I was engaged in my habitual reading of Hollywood Reporter (yes, I am a film nerd) when I stumbled upon this interesting article regarding the protest of 500 hundred of ethnic Chinese in California against political commentator Jack Cafferty's on-air comment of Chinese being "goons and thugs" and products manufactured in China as being "junk." I was inspired by the article to write an entry since it is the first article I read which touches upon the position of Chinese Americans within the dual context of Western media's often unforgiving critical reporting on China and the Chinese government's undeniable repressive potential. Being a Chinese American myself, I am often put in an uncomfortable situation of having to agree with my peers regarding improvements that China as a nation is in dire need of ( for example, the extension of freedom of speech and increased accountability in law), while concurrently assuming a defensive stance against their complete rejection of the Chinese 'ways.'
With regards to the latter, the 'perceived threat' (which I attempt to defend against) arises from the moral judgement of some of my peers' argument, where (in my eyes) they view the Chinese state as consciously assuming a wrong position that should be corrected; it is this normative aspect (of offering a quick objective prescription) that I feel strongly against. For me, a better approach would be to first break down the specific components that China lacks and to discuss the reasons behind the government's decision to act as it is (and consequently to discuss the potential unintended consequences of a different course of action). I may be overassessing this situation, but I have to admit that I am not an unbiased participant.
I am a Chinese American. Although I fully believe in the freedom of speech (and religion) and in the absolute standards of human rights, the 'China bashing' that has been occurring lately has made me insecure of my position in America--since I am too by ethnicity a Chinese. And though I believe in the capability of my fellow Americans to distinguish the Chinese state and the Chinese people (especially those who are naturalized citizens of other countries), my experience of living in the States has not given me full confidence. And I am not alone. The article below indeed describes the ambivalence of other Chinese Americans amidst recent 'China-bashing':
- "I know both worlds, English media and Chinese media. I believe there is an anti-China frenzy in America today," said Chen, 44, who has raised two preteens in the U.S.
"I came not for myself but for my son and daughter. They will live forever in the U.S., and I cannot tolerate this discrimination from a major news organization," Chen said. - At the protest Saturday, Ke Ping, a Chinese filmmaker who has lived in the U.S. for 20 years and is a graduate of the UCLA Film School, said that as a naturalized American citizen she certainly took advantage of freedom of speech here."I encourage more open speech in China," where she acknowledged such a protest against a news organization would not be allowed to take place.
I hope by reading this article (and my response to it), another layer of the ongoing contestation between the Western media and the Chinese state would be revealed. Indeed, for Chinese Americans, the situation remains an ambivalent one, but as Ke Ping alertly argues (and I too believe), it is only through active dialogue (combined with pragmatic awareness) that the situation would be properly addressed.
No comments:
Post a Comment