Whitewashing of Asian Characters

Recently, Daniel Dae Kim left his role on Hawaii Five-O due to a salary depute. Kim stated that he wasn't getting paid evenly to other white actors on the show, even though his character is one of the main characters. Kim is known for bringing Asian representation to the screen and advocating for diversity beyond stereotypical roles. “Inclusion and diversity are all very popular buzzwords, and extremely important, but what I challenge everyone in this room to do is move beyond these notions of simply being included, but to lead,” Kim said. This quote is really important because it shows that just having side kicks and stereotypical roles with diverse characters isn't enough. 

Whitewashing is something that many people have been talking about in the media recently. It is good that this issue is getting attention and more producers and directors are realizing their error and beginning to change casting decisions. However, it is still widely popular to whitewash Asian representation out of the media. It's important that people with lived experience depict people with the same identity. Our society is moving towards being more inclusive in the media but there is still a lot of work to be done.