Gracie

“They made it illegal to speak Korean. You could be sentenced to death for speaking it. And do you know what your grandmother’s mother did to avoid being subjected to speaking Japanese at school? She sliced off part of her own tongue.”
― Elisa Shua Dusapin, The Pachinko Parlour

“When Korea was divided, we were still nationals of a unified Korea. It was called Choson. At separation, the Japanese government gave us permission to keep our Korean identity, but we had to choose between North and South. Many people chose the North, because of their family or because they considered the North more in line with our country’s traditions. There was no way of knowing how things would turn out. Your grandmother and I chose the South because we were from Seoul. That was the only reason. We knew nothing about any of the rest of it. Political questions meant nothing to us, the Cold War, Russia, the United States. Koreans who live in Japan have never known North and South Korea. We are all people of Choson. People from a country that no longer exists.”
― Elisa Shua Dusapin, The Pachinko Parlour

“I so desperately craved men’s validation that I accepted it even when it came wrapped in disrespect. I was those girls in that room, waiting, trading my body and measuring my self-worth in a value system that revolves around men and their desire.”
― Emily Ratajkowski, My Body

“There's some satisfaction in performing, reading the script, wearing the costume, after all. And on the other side of the satisfaction there is rage. The deep and exhausting rage of having fallen for a scam. Because when all is said and done, being beautiful only offers you a temporary haven. A pedestal to fall from.”
― Celine Saintclare, Sugar, Baby