Here's a little lesson for all the bubbleheaded multiculturalists who haven't an actual clue about other peoples and nations. I've run into plenty of folks who don't know anything about "Asia" other than the it's "cool and exotic." Things are way more complicated than that.
Here's a case study of identity politics in South Korea, where mixed-blood children are facing some problems fitting into Korean society. And by "mixed-blood" I'm talking about, for instance, half-Korean/half-Vietnamese.
OK, to be perfectly frank here: there is a perceived social-ethnic-regional hierarchy in Asia. I'll just leave it at that before I offend even more people by telling you what groups (and groups-within-groups) rank where. Some groups are very hostile to "outsiders," and sometimes the racism/ethnic-ism can be pretty vicious. The most cursory glance at history will tell you that the continent is soaked with yellow-on-yellow violence (where shades of yellow, actual and metaphorical, matter). At other times, the prejudices are less blatant but still present in different degrees, such as whispers ("She married a . . . Malay" ) and glances and things like "My folks would rather me marry a white guy before a Japanese." There was a kerfuffle some years ago when a family acquaintance married someone with an aboriginal background, for instance.
And in case you're wondering: yes, we can tell. This seems to baffle a lot of non-Asians. "He's Japanese. She's Korean. He's Vietnamese. She's Filipino." "You mean you can tell just by looking?" "Well, yeah. You mean you can't?" An addendum: this is more easily done in Asia itself. In the States, sometimes it's a bit harder to tell on sight. In the case of half-Asian/half-Caucasian people, I for one can't tell what the Asian half is.
OK, I'll say it before someone else does. The old joke is basically, "All you guys kind of look alike." *Sigh.*
4 comments:
I've seen similar things in Japan.
Also, I think 'hierarch-ies' is more accurate. In my experience, the Japanese and Koreans put different ethnic groups on different rungs. I kind of assumed the Chinese, etc., did as well, but have comparatively little experience with them. Or is there one hierarchy with a few variables? Not knowing much of Asia outside of Japan is a handicap for me.
As you almost say, there really isn't an Asian race, but multiple ethnicities indigenous to Asia. I think it's the same with all the broad ethnic categories: black, white, etc. And it does all seem to get a bit muddled in America.
Not long ago I received an email from a man in India who--from the context of his long (but interesting) email--was a member of a tribal/ethnic minority in India. He complained that Indians are the most racist people in the world in his experience.
Why we should be surprised that people are capable of discriminating based on the tiniest of perceived differences is beyond me.
Sure ... just as it's beyond me why the PC crowd seems to think that only that their favorite punching bag, "the Evil White Man," ever discriminates.
@ lumpy: maybe there's a "hierarchy of hierarchies"?
Anyhoo, it all reminds me of a segment done a while back by comedian Carlos Mencia...
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