‘Global Seducer’ Website: What Is This Racist Trash?

No more fetishising of women of colour. Not on dating websites, not anywhere.

We all know the Internet is a haven for garbage, but sometimes we find rubbish that’s smellier than the rest. That’s exactly what happened with a website called ‘Global Seducer’. Is this just racist trash, or a sign of something darker — the continuing fetishisation of women of colour simply because of they are considered ‘exotic’ by Western sensibilities?

Global Seducer? More Like Global Trash

Global Seducer is a website designed to help men who have the singular goal of dating internationally. It’s got articles like ‘Why Dating Foreign Women is Dangerous’, explaining why sleeping with as many foreign women as possible is the goal, but you don’t want to get attached. It lists reasons like unfaultable standards and even falling in love as negatives — dangers to be avoided in their quest to sleep with as many women as possible.

This goes beyond just the typical misogynistic trash, though.

Fetishisation Isn’t Normal

Now, we’ve got no problem with casual sex — sex between consenting adults is obviously no-one’s business but theirs.

The problem comes from the regular fetishisation of women of colour — people looking for sex with women they consider exotic.

This isn’t a new thing. Women have been objectified based on their looks for centuries. Black women are prized for their bodies, which are perceived as full-figured, while Asian women are stereotyped as the perfect spouse — silent and obedient.

Men often don’t see this as a problem. They see this fetishisation as a compliment or an appreciation of the woman’s culture. They don’t see it as it truly is — an objectification of women. This perpetuates the culture of seeing and treating women as objects, as things to be owned, used and then discarded when the novelty has worn off.

You might hear the men argue they’re complimenting women by choosing to sleep only with women of a certain ethnicity. This is a justification for this negative behaviour, and only helps to normalize the fetishisation of women because of their ethnicity.

This is not normal behaviour. It’s not a compliment, and it’s not an appreciation of anyone’s culture.

Ending the Stereotypes

First, this has nothing to do with interracial couples who are in happy and healthy relationships. Race has nothing to do with love. This is specifically targeted at men who are looking for sexual encounters with women of a specific race.

The men who are looking for a woman of a specific ethnicity aren’t generally looking for a romantic partner. They’re looking for a sexual object.

While this particular problem is generally experienced by women, the problem is systemic. Its inherent root cause is the type of racial stereotypes that are so prolific all over the world today. It can also apply to women looking to sleep with black men because they’re supposed to be well-endowed; this is only one example of this widespread systemic sexual racism.

There are dating sites and apps dedicated specifically to facilitate this kind of sexual encounter. Targeting the men looking for women of colour isn’t going to stop the practice — they’re only the symptom. Instead, we have to work on countering the racist system that allows and encourages this kind of mindset.

Start small, with your own group of friends and family. Contrary to popular belief, you can oppose racism without sounding like overbearing, if that’s something you’re worried about. Simply don’t accept racist jokes or statements made by those around you. By being the first to speak up, you can encourage others around you to do the same.

With something enormous like racism, we can’t hope to tackle all of it it head-on as individuals. Instead, we have to be pebbles in a pond – the more pebbles we drop in one at a time, the further the ripples go. Be the first pebble, and others will follow you in.

The common saying is that you should be the change you wish to see in the world. When it comes to racial fetishisation, we can start to be that change. Women aren’t entirely innocent here, though they are the ones most often targeted by this kind of deplorable behaviour. We all need to start undermining the foundation of systemic racism that allows and encourages this kind of behaviour.

Main photo: Logan Browning as Samantha White in ‘Dear White People’, Netflix