So while some people do go to Korean spas in hopes of connecting with Asian men specifically, the larger structures of sexual racism are still prevalent here, and that’s not very surprising, unfortunately. It also adds to a ton of research on the visibility of white cis men in queer spaces, within all sorts of media representation, etc. You would think some of the normative racial politics might be subverted or challenged in some way, instead of reinforced. What makes it unique is that a Korean spa is a racially marked space. I’m not trying to pass off this research as a completely novel thing, because it’s not - there’s a lot of research on gay men’s cruising. So in a sense, these tensions reinforce problematic aspects of desire. They can say they’re not going to attempt to hook up with Asian men because it’s a bigger risk - all to the detriment of Asian men who are trying to cruise in a Korean spa. And because of that, other gay men can then act like they’re not looking to cruise. Yeah, Asian men have a particular difficulty in cruising this space, because they’re kind of implicitly associated with it being a Asian space.
One commenter in your article even notes, “If hamburgers are what people want and you make kimchi, you better fucking learn how to make hamburgers!” It’s a really weird tension because the liminal nature of sexual activity in these spaces gets used in some problematic ways that ultimately exclude some folks from being able to participate as much as others, too.Įxactly - you talk about sexual racism in K-spa cruising, including how Asian men need to hit different physical standards (“tall,” “square-jawed” or “hung”) to be deemed as attractive as a white cis man. It wouldn’t be the same if it was allowed, which is why it’s so desirable for men who participate there instead of somewhere like a gay bathhouse. Without heterosexuality as the norm, wouldn’t be sexy - it wouldn’t exist. I think it’s part of a larger existential question that needs to be addressed in queer politics, which is: What is queerness outside of heterosexuality? In the case of K-spas, I talk about how queerness in this space emerges because of heteronormativity. I recently spoke to Ota to learn more about why K-spas have become a unique queer space, the tensions and racism within them and what it means to be radically gay in an increasingly tolerant world. And that’s what K-spas provide for these men,” Ota explains. Whereas queer heterotopias are these rebellious spaces, where we can push back on expectations and explore more. “There are forms of queer homonormativity, which is essentially these prescriptive, respective, allowable ways of being queer in general society. Ota’s research digs into how and why men find queer joy in a space designed for heterosexual norms, looking into the experience of the online K-spa cruising community.
It’s meant to describe spaces that allow people to experiment with sexual identity, desires and expressions in ways that push back against the boundaries of what’s possible in a heteronormative society. The term “queer heterotopia” comes from the scholar and activist Angela Jones. And they’re the subject of new research from Kendall Ota, a graduate student at the University of California, Santa Barbara, whose paper “ Queer Heterotopias in ‘Straight(ish)’ Spaces: The Case of Korean Spas” was published in August. There are about 10 Korean spas in L.A.’s Koreatown, the largest such community in the nation, but many more across Southern California and other U.S. The risks you take: Am I going to get caught? Am I going to be rejected? How far can I go? It’s all very primal, how we satisfy this carnal pleasure because we can, because we’re men.” “But discretion is the name of the game so follow the rules, yeah? Cruising is amazing, isn’t it? The anonymity of it all.
“They’re almost spiritual,” another man comments about K-spas.
The latter feature hot tubs and wet saunas, and are designed for full nudity - there are often rules against wearing underwear or bathing trunks.
The former are usually communal dry steam rooms and recreational areas to nap and relax. A Korean spa is a legitimate ethnic business in which individuals, couples and families enter for a small fee, then congregate in a mix of shared and gender-segregated spaces. “It could be interpreted totally innocently, but if the other guy responds by adjusting himself right after you do, that’s kind of a signal to make more obvious ‘adjustments,’” writes one anonymous man in a forum thread.Ī Korean spa, after all, isn’t the same thing as a gay bathhouse or a private sex club, which feature coded entries, membership requirements and a more explicit appetite for sex.
So is making your dick visible, perhaps with a slight adjusting of the region. Subtlety is the name of the game when it comes to cruising at a Korean spa.