Final Paper

Vivi Chang
Professor Mei-Ya Liang
English Composition IIA
10 January 2009

Racial Discrimination: just made by white man?
Nowadays, we usually hear about some news about racial discrimination, and when we refer to this topic, we usually think of some white men’s bad attitude to black men. But is this true about the fact? Maybe there are more races have something to do this problem, or this is not just a unidirectional influence. On the other hand, why we think the racial discrimination usually happened in western countries? In fact, that also happened in Eastern countries and even in Taiwan.

I still remember that when I was a child, I felt shame about my dark skin. I did not like it because some of my classmates also laugh at me by this thing. However, the reasons why we do not like dark skin, I still can not find the answers until now, but I do not cared about this thing, because I realize it would not affected me anything about my life. Once I talked with a Guatemala’s people, he said that dark skin is beautiful. Nevertheless, I want to ask why even little Taiwanese children care about the color of skin? Is there something wrong about Taiwanese values?

However, when we observe the streets in Taiwan, we can see many foreign workers from southeastern Asia whom Taiwanese do not like to approach to. The value seems not to be changed even when children become adults. Therefore, we could know that this problem is not a single event but worldwide one and has nothing to do with age and time. Besides, in the movie “ Crash “, we can learn that different races have mistrust each other although they have no bad intention to each other, but this misunderstanding has brought about a lot of tragedies. Thus, we can say that this obstacle is built by each race’s inner fear.

On the other hand, why some immigrants feel discriminated? Is that true? Or the reason is that immigrants did not adapt themselves in a new condition? Or they have culture shock? Or they have not received the new identity in the new condition? These questions make me want to interview some immigrants in Taiwan or some emigrants from Taiwan to other countries.
Cultural (or culture) shock is a multifaceted experience resulting from numerous stressors occurring in contact with a different culture.(Michael Winkelman) And If immigrants are not able to adapt to new environment, they maybe has some psychological and physiological reactions that caused by culture shock. When psychological and physiological systems interact, both of them will be ill. Culture adaption should depend on personal tolerance to cross-culture. Your willingness to learn new culture is also important. Because ambiguity is major reason resulting in stress, learning how to accept ambiguity is a way to adapt yourselves to new environment but you do not need to abandon your identity.

I have same symptom as he mentions when I transferred to another school only from one city to another city. I was easier to become disappointed and get sick during the time I have not adopted to the new condition. Maybe also that is the first time I changed my life style, so I needed to take long time to change my attitude. Once I used to expose myself to new environment, I can deal with this problem easier.

In addition, I also interview an exchanged student, Monica, who comes from Paraguay. She says that she feels Taiwanese are kind to her, but the boys are too shy.
Besides, she thinks Taiwan is a so democratic country that she can speak her ideas freely. However, there is a phenomenon that Monica could not get used to when she in the college of Taiwan at previous six months. The phenomenon is that the high school students are so hard to study, but college students indulge in a lot of groups, but in her country, the situation is opposite. Thus, she be confused what she should do at first time, but know she know how to strike the balance.

I also have another interview with my high school classmate, Shawn, who studies aboard in Japan. He told me that Japanese have high national consciousness. Sometimes, when he asks Japanese to repeat the sentences he does not know, they probably don’t speak again. Thus, he sometimes pretends Japanese so that he would not be hurt by their ignorance. Besides, he thinks that in Japanese eyes’, Taiwanese is a race that does not say their ideas powerfully.

Besides, there is a strange phenomenon that no matter in schools of Taiwan or other foreign countries, the people of same countries would gather up, although one of the main ideas of studying aboard is making foreign friends. What is the reason of this phenomenon? Maybe because each one has no courage to be familiar with other races and refuse to open their minds, they choose to get along with the friends coming from the same place so that they have companions who face the same difficulties like themselves. In addition, same language in the foreign country will be warmer when they are in unfamiliar place. Thus, they have less and less opportunities to deal with foreigners, and once the dispute happened, the results would be bad.

Maybe sometimes local’s behavior would not harm immigrants on purpose, locals just behave depending on the mode or thinking of their country, and that usually makes immigrants confused and compressed because they have not got used to local’s life. Moreover, too many indefinite things make them confuse about their identity. They do not know which one is right or which one is wrong, so they lose courage and feel themselves so powerless that they choose to be silent and do not strive for their rights.

If a whole family immigrates to another foreign country, family members will affect each other. Because many our ways of thinking and our habits are developed in family, if our new behaviors are agreed by family members, the new social identity in their new environment would be less pressure on them. On the other hand, if an immigrant just comes to foreign countries alone, the supports of his or her family members are also essential. That will make immigrants be brave or be timid.

Personal confidence is important, too. Take Obama for example. Because of election of American president, the questions of racial identity are also mentioned. However, when we see the result of this election, we can know people do not care about what race he belongs to, but focus on what his characteristics suit with the position of American president. On the other hand, when this new half-black President won this election, we can know that people now can accept different ideas from different races. This is also a symbol of progress.

Sometimes, the reasons resulting in discrimination is not the person’s faults but the wrong government’s policies. Some countries do not set good policy, so too many foreigners come there, but there is not enough job opportunities provided for them and locals. Therefore some locals began to hate foreign labors because they think that foreign labors occupy their jobs. Moreover, some foreign labors who live in a bad environment due to the employ’s exploits sometimes are misunderstood as a low level people. The government should establish perfect laws or related organizations to protect foreigners’ rights so that there would be less disputation between locals and foreign labors. Sometimes, the conflicts between two races are not caused by racialism but by social problems, and we should not argue which one is right, locals or immigrants, because at times, policy has an influential role in modern society.

In addition, the government should set an organization to provide immigrants and locals to communicate each other. For example, some days ago, I have interview a denizen bride in the New Immigrant Center for Learning in Ping-Jen, Taiyuan County in Taiwan. She is from Fujian China, is just twenty two years old and she has come here for just three months. She told me that she was so unfamiliar with Taiwan at first, and she did not know where to go and what to do when her husband goes to work and leaves her alone at home. However, her life changed when she went to The New Immigrant Center for Learning.

Because she is bored at home and wants to learn something, she and her husband look for some information of course on line, and they found this place. She said this place is so great that she felt that time passed so fast. Although she just come this organization since recently months, she has learned a lot, such as Chinese phonetic notation, English, computer’s skill, and foreign dance. She also makes many new friends here, and the friends are also some denizen brides from different countries, they participated in the course together, made some foreign dessert together, and even prepared a performance together. Besides, she told me that this fulfilled life can make her forgets some homesickness. Thus sometimes, when she is in free time, she will help do something as volunteer to contribute her talents learning from here. When she said these things, I found she wears a smile.

After the interview, I change my impression of denizen bride. Before, I think they have some attempt to take some money from their husbands, but now I know I was totally wrong. The china denizen bride makes me know that denizen brides are so courageous to leave their home, and they are so active to learn new things in this unfamiliar condition. Therefore, we can know that The New Immigrant Center for Learning is really helpful to immigrants and the organization also helps locals understand them.

According to my wrong stereotype to New Immigrant Center for Learning, I think the mass media should be in charge of delivering right concepts to locals. In daily news on television, when mention to some foreign labors or some denizen brides, the news usually be negative. Thus, day after day, the news influences locals deeply, and they feel whole immigrants are barbarous, but they do not know the immigrants who is in negative news is special case, most of them even need our help.

Recently, there is a movie “Detour Paradise” directed by Rich Lee, the story tells about how difficult the two female foreign labors live in Taiwan, but they still work hard. However in contrast to the once popular actress who feels depressed and wants to commit suicide again and again, we can find that the two foreign labors are just like past Taiwanese, who are diligent in their work and pursue the lives they like. Nevertheless, most Taiwanese have lost the merit. This film narrates the lives and attitudes of foreigner labors in detail. However, the film has some difficulties in broadcasting. Because it is not the fashionable movie, some movie theaters do not play it. That just why I say the mass media do not care about the issue of immigrants. If mass media advertised it so densely like “Cape NO.7”, the issue would be taken more seriously.

In conclusion, we should find the reasons why racial discrimination would happen again and again and even from ancient to modern times. Racial discrimination is affected by many factors such as Locals’ attitudes toward immigrates, immigrants’ attitudes toward themselves, supports from family members, and policies of the governments. The most important is our confidence, if we look down on ourselves, who will respect us? Everyone should not blame for white men’s discrimination for other race, but look at ourselves and ask” Whether we respect the immigrants who come to our country or not? And, whether we respect ourselves or not? ” Do not be a silent group bearing the unequal treatments, and also do not be an obstinate group denying other’s identity. All people should regard else races as one race, because all of races are “people”.








Reference

Sharon Jayson “Racial identity: Not a black and white issue.” (12/09/2008) from USA Today [electronic version]. Retrieved December 11th, 2008, EBSCOhost detabase. Fromhttp://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=4&hid=17&sid=264661a6-04c3-4671-b62e-51d1379c5c84%40SRCSM1&bdata=JmFtcDtsYW5nPXpoLXR3JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=J0E055336668908

Michael Winkelman “culture shock and adaptation” (No date) Retrieved November 13th. From http://www.asu.edu/clas/shesc/projects/bajaethnography/shock.htm

Peter Desrochers” The problem isn't the immigrants, but America's immigration policy” (January 16, 2008). Retrieved December 24th, 2008.From http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=655548

Kevin Myers “The problem isn't racism, it's the tidal wave of immigrants”(September 05 ,2007) Retrieved December 24th, 2008.From http://www.independent.ie/opinion/columnists/kevin-myers/the-problem-isnt-racism-its-the-tidal-wave-of-immigrants-1071385.html
Mary Anne Domokos Cheng “Counseling Issues with Immigrant Families”(no date) Retrieved December 24,2008 From:http://www.ncela.gwu.edu/pathways/immigration/counseling.htm