Recently, there's been lots of news talking about the building tension between China and Hong Kong. First there was a protest at the D&G in Tsim Sha Tsui here in HK because they drafted a new store policy to ban bystanders from taking photos of their storefront. Basically the security guards would chase bystanders off if they pulled out a camera. People started complaining because they felt the company was adopting a racially-motivated policy to appease Mainland Chinese patrons who wanted a peaceful shopping experience. So Hong Kongers got all up-in-arms about this as they usually do and went to protest.
Last week someone filmed a confrontation last week between a Mainlander and a Hong Konger who told them to stop eating on the subway (Subway Argument.) This spawned a professor in Beijing to call people from Hong Kong "dogs. (Hong Konger's are Dogs) The whole news storm was a good discussion point with my students at class as we talked about whether Hong Kongers were indeed better than the Mainlanders as many protesters had asserted. It challenged me to think about how I saw these people from China.
In my limited knowledge, (a mere visit to the Hong Kong Museum of History and reading a book on Mao Ze Dong) I've come to realize that there are so many intricacies and layers to this place called Hong Kong. This is why I'm perpetually more and more fascinated with this place I call home for the time being. We have here a simple fishing village that has turned into a world-class cosmopolitan city largely due to colonialism. The citizens have been afforded an education and world-view like no other. Many immigrant children stand with feet in two boats and are offered opportunities like no other with the most mobility and ability to bring about God's Kingdom in any part of the world.
That being said though, I've come to agree with a couple things that Professor Kong said. He said that without China, Hong Kong could not survive. With that, I would agree. If China were to simply cut off it's economic resources from Hong Kong, the city would flounder. We're not talking about the basic necessities of water, food, and power, but just the economic resources. China is the next rising power and the biggest market in the world. What could this port city (in the physical and symbolic sense) do without its country.
I also agree with what Kong said about how Hong Konger's treat Mainlanders. It's a very true and twisted mindset. To most foreigners, we go out of our way to make give face and respect. I've seen plenty of times where white people have gotten preferential customer service. Look at the Mid-Levels and just the total opulence and other-worldly lifestyles that they have that are not reflective of real Hong Kong. To the British or the American we bow lowly. To the Japanese we bow (with tinges of bitterness of course). But to the Mainlander, we raise our nose and cause a fuss because we finally have someone we feel superior to.
I liken it to when a little brother finally gets old enough to lead his own life and find his own way. China, in many ways, has grown up and been able to make a life for itself. Sure he has lots of learning to do about cleanliness, culture, and etiquette, but we act as an older brother jealous of what the younger one now has. We still see ourselves as better and the favored one, and we don't want to let our privileges go.
After discussing with my students how they saw this whole news debacle, I tried to reexamine my own thoughts and perceptions of China. I realize that I see Mainlanders in one of two ways. First, I see them as the annoyingly loud, brash, and rich tourist who rushes in to take my seat on the MTR. They are the queue-jumpers and the ones who tote their luggages full of expensive watches they've pillaged on Nathan Rd. Secondly, I see Mainlanders as the decrepit and pitiful village people on those World Vision brochures that need my donations, my compassion, and my help to minister to their needs. Both views are broken. Both views stem from my own self-righteousness and pride. I think both are equally repulsive to God.
I think unlike Kong, I need to start seeing everyone not as dogs but as humans. As my pastor at home counseled for our marriage: "we step into dangerous territory when we stop seeing each other as image-bearers of God." While this was spoken to us in our marriage, I think it rings true here. We spawn hatred, racism, and all sorts of malice and strife when we stop seeing others as people that God has hand-crafted in his image. Each has a story to tell, each has been molded by a system of cultural values, and each has a dignity and worth we ought to see - beyond the dirty, crusty, and rough exterior.
Peace.
I also agree with what Kong said about how Hong Konger's treat Mainlanders. It's a very true and twisted mindset. To most foreigners, we go out of our way to make give face and respect. I've seen plenty of times where white people have gotten preferential customer service. Look at the Mid-Levels and just the total opulence and other-worldly lifestyles that they have that are not reflective of real Hong Kong. To the British or the American we bow lowly. To the Japanese we bow (with tinges of bitterness of course). But to the Mainlander, we raise our nose and cause a fuss because we finally have someone we feel superior to.
I liken it to when a little brother finally gets old enough to lead his own life and find his own way. China, in many ways, has grown up and been able to make a life for itself. Sure he has lots of learning to do about cleanliness, culture, and etiquette, but we act as an older brother jealous of what the younger one now has. We still see ourselves as better and the favored one, and we don't want to let our privileges go.
After discussing with my students how they saw this whole news debacle, I tried to reexamine my own thoughts and perceptions of China. I realize that I see Mainlanders in one of two ways. First, I see them as the annoyingly loud, brash, and rich tourist who rushes in to take my seat on the MTR. They are the queue-jumpers and the ones who tote their luggages full of expensive watches they've pillaged on Nathan Rd. Secondly, I see Mainlanders as the decrepit and pitiful village people on those World Vision brochures that need my donations, my compassion, and my help to minister to their needs. Both views are broken. Both views stem from my own self-righteousness and pride. I think both are equally repulsive to God.
I think unlike Kong, I need to start seeing everyone not as dogs but as humans. As my pastor at home counseled for our marriage: "we step into dangerous territory when we stop seeing each other as image-bearers of God." While this was spoken to us in our marriage, I think it rings true here. We spawn hatred, racism, and all sorts of malice and strife when we stop seeing others as people that God has hand-crafted in his image. Each has a story to tell, each has been molded by a system of cultural values, and each has a dignity and worth we ought to see - beyond the dirty, crusty, and rough exterior.
Peace.
