Racism at the ADSC Preservation Ball:
A Call for Accountability
By Marisa Firebaugh
Guest Contributor, Hollywoodland News
If you believe in “vintage style, not vintage values,” now’s the time to prove it.
What happened at the ADSC Preservation Ball, hosted by the Art Deco Society of California, wasn’t just a costume issue. It was a moment of racial harm and failed accountability. If you’re part of the vintage scene or stand with the AAPI community, this is your call to action.
EDITORIAL UPDATES:
5/09/2025 – Hollywoodland News has now been sent photos of the couple who wore the offending costume (one), (two), (three). The images were taken in a public setting at a public event, where there is no reasonable expectation of privacy. Hollywoodland News received them from the original photographer, who granted permission to publish for editorial purposes. Out of respect for their safety and privacy, the photographer has asked not to be named.
5/10/2025 – The Art Deco Society of California has issued a formal statement and apology as shown in exhibits (four) and (five)
5/11/2025 – Hollywoodland News has received confirmation that the individual who allowed the guests in yellowface to remain at the ADSC Preservation Ball has since been named Chairperson of that event. According to internal sources and public comments, that individual is Laurie Gordon, as referenced here and shown in a public screengrab from the Art Deco Society Facebook Page. Additionally comments continue to be hidden by the Admin of the ADSC Facebook page which is counterproductive to their statement about transparency.
What Happened at the ADSC Preservation Ball
At the recent Art Deco Society of California’s 40th Preservation Ball in Oakland’s gorgeous Paramount Theater, two guests chose to attend this formal event dressed in bathrobes, conical hats, offensive yellowface makeup—and one was even equipped with a gaudy fake braid running the length of their back.
In summary: two white guests came dressed up as the offensive trope of Chinamen or “coolie.”
Additionally, if their decision to wear such inappropriate and offensive costumes wasn’t disturbing enough, what I find more shocking is that they were allowed to stay for the event dressed like this.
Despite multiple guests feeling uncomfortable, and verbal confrontations with these individuals about their inappropriateness, and their lack of following ASDC dress code for this event or the ADSC code of conduct, these two “chinamen” cosplayers were allowed by the ADSC to stay for the Preservation Ball.
Why Yellowface Is Racist and Harmful
As a Chinese American, it was upsetting to me to learn about this racist incident at the ADSC Preservation Ball. It was also offensive and upsetting to other Asian Americans who attended the event.
These costumes were extremely hurtful to the AAPI community.
Choosing to attend the Preservation Ball dressed as they did is problematic because it is a form of yellowface.
Yellowface is the act of someone who is not Asian using makeup, prosthetics, hair styling, wigs, fake mustaches, Asian costumes, discriminatory accents, or any combination of these to portray a stereotype of Asian people.
These stereotypes are almost always offensive and negative.
The History Behind the “Coolie” Stereotype
A common stereotype is the Chinaman or “coolie,” which is characterized as an uneducated, low-class laborer.
The term “coolie” is also a highly offensive term in the AAPI community.
Usually this laborer is portrayed by a conical or rice paddy hat, and a long braid. Often, further insult is added by using buck teeth and a broken English manner of speaking.
This racist trope has colonial roots that include exploitative labor practices, discriminatory laws and policies, and rampant xenophobia perpetuated by eugenics and government-sanctioned propaganda.
Therefore, the “coolie” costumes worn at the ADSC Preservation Ball represent a deeply disturbing history of exclusion and suffering endured by Chinese immigrants throughout the 19th and 20th centuries.
A Legacy of Violence and Exclusion
For example, to augment—and eventually as partial replacement to—the Atlantic slave trade, Chinese laborers were recruited, or just straight up kidnapped.
Many Chinese laborers were sourced from my ancestors’ home province in Guangdong, China.
In the 19th century, Guangdong was experiencing famine, war, and political instability. These desperate men were promised a better life on Gold Mountain (California) and some were forced into oppressive indentured servitude contracts that would bind them to a hostile land that was not—and arguably still is not—built for their inclusion.
There are countless other historical examples of exploitation, cruel working conditions, discrimination, beatings, massacres, and lynchings that Chinese men wearing the conical hat and braid suffered at the hands of white Americans.
They were denied civil rights, citizenship and were so often the butt of racist jokes.
These discriminatory behaviors and policies were created and enforced by private citizens and Americans at the highest levels of government.
What This Moment Feels Like as a Chinese American
As I ruminate on the myriad of degrading ways in which Chinese immigrants were denied access to basic human and civil rights in this country, I am filled with both rage and sorrow.
When I see two white folks dressing up at the ADSC Preservation Ball as a coolie stereotype at a formal event in the year 2025, it makes my blood boil.
Yet underneath that anger, I feel a deep sense of sadness.
Why the ADSC Board’s Response Isn’t Enough
What is most disheartening about this incident is that after a long line of Asian American activists who have fought tooth and nail for inclusion and equality in this country, two white guests can still just walk into the ADSC Preservation Ball wearing costumes that represent a violent, racist history and get away with it.
In addition, the Board’s statement calling this incident merely a case of “appropriative dress” does not do enough to acknowledge the harm that took place. Their statement also doesn’t address how they will ensure incidents like this won’t happen in the future.
What Needs to Happen Next
Therefore, if you are involved with the ADSC, I am inviting all of you to join me in a call to action to hold the Board of the ADSC accountable for allowing this incident of racial harm to take place at their event.
Please reach out to the Board and tell them how disappointed you are at their decision to allow these guests to stay, their so-far lackluster public response and ask the Board what steps they are prepared to take to make the ADSC a more inclusive space.
Here is a sample letter that you are welcome to use and edit to contact the Board.
SAMPLE LETTER TO THE ADSC BOARD
Send to: board@artdecosocietyofcalifornia.org, zelda@artdecosocietyofcalifornia.org, president@artdecosocietyofcalifornia.org
Subject Line: Regarding the Yellowface Incident at the Preservation Ball
Hello Art Deco Society Board,
I am writing to you regarding the yellowface incident that happened at the Preservation Ball. As someone who attends the Society’s events, I need to express my disappointment and share suggestions to ensure your events continue to be a place where a diverse community feels safe attending.
Of course, it is quite shocking to encounter individuals so dedicated to being that outwardly racist, and I empathize with the situation the Board was put in. But letting these individuals into the Preservation Ball, and then having multiple guests confront them about their racist costume, does not create a safe and inclusive event.
Dressed in these racist tropes that did not match the Preservation Ball’s dress code, nor the ADSC Code of Conduct, these individuals should have never been allowed into the event nor allowed to stay. Yellowface is extremely offensive to the Asian community. And while it may not be on par with blackface, it is in the same realm.
I do believe that if someone showed up in blackface, the Board would not have allowed them in. Anyone dressing up as a racist trope of Asians, or any other race, should not be allowed into Art Deco Society events.
[If you attended the Preservation Ball, here is a great place to include your own negative experiences regarding these guests.]
I have read the statement published by the Board, and I find it to be lacking. The statement refers to the guests’ attire as “appropriative dress.” The problem is the yellowface. The problem is dressing up in a “coolie” racist stereotype.
Also, saying that people should not wear items from a culture they are not related to muddies the waters. The issue here is not earnest appreciation of another culture. It is the racist costume.
I would like the Society to issue a public apology that clearly states these individuals were wearing yellowface or dressed up as a racist trope—and that it was wrong to allow them in and to let them stay at the ball.
Please also clarify what steps the Art Deco Society is prepared to take in the future if an incident like this occurs again. Your statement says to report, but not what actions will be taken once someone is reported.
People dressed in racist costumes or tropes should never be allowed to enjoy ADSC events. Incidents like these should not be tolerated if you intend to curate a vintage-loving community that is also inclusive to a diverse membership.
I would love to continue attending Art Deco Society events, but I cannot if the Board will not protect attendees from these types of racist actions.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Optional: Your City / Connection to ADSC]
Want Learn More?
If you would like to learn more about the Chinese immigrant experience, Marisa suggests:
- Asian Americans (a PBS Documentary)
- Ghosts of Gold Mountain by Gordon H. Chang
- On Gold Mountain by Lisa See.
- Made-Up Asians: Yellowface During the Exclusion Era by Esther Kim Lee,
For further reading at Hollywoodland News on the history of whitewashing and the continued struggle of the AAPI community in Hollywood, we recommend :
- Asian Representation in Hollywood: The Fight from Yellowface to Real Roles
- Whitewashing in Classic Films: A Look at Hollywood’s Most Egregious Cases
- The New Hollywood: How Diversity Is Transforming Hollywood
About the Author:
Marisa Firebaugh
Marisa Firebaugh is a Chinese American artist who grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and first stepped into the vintage scene over a decade ago through the Art Deco Society of California. Now based in Seattle, she has long made a point to travel back to the Bay to attend ADSC events. Drawn by a love of history, glamour and community.
Marisa is the creative force behind Cheeky Chop Suey Art, a sailor, voracious eater of dumplings, and proud collector of vintage sparkle and cheongsams.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This is not the first time the Art Deco Society of California (ADSC) has faced public criticism for cultural appropriation and racial insensitivity. In 2020, then-President Heidi Schave shared photos of herself in a feathered headdress at a so-called “politically incorrect Thanksgiving,” mocking Native American dress and gestures. Her dismissive response to community backlash sparked a public petition demanding accountability and reform.
In response, the ADSC released an Anti-Racism and Inclusivity Action Plan in January 2021, promising to diversify its leadership, engage with BIPOC communities, and uphold a code of conduct to prevent harm at events.
And yet, four years later, two white guests were allowed to attend the ADSC Preservation Ball in yellowface, dressed as offensive “coolie” caricatures. The incident described in this article is not a one-time failure. It’s part of a repeated pattern that calls into question the Society’s public commitments to inclusion, safety and respect for marginalized communities.
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