follow the market, the ads, the art, the enterprise. . . .
shaping the sadness of my sickness
Sisters, come together and incite
refugees of false dreams to unite.
Huibin Amee Chew is active in anti-imperialist, feminist, and immigrant rights activism in Boston. She can be reached at <hachew@gmail.com>.