Raya and the Navigation of Asian America as a Mixed-Race Filipino American

Hapa Mag - DECEMBER 9, 2020

By Lauren Lola

“She has escrima sticks?!”

That’s what I wanted to shout out loud in pure joy at 6:20 in the morning on October 21, as I watched the teaser trailer for Disney’s upcoming animated feature, Raya and the Last Dragon, for the first time. This beautiful brown young woman, on a mission of epic proportions, equips herself with two escrima sticks — identical to the pair that I own — that she later uses in combat against a mysterious masked individual. Set in a world inspired by several cultures that make up Southeast Asia, seeing my Filipino heritage represented in our very first look at this highly anticipated feature film has me aching to see it now more than ever — and hopefully in theaters.

It’s fair to say that the presence of Asian characters in Disney films has come in waves, and that reality is particularly poignant in my case, as someone who is mixed-race and Filipino American. When I was younger, I mainly had Mulan to look to for the longest time. While Jasmine from Aladdin is the first Asian female lead in a Disney film, I was only 9 months old when it came out, so I didn’t have the same kind of connection to her like I did with Mulan.

I remember dressing up as Mulan the Halloween after the film came out, and how proud I felt to be going as someone who left home to save her father, and returned having saved her country. Looking at the photo taken of me in costume, I now also see how oblivious I still was about my mixed-race identity and the journey I’d eventually have to take to come to terms with the side of my heritage that wasn’t incorporated into my upbringing. After all, as someone who was brought up in a predominantly white household, it was only around this time I first realized that I am Asian American.

A lot of what I’ve learned about both my Filipino American and mixed-race identities since then has come from getting involved in the Asian American community and becoming an advocate for better representation in the media. I’ve pored through conversations, think pieces, films, and so on about the subject matter, and through all that, I’ve noticed how Filipino Americans and mixed-race Asian Americans often tend to be left out. It seems that the only times where we would be included is if it was for convenience’s sake.

I remember last year when the Los Angeles Times released a list of the 20 best Asian American films of the last 20 years. Out of the top 20 films named, only one of them had a prominent Filipino American presence in Richard Wong’s Colma: The Musical. As for mixed-race representation, the closest I got was Crazy Rich Asians with Henry Golding as the male lead. However, it’s wise to note that while he is mixed-race, his character in the film is not.

As someone who’s part of this intersectionality, I’ve felt the distinction even outside of these media-focused conversations. I’ve been in Filipino American spaces where, at times, I would feel left out due to being one of, if not the only, mixed-race people in the room. In Asian American spaces where it’s mostly East Asian American-focused, I would feel ostracized, both for being mixed-race and also for being one of a few Filipino Americans present. Part of learning about these two identities of mine is recognizing this.

I recall how a few years ago when my second novel came out, I was going to be profiled in an Asian American publication. It suddenly got canceled without a reason given. When I looked to see how their past interviewees were rarely ever Filipino American or mixed-race, I realized in severe dismay how I was excluded on the basis of colorism and just general racism.

Disney, unsurprisingly, didn’t do much in the way of showing characters that were like me. Aside from Mulan, the closest I got were their Pacific Islander characters in Lilo from Lilo & Stitch and a few years ago in Moana. But I’m not Pacific Islander, so I couldn’t claim them as my own.

In the mid-2010s, the media landscape was starting to change. Diversity was — and still is — being demanded at an all-time high in the stories told, as well as who was telling them both in front of and behind the camera. Disney was no exception to that. 

It was around this time that they released Big Hero 6. For the first time since Mulan, an Asian character, Hiro Hamada, was the lead in an animated feature. What made it even more special this time around is that this character marked a first as Disney’s first mixed-race Asian lead, voiced by mixed-race Asian American actor Ryan Potter. I was over the moon when this film was released, and to this day, I treasure it for what it gave to the mixed-race Asian American community.

As much as I love and appreciate this film, I also felt a bit of disconnect. The reason: Hiro is Japanese American. Looking at this film now, it makes sense when you consider the fact that it’s the Japanese American community that has the highest number of interracial marriages out of all the Asian American communities. While Big Hero 6 still means a lot to me, I knew that I wouldn’t be satisfied until my particular Asian heritage could be seen. Yes, there is Pixar’s Float and that Filipino family-centered Christmas advert that Disney UK released last month, but I need to see something longer than either of those.

Now here we are, mere months away from the release of Raya and the Last Dragon. I feel empowered to finally see my heritage portrayed in this already impressive-looking film. When word got out that Kelly Marie Tran is voicing the heroine over the summer, she was immediately hailed as the first Southeast Asian actress to voice a Disney lead. While I am excited to hear her bring this character to life (especially after how she was treated in the Star Wars sequel trilogy), I did find it a little odd that the same wasn’t being said about Filipino Canadian actress Cassie Steele, when she was originally announced to voice Raya last year. Is it because she’s mixed-race? I can’t know for sure, but to me, it was pretty noticeable.

If anything, I think that in itself is a sure sign that Raya shouldn’t be the only Southeast Asian lead in a Disney animated feature film, and the same can be said for Hiro as the only mixed-race Asian lead. They should be the firsts and bridge the way for more heroes of similar identities to come. I look forward to the day when Disney will create a story based around a character who is both Southeast Asian — or more specifically in my case, Filipino — and mixed-race.

Until that day comes, I am looking forward to this film in high anticipation. I’m ready to see my Filipino heritage portrayed in a Disney feature film. While I’m not expecting it to be perfect, I am expecting it to be very special.

*THIS PIECE HAS BEEN EDITED AT THE AUTHOR’S REQUEST

Lauren Lola is a San Francisco Bay Area-based author, freelance writer, playwright, and screenwriter. She is the author of the novels, An Absolute Mind and A Moment’s Worth. She has written plays that have been produced at Bindlestiff Studio in San Francisco, and in 2020, she made her screenwriting debut with the short film, Breath of Writing, from Asiatic Productions. Aside from Hapa Mag, Lauren has also had writing featured on The Nerds of Color, CAAMedia, PBS, YOMYOMF, and other outlets and publications.

You can find Lauren on Twitter and Instagram @akolaurenlola and on her website, www.lolabythebay.wordpress.com.