Asian American ‘Love Is Blind’ contestants reveal how race still shapes dating

Patrick Suzuki and Anna Yuan’s experiences on “Love Is Blind Season 9” show how internalized bias and representation continue to influence attraction, even in a show built to eliminate appearances. Suzuki, a Colorado project manager, and Yuan, a California hairstylist, entered the reality dating series hoping to form a connection based on personality rather than looks. Both spoke candidly about dating primarily white partners and how growing up Asian in majority-white spaces shaped their self-image.

During the show’s pod phase, Suzuki and Yuan bonded over shared experiences as Asian Americans navigating dating in predominantly white communities. Both admitted they had “mostly dated white people,” describing it as a reflection of their surroundings rather than personal preference. “It wasn’t because we were choosing to date Caucasian people. It was because that’s our environment,” Suzuki told the Los Angeles Times. He explained that his decision to join the show came after a conversation with his cousin about Asian masculinity and dating representation. “We were already talking about the Asian masculinity thing; we already look at our dating apps and how we’re not getting much traction,” he said.

When Yuan’s time on the show ended, she revealed in an Instagram post the emotional strain of appearing on a global reality show while navigating cultural expectations and public scrutiny. “With all of the online attention, daily DMs, hundreds of comments I have to delete daily … this isn’t the attention I wanted,” she wrote. “I tried it, but ultimately it didn’t work out for me and that’s okay.” Suzuki later described the experience as “transformative,” telling Vulture it pushed him to confront “those internal prejudices” about attraction and race.

After Yuan left, Suzuki developed a connection with Kacie McIntosh, a hair and makeup artist from Colorado who told him that “dating outside her race was not an issue with her or her family.” Their engagement ended shortly after meeting face-to-face. In one of the season’s most discussed moments, McIntosh told him through tears, “They’re [producers] asking me if it’s anything to do with what you look like. I’m just like, ‘No.’” She later told Netflix’s Tudum, “He’s a handsome guy … It was more about him being a stranger in my arms than it was what he looks like.”

Suzuki said the breakup left him confused but introspective. “In the heat of the moment, your emotions are running high; I still fully trusted her,” he was quoted as saying. Despite the disappointment, he reflected that the process helped him “break free from a lot of things” and recognize that confidence mattered more than external validation. “Being able to go into ‘Love Is Blind’ and hide everything and it just be myself, my personality and my confidence … it was magical,” he said.

The experiences of Suzuki and Yuan have struck a chord among Asian American viewers. In her Mamamia column, writer Chelsea Hui argued that the show’s early pod scenes quickly exposed “uncomfortable truths” about internalized racism. She pointed out that when Patrick asked Anna about her “type,” she replied “white guys,” and he responded, “I typically date white girls.” Hui also noted Anna’s admission that she “typically, if I knew some guy was Asian, I would eliminate them,” a statement she said reflected deeper self-rejection in a society shaped by white norms.

On Reddit, viewers discussed the discomfort of watching Suzuki hesitate to reveal his race to McIntosh and hearing Yuan’s confession about avoiding Asian men in prior dating. Some users described those scenes as “triggering” reminders of moments when revealing their ethnicity changed how others treated them. Others noted that growing up in places like Colorado, where few Asians live, often meant internalizing messages from a white-dominant culture. Hui echoed that view, writing that “you begin to internalise the beauty standards and social hierarchies associated with predominantly white spaces.”