In an exclusive Out clip, the show's visit to Japan shows the heartbreaking results of discrimination.
Mey RudeQueer Eye: We’re in Japan!doesn’t premiere on Netflix until November 1st, and it’s already got us in full on ugly-cry mode. In a new, exclusive clip from the upcoming season, we get to see one of our new heroes, Kan, a 27-year-old gay man, talking to Karamo Brown about the struggles of being Japanese and gay.
In the tear-filled teaser, Kan, who’s goals on the show are to become “out and proud” and introduce his family to his boyfriend, opens up about racism that he’s faced while trying to date. “When I was in the gay community in England, they’ve said that they hate Asians,” he says. “Or on dating apps, it may say ‘no Asians.’”
“It’s just a simple phrase,” he says through tears, “but after hearing that, I felt like everything I’d built crumbled at that moment.” If your heart isn’t already broken for Kan, get ready. When he turned to the Japanese community for support, Kan says they called him “okama,” a Japanese slur for gay men, particularly feminine or flamboyant ones.
Thankfully, Brown is on hand, as well as gorgeous makeup artist and Buddhist monk Kodo Nishimura, to help him do the emotional work of building himself back up. “You don’t deserve to experience that,” Brown tells Kan in the clip. “Those things you’re saying? I’ve heard too, about my dark skin. They say it’s too dark.”
“I still have to tell myself, ‘Someone may not like me, but I like myself. I love myself,’” he adds before telling him that the things that make him unique are gifts, “and when you start to accept those gifts is when you start to realize that no matter where you are in the world, you can be happy.”
The clip ends with the three holding hands as the culture expert says, “Look down at this, you see this? You’re not alone.” Wow, this season is going to destroy my heart.
Queer Eye: We’re in Japan! premieres on Netflix November 1st.
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