Eye of the Beholder?

‘Traditionally a procedure sought only by patients with excess eyelid skin or those hoping to lessen signs of aging,
eyelid surgery or Blepharoplasty has become popular among young Asian American women and accepted as
just another cosmetic choice in an array of many — like tinting your eyelashes or straightening your teeth.
Approximately half of Asians are born with eyelids that are naturally smooth and uninterrupted by a crease in the skin. Asian patients
seek out blepharoplasties to create or exaggerate a crease in their eyelids commonly referred to as “double eyelids.” … Critics of eyelid surgery believe it is a cosmetic cop-out for Asian Americans who want to downplay their race,
since all Caucasians and most non-Asians are born with the crease. Still others argue personal confidence is the issue, since an estimated
fifty percent of Asians are also born with the eyelid fold. But Asians have been characterized by their eyes more than any other feature by
Westerners (think Fu Manchu-style caricatures and slant-eye miming in the schoolyard.) This deep-rooted, racist cultural imagery makes
it somewhat impossible not to see the widespread effort to alter this trait as a reaction. as well as a statement about the effects of
Westernization on Asian Americans.’ Wiretap