I’m sad to say that there is yet another flurry of articles floating around the blogosphere about racism and race relations in China.
These last few have been spurred on by a series of very real incidents, the most really real of which is really really disappointing to see. And alarming. And way fucked up.
Josh at China Expat points to a SCMP article, which sums up the whole scary mess thusly:
Dozens of black tourists and expatriates, including the son of the Grenadian ambassador, were arrested and some badly beaten during an apparently indiscriminate anti-drug operation by Beijing police.
About 30 men, mostly African or Caribbean, were detained as dozens of baton-wielding security guards and uniformed police swept through Beijing’s nightlife district, Sanlitun. Students, tourists and the ambassador’s son Joslyn Whiteman Jnr were among those wrestled to the ground, handcuffed and hauled to a nearby police station.
At least three people, including Mr Whiteman, were beaten with rubber truncheons despite few signs that they were resisting arrest.
Grenadian ambassador Joslyn Whiteman said he was furious at the way his son was treated. The 22-year-old spent a night in hospital with a concussion.
“Obviously I’m very angry,” the ambassador said. “My son was arrested and beaten for no reason whatsoever. I will be taking this up with the authorities and looking into the matter.”
Witnesses said the round-up appeared to be aimed squarely at black men. Those who tried to photograph the incident were made to delete the images from their mobile phones and cameras.
“It was pretty brutal,” Beijing-based magazine editor Alex Reid said.
“I saw a man being beaten by six guys in camouflage. He was covered in blood. The police seemed to be targeting anyone who was black.”
Thabo Lieket, a 24-year-old student from Lesotho, was among those arrested and later released without charge. He thought the police assumed he was dealing in drugs because he was black, he said.
“They were rounding up all the black people; it was pretty frightening,” he said. “I was walking with some friends past one of the bars when I was grabbed by some of the guys in camouflage. They dragged us all to the police station, where we were put in the same cell.”
When asked about the incident, a police officer at the Sanlitun station said: “This is an anti-drug operation.”
Personally, while living in Dalian, I can’t say I’ve run across racism against black people too much. The fact that I’m a white guy might help explain that somewhat. As the old joke in China goes (though it’s hardly laughable) “We don’t have racism here in China! There are no black people!”
Nonetheless, it’s pretty shocking to see incidents of this sort, especially leading up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics. One would hope we don’t see anything else like this happening in the future – to any race. But it does raise an interesting question as to what kind of racial attitudes are to be found in some Chinese people. Or at least, what kind of attitudes lie dormant beneath the surface, capable of being triggered by certain situations where foreigners are involved.
Does China Hate?
The only racism that I’ve personally seen with my own eyes is anti-Japanese racism. Now I know that there are some people who would argue that this isn’t racism. Those people might say that this is simply a strong disagreement/debate regarding history and politics. Well, I would raise the counterpoint that those people are full of shit.
When faced with a friend or acquaintance who seems somewhat less-than-friendly towards their Japanese neighbours, I explicitly ask “Do you hate the Japanese government? or all Japanese people?” And way too often than I’d like to admit, they reply with the latter answer. All Japanese people. No exceptions.
Keep in mind, these are not country bumpkins Sino-rednecks that I met along the roadside – but very often college graduates and IT professionals.
Scary.
Loyal readers of this blog (Hi mom) might remember an old post where I showed a Chinese kids textbook which blatantly included anti-Japanese propaganda as a part of it’s harmonious education strategy. Here’s the except, and the translation:
?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ??????????????????????????????????? ????????
Wang Er Xiao (kid’s name) is a member of the Communist Youth League. While watching his cows graze he will help the People’s Liberation Army stand guard. One day, the enemy came by and was lost. The enemy saw Wang Er Xiao on the hillside and told him to show them the way. Wang Er Xiao pretended to obey their orders and walked ahead leading the enemy to the PLA forces in the area. Suddenly, there was the sound of gunfire everywhere. As the enemy figured out what had happened, they killed the little hero, Wang Er Xiao. At the same time, the PLA came down the hill and annihilated the enemy.
Cheers to Derrick for a more accurate translation than mine, and for keeping this photo alive. If anyone wants to buy the book, here’s the cover to look out for. Here’s what Derrick had to say about it:
If you haven’t figured out from the flag in the photo, the ‘enemy’ is the Japanese . . . Yes folks, this is what the Chinese call ?????? or “patriotic education”. Now can someone explain to me again what hating Japan has to do with loving China? In Canada, we just learn about the formation of our country, the native Indians, the pioneers and such. We aren’t taught to hate the Americans, although some of us just formulate that idea in our own heads without educational propaganda. I’m not sure why?
Well said Derrick, as usual. And some Chinese people thoroughly get that idea, and question the unfortunate fact that all too many Chinese people don’t:
Chinese Blogger Wang Jianshuo
On Love or Hate
The hate dominate logic already caused problems in China. For example, the discrimination of people in other places is a social problem. Some people in Shanghai don’t like people outside Shanghai. It is also true in Beijing, and many other cities. “Shanghai people or Beijing people, which is better?” This kind of discussion is hot on BBS, and is guaranteed to have 100+ replies whenever it is raised. People believe there must be a right answer. There is NO right answer because the question itself is wrong.
I love my family. It does not mean I have to hate my neighbour. I am proud about what people in Shanghai archived, but don’t perceive it as I look down upon people in other region. Can I love all? Why I have to choose only one and hate others?
I never hide my pride to be part of the amazing country of China, and being who I am. But it does not mean I cannot appreciate other countries.
Some people get it, some people don’t.
I won’t go so far as to generalize. That’s where things get dangerous.
Let hope that in the future, the Chinese police gets that as well.
Some black people deal drugs, and some black people don’t.
If you’re going to distributing beatings, at the very least, please distribute beatings equally among all races.
