Haeyeon Choi | 26 | Majored in Integrated Design Fashion | Lives in San Francisco
What gender you identify with?
Definitely female. Girls are amazing. Being a girl is fantastic. I fully represent being a girl.
What is it that you like about being female?
The most important and most beautiful thing about being a girl is female friendship. Of course, you have your guy friends – and that’s great! – but your girl friends are just forever. I love girl power. I’m a super huge feminist. I believe us girls we should always be supporting each other.
What is your definition of a ‘super huge feminist’?
Let’s put it this way: I love art, music, movies and everything that defines us today. But – but I have very conservative Korean parents. They were born and raised in Korea whereas I was raised in California with my dad most of the time travelling and doing a lot of business in Korea. So we also spent a lot of time there. In Korea men are considered gods. Parents still only want sons. I have an older brother and my dad would always try to push him to be successful and investing time and money in him.
No investment in you?
My father would tell me: “You understand, right, ‘cause you are a girl”. Ever since I was little I was raised that way. When I told my dad I wanted to study arts related stuff he did not support me at all.
Have you forgiven him?
I moved away from home and went to arts school anyways. I’ve accepted that he’s never going to change. So yes, being a feminist means to me – above all – that girls und boys should be raised equally – with the same amount of love and opportunities given to them.
Where is your hair?
Korean girls are considered pretty only with long hair. But I always had short hair even though my mum wished for me to grow it. So I was constantly fighting. I was a huge tomboy and would hang out with my brother and his friends playing video games as I always wanted to do the things guys around me did. I guess I was being rebellious and trying to prove something. Growing up I was really into punk. I was obsessed with VivienneWestwood and the SexPistols. TheCure, JoyDivision and the whole UK subculture.
I will forever be a tomboy.