ABSTRACT
How do I begin describing myself so that anyone could understand where my politics were coming from? My experience in England has led me to the conclusion that most people are unable to see me whole. That is-if you’re a lesbian you’re white, and if you’re Chinese you’re exotic, passive, inscrutable, and the whole pack of racist stereotypes which I’m sure you could fill a page with without any help from me. As a result, I have spent many early years in this country perfecting what I call my chameleon act: fitting into whatever environment I found myself in; making myself, my Chinese self, invisible in order to avoid hostility. However, I had already begun the process, long before coming over, of minimizing and dismissing my cultural identity.
