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Could you find your way around the city?
An actual Beijing subway map that has been distributed for native English speaker readership Talking about politics in China can be a bit like walking through a minefield. With the death of Public Enemy #1 this past Sunday, there has been a considerable amount of chatter on the streets of Beijing and in the Chinese blogosphere regarding the role the United States played in bin Laden's ultimate demise. While some Chinese citizens are unabashedly (and understandably) relieved that a mass murderer can no longer carry out his bloody plans, the vast majority of people in China are indifferent or convinced that the United States will now go to war with Pakistan.
It’s a funny thing- politics. Americans are accustomed to dissecting an issue from every angle. We may disagree and a simple conversation can quickly transform into a shouting match. But in the end, we recognize and, I hope, respect, that others can have points of view that are different from our own.
That is not the case in China. It is difficult for any foreigner living in China to make even slight criticisms about the country without a few irate Chinese citizens telling you that you ought to go home if you hate China so much, or implying that you must be happy when Chinese people die. After living here for several years and becoming close to my Chinese host family, I feel like I have a unique perspective on both China and the US. When someone who has never been here tries to engage me in a debate about Tibet, or about the one child policy, I often wind up quite angrily defending the Chinese side. These issues are much more complex than people in the West realize, and most expats in China have come to have equally complex feelings about them. It is very easy for someone who does not live here and does not see the problems that China faces to judge how things are done here from the safety of their own, developed nation. But I live here and I witness what happens day-to-day, and have a different perspective of what I see around me. Sometimes a different perspective allows us to see things more clearly. Just as living abroad has allowed me to be both more critical and more appreciative of my home country, living in China, not just as a visitor but as a permanent resident, allows me to have a perspective that people who have never left China might not have.
I think it is important for anyone who reads English language publications, or, in fact, anyone who considers him/herself to be an astute reader in any language to realize that criticism does not equal hatred. I love the United States, and yet I will criticize her harshly. But it is a rare day indeed when a Chinese friend or colleague will publically admit that any aspect of life in China is worth reexamining. I don’t think it’s really a case of government brainwashing, as some less-than-informed outsiders or fear-mongers may be inclined to believe, but rather the absence of another choice. Think about it- if you grew up in a country with basically one political view, one way of doing something, one choice- would you be able to learn to think outside the box? Perhaps, but it would be difficult. Thus, I can’t fault the breakfast porridge shop assistant who refuses to swap vegetarian porridge for meat porridge in the early bird special, because she was never taught that she might have the ability to do that. Similarly, I can’t blame my coworkers who passionately defend China in any instance or insinuation that life here is not perfect, because they grew up with a very biased media and reporting system. (This is not to say that Western media is not skewed as well; it’s just that I don’t believe it to so blatantly distort the facts as is oft the case over here).
The point of criticism isn’t to laugh and say, “Look how awful that country is! Aren’t we so much better than that?” I’d like to believe that most of us, as educated adults, are above that sort of mocking. The point of gently pointing out some problems with a country, with a city, with a school, or with a family, is to help build something even better. No one society is perfect. America is not perfect, Australia is not perfect, Norway is not perfect, Japan is not perfect and China, also, is not perfect. There is no shame in admitting that some issues do exist. And yet what often happens when a foreigner points out an issue with Chinese society is that the message is lost amidst a lot of defensiveness on the part of people who think, “How dare they!” And a lot of time is spent pointing out that, well, America isn’t perfect either, and look at Guantanamo and by the way, why do you even stay here if you hate it so much and why don’t you just stick to your own kind anyhow? Which is, of course, missing the point. Pointing out that there is racism (or ethnocentrism) in China, or that corruption is rampant, or that the educational system is biased, or that there is a huge disparity between the rich in the poor, or any number of mildly critical observations that foreigners could make, somehow, rather than starting a dialogue or furthering understanding, usually end up in attacks on the person holding the opinion.
Foreigners might live in China for any number of reasons. There are a fair number of us here who, for whatever reason, do not have any intention of leaving any time soon. To say that we should just pack up and go "home" is a bit silly, considering it isn’t even possible for many of us. I am sure that most foreigners living in China, or foreigners living anywhere in the world, including Chinese people who are foreigners in America or elsewhere, will have often conflicting opinions about the country where they live. That’s the beauty of it, and it is my sincere hope that no one should be made to feel unwelcome in this country or any simply for expressing an opinion.
Unless they’re wrong.
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