This is one of the most ridiculous things I have seen on the interwebs lately. I can't believe one of these cafes opened this summer in Chinatown. Upon walking in the maids say "Welcome home, master!"
And what do the customers have to say? "One burly fitness trainer explained between mouthfuls of crepe: 'I've seen them in anime videos before. The girls are acting so cute. I'm, like, really into that. My girlfriend's also Japanese and really cute."'
Of course the majority (or all) of the clientele are male, but I'm minorly curious about this outrageous cafe and might have to go in (although I don't know if I'd actually spend my money there).
All I can say is wow. This brings me back to the question of whether of not actors and actresses should take on roles for films that they know are playing into stereotypes. In order to take a stand against the entertainment industry, they should not agree to these roles. However, they are then faced with the issue of trying to find another job or role that does not feed into the hegemonic ideologies. The women in this video is taking on the subservient role by addressing the male customers as "Master" and dressing as a maid. She is doing this willingly but does she have the option not work here? Is there an opportunity for her to work somewhere else?
ReplyDeleteI'm going to assume that there is not a "Butler Cafe" nearby haha