In this op-ed, writer Kaila Yu, the author of Fetishized: A Reckoning with Yellow Fever, Feminism, and Beauty, argues that Love Island USA season 7’s apparent removal of Cierra Ortega due to her past usage of an anti-Asian slur is exposing how much of the general public is still dismissive of anti-Asian hate.
When Love Island USA season 7 contestant Cierra Ortega, a 25-year-old content creator, was apparently kicked off the show for using an Asian slur, I wasn’t shocked. What did shock me was the reaction I received after posting about the controversy online: non-Asians flooded my comments, arguing that the word she used isn’t a slur at all.
Ortega was removed from the dating show on July 6, with the series’ narrator sharing via voiceover that she “left the villa due to a personal situation.” Outside of the villa, a petition had been made to kick her off of the show, after social media posts made by Ortega in 2015 and 2023 using an anti-Chinese slur to describe her eyes had resurfaced. In the 2023 post, an Instagram Story, Ortega used the slur while explaining her decision to get Botox, apparently in an attempt to help widen her eyes at certain times.
After the Botox post, followers seemed to point out the racism according to other screenshots, but Ortega didn’t seem to understand the weight of using the word. One Reddit user posted a screenshot of what appeared to be a private message to Ortega sometime in 2024 after what seemed to be another use of the slur, where they wrote: “Ooo girl ‘c****y’ is so derogatory 🥴,” along with a screenshot from Wikipedia explaining the slur’s history. Ortega’s reply was, “Oh man, thankfully that’s not how I used it.”
“C****y” is never a harmless word — it is derived from “c***k,” a slur that’s been used against Chinese people and other Asian communities for decades that refers to East Asian features. It’s a demeaning word, one meant to make clear that features like mine are less desirable.
I know exactly how much that word cuts. I grew up with a deep insecurity about my own eyes, so much so that I eventually underwent double eyelid surgery, one of the most common cosmetic surgeries for East Asians. Growing up, I felt as though Asians were seen as nerdy model minorities. Our eyes were never celebrated like the wide, eyelash-framed eyes of my non-Asian friends. I felt deeply insecure about my smaller eyes and wanted my eyes to be huge, almost like anime eyes. I believed that if I sliced my eyelids, I’d transform into someone different, someone less shy or dull, someone unlike the stereotypes. So, I got double eyelid surgery.
On July 6, the same night Ortega left the villa, her family issued a statement that didn’t outright refute the legitimacy of the posts. On the evening of July 9, Ortega posted a video addressing the controversy to her social media pages — and I found her apology to be extremely genuine. She said that “intent doesn’t excuse ignorance” and that “this is not an apology video, it is an accountability video.”
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In the video, she says she immediately deleted one of the offending posts after a follower informed her about the word, and she removed it from her vocabulary. I’m disturbed to hear that she’s now receiving death threats and that her family and loved ones are being harassed online and even reported to ICE. This is absolutely unacceptable. Like she says, we shouldn’t be “fighting hate with hate.” If someone is willing to learn, we should call them in after they make a mistake. This is a great opportunity to educate a large portion of the population who may not have known that this word is a slur — and based on the discussion around Ortega’s use of the slur, the scandal has revealed to me just how many people still refuse to accept or understand the deeply-rooted racism attached to the word.
One viral post on Threads, which has since been deleted, perfectly summed up the gaslighting so many Asians face. “Since WHEN was ‘c****y’ a racial slur? It’s like saying ‘coily hair’ or ‘doe eyes.’ At worst, it’s like saying ‘nappy hair’… which is not a slur.” After Asian commenters attempted to explain why the word is deeply offensive, the poster shut them down with lines like: “I have grown up in culturally diverse environments and never in my life have I heard this sentiment” and “Don’t demonize Cierra for using a word she had no clue was improper.” The account the post was made from has since been deactivated. This is not the only such post. Across social media, many have made light of Ortega’s use of the slur. Some claim it’s not offensive in the first place, while others say it’s not an offense worthy of removal from a reality show.
Anti-Asian hate has long been diminished, putting us in an unwinnable Oppression Olympics that seems to tell us our pain doesn’t count. It’s a prime example of the model minority myth, in which Asian-Americans are seen as the “good” minority, one that’s seen relative success in a white-dominated country. But this idea minimizes the long-increasing hate we do face, and the very real racism that impacts our daily lives.
Ortega’s removal from Love Island USA season 7 was a significant blow to the cast, as she was part of several major storylines and a “closed-off” couple. Many online had called for her removal, particularly advocating for the same accountability they’d seen earlier in the season when another contestant, Yulissa Escobar, was also removed for videos that surfaced of her using the N-word. But when Escobar vanished from the show, there was little to no backlash, no one questioning whether her use of a racial slur was offensive. Peacock declined to comment after Teen Vogue reached out for insight on Ortega’s exit from the series.
Watching this scandal play out has most certainly dug up some old wounds, reminding me of the insecurity that led me to cut into my face in the first place. I do not regret my surgery. For years, I enjoyed how my eyes looked wider; but over time, they’ve naturally settled closer to their original shape. I could get them redone, but I won’t. These days, I love my eyes, but only because of my eyelash extensions. Without them, the old insecurity creeps back in.
I drive almost two hours round-trip twice a month to get the fullest, heaviest extensions possible. Just last week, my lash technician told me that my natural lashes were so thin and sparse now that I should take a break from extensions and let them rest. It wasn’t even a consideration for me. Instead, I went home and ordered lash serums and hair growth pills. I’m still a work in progress, and probably always will be, as I continue to unlearn racist beauty standards that have been embedded in my culture since I was young. It stung to read Ortega’s posts, which effectively confirmed to me that my eyes and their shape were not desirable.
So when people say “c****y” is no big deal, I want them to understand the hateful history behind it. For decades, “c***k” has been used in tandem with violence against Asian communities, particularly the Chinese community. It even made a resurgence in 2020 after the emergence of COVID-19, in which anti-Asian hate escalated after President Donald Trump’s anti-Chinese rhetoric.
Words matter — and just because they don’t hurt your community, doesn’t make mine invisible.
