When
she competed as Miss World Canada, Anastasia Lin’s talents were telling the
truth and exposing injustice (she also plays piano). However, the leadership of
her pageant did not share her talents. Since Lin criticized the Chinese government’s
oppression of Tibet and Falun Gong practitioners, the Communist Party was
determined to silence her—and the Miss World organization was happy to serve as
their muzzle. Yet, the would-be censors were not match for Lin’s guts and grace.
The rest of the Western world should heed the events documented in Theresa
Kowall-Shipp’s Badass Beauty Queen: The
Anastasia Lin Story (trailer
here),
which screens during the 2018 Asian American International Film Festival in New
York.
They
have some cool beauty queens in Canada, but some absolutely rotten pageants.
One of Lin’s predecessors was Miss World Canada 2003 Nazanin Afshin-Jam, who
used her platform to speak out against Iranian human rights abuses and encouraged
Lin to compete. On her second attempt, Lin won the Canadian crown, which was
initially reported widely in China. Then they realized the beauty queen was in
the habit of thinking for herself.
When
Lin’s mother separated from her father, she took her daughter to Canada for the
superior educational opportunities it offered. At that time, she largely
believed Party propaganda, but when she read uncensored accounts of the Tiananmen
Square massacre and the oppression of the Falun Gong, it opened her eyes. However,
as she began raising human rights issues, the Party used her captive father in
their attempts to control and punish her.
The
Chinese government’s behavior towards Lin (a Canadian citizen) and her Chinese
family is deplorable, but not the least bit surprising. However, what is
shocking is the extent to which the Miss World pageant (chartered in the UK)
fell in line behind their Chinese masters. When the Chinese government refused
her entry to Sanya to compete in the global Miss World pageant, the
organization never uttered a peep. When they supposedly let her compete in the
finals the following year, the categorically refused her permission to speak to
the media, even though plenty of her competitors were allowed to do interviews.
Yet, in each case, the attempts to silence and bully Lin came back on China and
the Miss World pageant, like a bad PR boomerang.
Thanks
to her friends, Lin was able to capture an awful lot of the intimidation as it
happened. It is particularly eye-opening to watch the Miss World officials
betray the principles of free speech for the thirty pieces of silver they receive
from their Chinese sponsors. Frankly, they are worse then prostitutes, who
merely rent out their bodies. The Miss World pageant sold out our freedoms
along with their dignity—and they sold them cheap (Miss World officials
declined the filmmakers’ interview requests, presumably because they have
nothing to say for themselves).
Indeed,
many of the experts interviewed in the film argue Lin’s story is particularly important
because it illustrates the international implications of China’s oppressive
attempts to silence critics. Lin is a Canadian citizen, but they targeted her
and her family because she exercised her Canadian right to free speech.
In
many ways, Badass Beauty Queen is a
timely wake-up call regarding the threat China poses to free society, but it is
also a highly intimate and watchable film. Kowall-Shipp shrewdly recognized the
personable, down-to-earth Lin was the film’s strongest asset, so she let her
personality shine through loud and clear. It seems inconceivable that the Miss
World organization would try so hard to keep her away from cameras and
microphones, but such is the extent of their craven corruption.
This
is an important film that will make you deeply concerned and maybe even a
little afraid of China’s ability to reach its critics in the West. Yet, it will
also make you want to hang out with Lin, who despite all she has been through,
never takes herself too seriously. Very highly recommended, Badass Beauty Queen screens Saturday
(7/28) at the Village East, with a post-screening Q&A scheduled with Lin
herself, as part of this year’s AAIFF.