It’s Wasia summer

My identity just became a meme.

It takes one to know one. Once you clock a Wasian in the wild, it’s like spotting a family resemblance across continents—cousins in different cities, siblings in different industries, all faintly echoing each other. A cheekbone here, a cadence there, unnervingly good chopstick skills, suspiciously shared taste. You start to think, wait… are we all kind of related?

“Wasian” means white and Asian or, per the chronically online, someone from The Republic of Wasia. It sounds like simple math, but the reality has always been more complicated. For a long time, it wasn’t exactly flattering as it came with assumptions from both sides—that your mom had been “rescued” by a white man (a chip my mom still carries), that you rode elephants to school; on the other, that you couldn’t handle “real” spicy food, that you were too white for it. Not one thing, not the other.

Remember that meme? “White people treat me like I’m Asian, Asian people treat me like I’m white.” Not no.

But there’s a flip side. Learning how to code-switch, adapt, and read the room comes early. To varying degrees, a couple of languages enter the mix. Moving between worlds becomes second nature. Taste develops quickly—cooking, ordering, eating (there’s no one more fun to dine out with than your Wasian bestie). And, fine, we’re usually kinda cute, I guess—sorry to the chopped members of the Wasia community.

Last week, Laufey dropped the video for “Madwoman,” and it felt like a Wasia baddie roll call. Alongside her were Hudson Williams, Alysa Liu, KATSEYE’s Megan Skiendiel, and Lola Tung, with cameos from Havana Rose Liu and Chase Sui Wonders. Elsewhere, Olivia Rodrigo continues her reign with “Drop Dead,” Charles Melton is on the new season of Beef and the digital cover of i-D, Wasia Project’s Will Gao and Olivia Hardy are working on a new album (we bonded over Sichuan recently), and a whole lineage of Wasian icons—Devon Aoki, Keanu Reeves, Vanessa Hudgens—suddenly feel more legible.

In short, welcome to Wasia.

At i-D, four of us are Wasian—me, fashion editor Ch’lita, associate editor Flora, and graphic designer Adrian. So I asked everyone a few questions and looped in Ben, an honorary member of the team and an agent at Total in Paris.

What’s your mix / background?

Flora: White American mom, Filipino dad. Wasian unicorn.

Ch’lita: Thai and New Zealand.

Adrian: Filipino dad, Jewish mom.

Ben: Chinese dad, Ashkenazi mom.

Alex: Thai mom, British dad.

How did you first become aware of being Wasian?

Flora: Around age 8, when I realized my cousins had only Asian grandparents.

Ch’lita: Going to Thailand and everyone fully gagging over me. It’s a whole thing there.

Adrian: When another kid called me Mexican.

Alex: I grew up in Southeast Asia, then visited the UK and was like, “Wait… I’m not this either.”

What race do people most often mistake you for?

Flora: Latina, sometimes Italian if I’m having a good day.

Ch’lita: Latinx.

Adrian: Any Latin American country pretty much.

Ben: Latino during July and August… it’s like my vacation ROI.

Alex: Latinx or whatever’s geographically convenient.

The best thing about being Wasian?

Flora: White-parent freedom, Asian-parent food.

Ch’lita: My positioning in the sexual marketplace.

Adrian: Ambiguity.

Ben: Making white-people food with Asian flavors. NYT Cooking wishes...

Alex: The ability to clock a menu instantly.

Worst thing?

Flora: The feeling of disconnect between parts of myself.

Ch’lita: I get sunburnt like a white person.

Adrian: Ambiguity.

Ben: One hooded eye, one non-hooded eye.

Alex: Being called “cute” when I’m trying to be hot.

Who’s your fave “honorary Wasian?”

Flora: Miranda Cosgrove.

Ch’lita: Bobby Gillespie.

Adrian: Björk.

Ben: My friend Carla. Thought she was Wasian for months—turns out she’s Jamaican and Danish.

Alex: Mikey Madison. Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

Best food spot in the city you live in?

Flora: The Sandwich Board. i-D lunch staple. (New York)

Ch’lita: The Sichuan on Deliveroo. I only crave it when I’m hungover, which is… often. (London)

Adrian: Grill 21. (New York)

Ben: Deluxe Green Bo in NYC dumplings and sesame noodles, cash only, probably will end up sharing a table with an old Chinese couple or some tri-state tourists wearing Stranger Things merch. Mega. (New York)

Alex: The ultimate is Imperial Treasure. (London)

Best food spot in the Asian place you’re connected to?

Flora: Pineapple buns in my parents’ fishing town in Hong Kong. I think about them constantly.

Ch’lita: A grilled chicken and somtum spot off the highway near the zoo in Khon Kaen. Green walls. No idea what it’s called. I think about it often.

Adrian: Jollibee.

Ben: In Paris, I eat udon religiously. Sanukiya for the vibe, Kunitoraya if I’m trying to impress a non-Asian during fashion week.

Alex: Bangkok: Potong, Saolé, Charmgang. Chiang Mai: Mae Manee for khao soi, Three Kings for khao man gai. I’m so hungry.

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Aside from the Wasia invasion… Here’s some thoughts on fashion…

• I just bought a new cardigan from Jake’s—a brown-and-white Fair Isle knit with a leopard hood—and I haven’t taken it off since.

• The cruise shows are creeping up fast. I’ll be in Biarritz for Chanel next week, then Dior heads to LA, and Gucci lands in New York (dying to see what Demna does next tbh).

• Steff’s already called it: romo-boho is next, and if A Current Affair is anything to go by, it’s already happening.

• One for the Versace (and sneaker) heads. In Tokyo on April 2, a crowd turned out for the TAI-CHI Sakura—a slick rework of Onitsuka Tiger’s classic trainer, made in Tottori, Japan, where precision meets pure Versace energy. No notes. We all need a pair.

• i-D launches its first-ever Beauty Zine with Tyla on the cover. Gagged!

• I need a new shorts silhouette/vibe for summer. Send ideas!

• Not exactly fashion, but very Wasia-coded: I went to Hausu recently—super fab, small plates with big Asian-fusion flavors. Don’t skip the ox heart ragu on toast or the ex-dairy sirloin.

• Tomatinis at the newly refurbished La Petite Maison in London are just as fab. The classic LPM warm prawns with olive oil, too.