HeyClaire/Claire Marshall - Part 3

[Alexbakerfield_18]

I agree that Claire thrives from feeling like a special snowflake, but it's indisputable that she has a lot of unresolved issues due to her upbringing. Going back to Korea could either give her some closure or connection (I would hope). I'm surprised that she hasn't been compared to another Youtuber on here yet but she is very much like Hollyannaeree who is also a Korean adoptee with many issues of her own.

This is completely off topic but this is why I get super annoyed when people who adopt children from foreign countries don’t even bother to show the child their cultural roots. Like yes I get it. You love the child unconditionally and you probably gave him/her a better life than they’ll have at the orphanage or with their biological family but it’s so important to expose the child to their roots. Because from the amount of Korean adoptees that’s I’ve met and seen, they all have this sort of identity problem. Majority I’ve noticed are adopted by white families and like you mentioned they always have this outcast mentality. They’ve grown up being the outcast that they become used to it and develop that special snowflake mentality. And it’s esepcially weird in Claire’s situation considering she only ever mentioned her mom being family. No mention of a dad (which I’ll assume isn’t in the picture) or aunts/uncles. Nothing. So it seems like her mom raised Claire completely by herself. Which seems super isolating. Idk that’s just my two cents and I might be extremely bias since I was raised in a large family nor was I adopted.

[allsaints]

She’s mentioned in a previous video I can’t remember, that she was left at an orphanage. So she has no idea of her family background other than being Korean. And I’m Korean myself but from the way she portrays herself you can tell she wants nothing to do with her culture. She mentioned nothing about it, and tries very hard to be this weird poster girl for Urban Outfitter from her fashion and makeup which doesn’t work. I’ve never seen her wear a hanbok or even make an effort to learn the language. At least with Jenn from clothesencounter, she goes backs to her roots(even though milking her culture for quick buck like her clothing brand isn’t good) but regardless you can tell she does appreciate her cultural background. The only time I’ve even remotely seen Claire do anything relating her culture was that bibimbap video but I can tell she has never grown up with any knowledge of her culture considering how badly she was butchering pronouncing the Korean ingredients.

I noticed the same . I guess at least she has/d Asian friends. But she's even the only Asian at gleam.,thought shed go with an agency that had more diversity

[allsaints]

I agree that Claire thrives from feeling like a special snowflake, but it's indisputable that she has a lot of unresolved issues due to her upbringing. Going back to Korea could either give her some closure or connection (I would hope). I'm surprised that she hasn't been compared to another Youtuber on here yet but she is very much like Hollyannaeree who is also a Korean adoptee with many issues of her own.

This is completely off topic but this is why I get super annoyed when people who adopt children from foreign countries don’t even bother to show the child their cultural roots. Like yes I get it. You love the child unconditionally and you probably gave him/her a better life than they’ll have at the orphanage or with their biological family but it’s so important to expose the child to their roots. Because from the amount of Korean adoptees that’s I’ve met and seen, they all have this sort of identity problem. Majority I’ve noticed are adopted by white families and like you mentioned they always have this outcast mentality. They’ve grown up being the outcast that they become used to it and develop that special snowflake mentality. And it’s esepcially weird in Claire’s situation considering she only ever mentioned her mom being family. No mention of a dad (which I’ll assume isn’t in the picture) or aunts/uncles. Nothing. So it seems like her mom raised Claire completely by herself. Which seems super isolating. Idk that’s just my two cents and I might be extremely bias since I was raised in a large family nor was I adopted.

I find it more alarming about how there is no family or friend, I wonder why her mom didnt adopt two kids so they'd have someone if her mom is also an orphan , or someone she can know if she dies. As it stands,,Claire coulda have easily been re orphaned .,unless Claire is leaving out ppl

[Kale Contour]

Even if/when Claire goes to South Korea, what exactly will that accomplish? She left Korea when she was a tiny child. She has no ties at all to Korea or Korean culture. She grew up in the States, so for all intents and purposes she is 100% American. At best, she can visit Korea as a tourist, but she won't "find herself" or "reconnect with her roots" because she doesn't have any there.

Identity is a complicated thing, and no doubt it's part of her issues, but imo her main problem is that she has never outgrown that feeling of "otherness" we all feel at some point in our life, most often adolescence. She was an Asian kid being raised by a white mom in a predominantly white area. This automatically made her "different". She channeled that frustration into a semi-successful YouTube career, where different is good. She'll never let herself move on from that - she thrives from feeling like a special snowflake.

THANK YOU this is very well said.

As a first generation immigrant who was a toddler when my family left "our homeland", I promise Claire would only feel more confused and alienated if she went to SK looking for an epiphany. Just because everyone looks like her doesn't immediately equal a sense of connection. It's super weird to be in a world of people who look like you, but the way they speak, act and treat you is completely bizarre to you. It's not like a Disney movie, it's just a bunch of people you don't know. Just my 2 cents.

One of Claire's old videos (a tattoo QnA I think) came up in my feed and she actually discussed her adoption story. It's pretty tragic. As a baby she was left on the doorstep of a mission, so she has no way of tracing her family since there's no paperwork. Her mom was actually going to adopt another baby, but that baby passed away so Claire got adopted instead.

What else would she find there but pain and more confusion.

This is tragic to say, but I think she's depressed because she's waiting for the other shoe to drop. The video I watched was 5 years old and she was already talking about her mom's battle with dementia. I can't imagine how hard it's been.

[lolomgstop]

^ I remember those tattoo Q & A videos also (there were 2) and in both she stated she has her Korean birth name on the back of her neck and the angel wings on her hips are in tribute to the little girl who passed away from an illness, thus leading to her adoption. Maybe for Claire, her "roots" are best left as mere ink placements on her skin, who knows.

With that said, unless anyone here is adopted or knows that experience first hand (I do) - you can't really say for certain what a trip back to South Korea would do for her. She says she plans to go one day and if it were 100% out of the question, I have no doubt she wouldn't have a problem saying so. I happen to be one of those people who don't feel she's obligated to share more about her adoption story or her plans or non-plans to trace her roots back to South Korea, simply because it doesn't interest me. Some things don't need to be put online.

I'd think being left on a doorstep at birth and having only 1 parent via adoption who no longer even recognizes who you are anymore is BY FAR an obvious sign of her abandonment issues. Now that's something I wish she would talk about.

[allsaints]

Is there a dark sad story in SK? As she describes that moment , she calls herself "lucky". I think she's said it twice of the luck that she was adopted at that moment (fate)

[lolomgstop]

Is there a dark sad story in SK? As she describes that moment , she calls herself "lucky". I think she's said it twice of the luck that she was adopted at that moment (fate)

Well...she was left on a doorstep of a missionary and only ended up being adopted by her mother because the baby girl who she originally planned to adopt fell ill and passed away. That in itself is sad and dark, but at the same time, who knows how Claire's life may have turned out had that little girl not passed away and ended up being adopted by her mother. I'd imagine something like that still weighing heavy on her considering the fact that her mom's condition has rendered her an orphan once again. I mean, where is her other family? I remember a super old vlog where she mentioned a "cousin" who was in hospice, but she does come back to this area (Northern VA) quite a bit and I sometimes wonder if it's to see family/friends and not just for work or little meet and greets. Maybe it's just something she doesn't care to post pics of or film and that's understandable.

With that said, I also think that in addition to her mother's government job allowing her to travel a lot, have a nanny, and an overall privileged life...I'd imagine someone in her shoes might consider themselves lucky, fortunate, or that everything that happened to them being designed by fate when you consider how she came into this world and where she is now.

[PassaSauz]

This is completely off topic but this is why I get super annoyed when people who adopt children from foreign countries don’t even bother to show the child their cultural roots. Like yes I get it. You love the child unconditionally and you probably gave him/her a better life than they’ll have at the orphanage or with their biological family but it’s so important to expose the child to their roots. Because from the amount of Korean adoptees that’s I’ve met and seen, they all have this sort of identity problem. Majority I’ve noticed are adopted by white families and like you mentioned they always have this outcast mentality. They’ve grown up being the outcast that they become used to it and develop that special snowflake mentality. And it’s esepcially weird in Claire’s situation considering she only ever mentioned her mom being family. No mention of a dad (which I’ll assume isn’t in the picture) or aunts/uncles. Nothing. So it seems like her mom raised Claire completely by herself. Which seems super isolating. Idk that’s just my two cents and I might be extremely bias since I was raised in a large family nor was I adopted.

100% Agree. I see this a lot with children adopted from Asian and African countries and it bothers me so much. You have a responsibility as a parent to teach children about their heritage. Claire is very whitewashed.

[ordinaryink]

[youtube][/youtube]

[hanaemii]

^ is it another ad? worth watching? Don't wanna give her a view unless it's a genuine Q&A

[ordinaryink]

it's boring as all hell, but it's an actual Q&A. she talks about her current favorite song (come on, claire), plans for her channel in the new year, how this new year feels "different", steph moving out, how she's struggled with depression, new "goals" (ugh ugh UGH) etc.

she briefly touches on steph moving out but doesn't go into why, but it doesn't seem like they had a huge falling out or anything. i still find it weird that she doesn't go more into it, especially considering how open her and steph were during the couch talks late last year.

[whiterabbit]

it's boring as all hell, but it's an actual Q&A. she talks about her current favorite song (come on, claire), plans for her channel in the new year, how this new year feels "different", steph moving out, how she's struggled with depression, new "goals" (ugh ugh UGH) etc.

she briefly touches on steph moving out but doesn't go into why, but it doesn't seem like they had a huge falling out or anything. i still find it weird that she doesn't go more into it, especially considering how open her and steph were during the couch talks late last year.

Maybe that's for Steph. Steph never seemed to be really into being in her videos. That's just the vibe I got, like she didn't mind but wasn't actively seeking it out.
I haven't seen her video just because shes turning into one of those YouTubers that just puts out hey I'm back/where I have been videos constantly and am tired of hearing the same BS from her so thank you for the recap

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[lotus]

I watched some if it . Very repetitive and it seemed she was trying to convince us (herself) that she's happy and positive thinking blah blah blah .
I want to know what realllly happened with Steph tho

[Lamonde_]

Even if/when Claire goes to South Korea, what exactly will that accomplish? She left Korea when she was a tiny child. She has no ties at all to Korea or Korean culture. She grew up in the States, so for all intents and purposes she is 100% American. At best, she can visit Korea as a tourist, but she won't "find herself" or "reconnect with her roots" because she doesn't have any there.

Identity is a complicated thing, and no doubt it's part of her issues, but imo her main problem is that she has never outgrown that feeling of "otherness" we all feel at some point in our life, most often adolescence. She was an Asian kid being raised by a white mom in a predominantly white area. This automatically made her "different". She channeled that frustration into a semi-successful YouTube career, where different is good. She'll never let herself move on from that - she thrives from feeling like a special snowflake.

THANK YOU this is very well said.

As a first generation immigrant who was a toddler when my family left "our homeland", I promise Claire would only feel more confused and alienated if she went to SK looking for an epiphany. Just because everyone looks like her doesn't immediately equal a sense of connection. It's super weird to be in a world of people who look like you, but the way they speak, act and treat you is completely bizarre to you. It's not like a Disney movie, it's just a bunch of people you don't know. Just my 2 cents.

One of Claire's old videos (a tattoo QnA I think) came up in my feed and she actually discussed her adoption story. It's pretty tragic. As a baby she was left on the doorstep of a mission, so she has no way of tracing her family since there's no paperwork. Her mom was actually going to adopt another baby, but that baby passed away so Claire got adopted instead.

What else would she find there but pain and more confusion.

This is tragic to say, but I think she's depressed because she's waiting for the other shoe to drop. The video I watched was 5 years old and she was already talking about her mom's battle with dementia. I can't imagine how hard it's been.

You guys took the words out of my mouth. She’s wrong with a lot of things but I can’t believe people would criticize her for not really finding interest in her korean ethnicity as if that was done on purpose. I know you’ve moved on from this topic but that’s really annoying. Don’t compare her to other Koreans that actually had korean upbringing in the US cuz it is not the same.

[daintydaisy]

No one criticized her for not having interest in her Korean roots or identity. I brought up that I would be interested in seeing her visit Korea for the first time since she got adopted. However, she is in NO way obligated to document or share because it is a very personal and even emotional experience. I am not an adoptee myself and while I have relatives who were adopted, but I do not speak for Claire or any other adoptees. I am, however, mixed raced, so identity is a huge part of what I am and I can't imagine how adoptees without any ties to their roots or heritage go through life without feeling like they belong.

[Ccc123000]

Just adding in my two cents' on the topic of her "Korean" identity: It's one thing when you are of mixed race or a child of immigrant parents; the customs, traditions, values, and "identity" of that country's culture tend to be passed down from parent to the offspring, more strongly at first, and then tend to "diminish" over the next generations.

However, Claire was adopted and raised by a Caucasian American lady (presumably as a single parent). Just because she outwardly looks Korean doesn't mean she should seek out "Korean-ness." If her mother didn't feel the need to introduce her to her biological parents' culture or didn't have the opportunity or means to do so, is not really a problem in my opinion. Ofcourse she is whitewashed, she was raised by a white woman as an only child in a presumably white environment. She didn't grow up with Korean aunts, uncles, or cousins around her.

Would it have been nice of her mom to immerse her in the Korean culture or take her to see the country? Sure. But I don't fault her for not doing so. She was just a lady wanting to give a child a home and raise her the way she knew how.

[daintydaisy]

Just adding in my two cents' on the topic of her "Korean" identity: It's one thing when you are of mixed race or a child of immigrant parents; the customs, traditions, values, and "identity" of that country's culture tend to be passed down from parent to the offspring, more strongly at first, and then tend to "diminish" over the next generations.

However, Claire was adopted and raised by a Caucasian American lady (presumably as a single parent). Just because she outwardly looks Korean doesn't mean she should seek out "Korean-ness." If her mother didn't feel the need to introduce her to her biological parents' culture or didn't have the opportunity or means to do so, is not really a problem in my opinion. Ofcourse she is whitewashed, she was raised by a white woman as an only child in a presumably white environment. She didn't grow up with Korean aunts, uncles, or cousins around her.

Would it have been nice of her mom to immerse her in the Korean culture or take her to see the country? Sure. But I don't fault her for not doing so. She was just a lady wanting to give a child a home and raise her the way she knew how.

That's debatable. While her mom and every other adoptive parent may have good intentions raising their children, not exposing them to their roots is a disservice to them. Your identity is the core of who you are. Claire is dragged back and forth on this thread for being stuck in her "angsty teenager phase" despite being in her mid 30s. I can't help but wonder why that is. Is her "otherness" all that she has to cling onto?

That's all I have to say about this. I just want to understand WHY she is the way she is.

[Kale Contour]

^yeah agreed she clearly has otherness issues and unresolved stuff from her childhood. I just think if she were adopted in America and not SK, nobody would be looking to her "roots" as a solution to her problems. I think roots are a cultural and not a genetic/biological thing, but that comes down to a nature Vs nurture argument that's beyond the scope of Claire Marshall's gossip thread.

I do still find myself liking her Instagram and being tempted to watch her videos. She still has that effortless cool kid aesthetic down. I wish she'd use her talents for something tangible. If she ran a magazine I'd be obsessed with it.

[vanillafilter]

I have to agree. I think if she was more exposed to Korean culture while growing up, she would have had access to a community of people like her and that helps take away that feeling of otherness (speaking as a Korean-American who grew up in a really white town, but had a lot of exposure to other korean kids through korean school and church). Also, I think she grew up in Virginia? Or Maryland? Somewhere in that area. But there are a ton of Korean people there. There would have been more than enough opportunity for Claire to go to korean school or go to one of those camp things for korean adoptees that they have (one of my friends is adopted korean and her parents sent her those things). I feel like it's almost irresponsible to adopt a child from another culture and then pretend like they're NOT different- it's almost like erasing someone's culture in an effort to assimilate (which really helps no one in the long run).

I really feel sorry for Claire. She says she was lucky to be adopted by her mom, but even though she has a lot of material things, she's never seemed actually happy. It seemed like even growing she got every THING she wanted but not exactly the ability to deal with her emotions. How healthy is it to grow up an only child with a single parent with seemingly NO relatives or family friends?! It's just weird. Not to mention that she chooses to isolate herself from people as well. When you live in the world, you have to learn to interact with your community and the people around you in a healthy manner. No man is an island. Maybe Claire's mom isolated herself from people too, and that's why Claire is the way she is. There's a fine line between being an independent woman who doesn't need to rely on anyone for her own happiness and being a hermit who doesn't want anyone in her life.

[sunspirit1848]

Not to change the subject, but I thought it was strange that Claire uploaded another video already - her base routine one - since we all know that she isn’t a very consistent Youtuber... but that’s because it’s sponsored


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