Racism in China

What is your opinion about racism in China? Especially when it comes to Africans?

Speak to any non Asian  or  more specifically non- chinese looking individual about racial perceptions and you will get a range of highly charged comments. Most of them are negative. It seems part of the character of being a foreigner in China is getting stared at everyday, getting pointed at daily and having people jeering and sniggering behind your back. The overexploited adage "ignorance is bliss" finds overwhelming relevance here in Zhong Guo. This is because the things that are said in the buses and the subways about you, in your presence, as if you are not there, are best not understood.

I have heard arguements such as " China has been isolated for a long time and therefore people are curious about strangers", this holds true to a large extent, but then again, should harmless tourists, students and business people pay the ultimate price?

I recently had the privilage of embarking on a tour to the northern parts of this beautiful country, i saw how extensive and breathtaking China really is. I had a chance to see smaller cities than Shanghai, the expansive pine forests of Jillian province, and of course Chang Bai Shang. The entire tour package should have been the proverbial "perfect retreat", unfortunately it was not.

Being black, in Harbin gave me and a few others unwanted 'celebrity status'. People stared, pointed,jeered,cheered,laughed and analysed us with scientific eyes. I read somewhere that it is part of the human psyche to seek attention and to gain gratification from recieving it. This holds water only when such attention is approving and reinforcing, i never felt any of that, only the painful opposite. Throughout the tour dissapointing episodes such as this continued to plague my 'perfect holiday'. Comments  about "hei ren" followed by bursts of laughter by staff at tourist resorts completey baffeled my humble knowledge of the hospitality industry. Blatant invasion of privacy in the form of unwarranted and unwanted photographing by total strangers was the order of the day. The list goes on and on.

Such incidents are many, especially in smaller cities, and any foregner (especially those of African descent) claiming to have never experinced anything similar is clearly unfaithful to the truth.

So is such behaviour racism or curiosity?

Hi,

I'm french, and i speak and understand english just a little. I was very surprise to learn that there is black people in china How? what are they doing ? What a pitty i cannot translate your informations in french. Because i would like to know, what they feeling ?  ..........
 si vous avez la possibilité de me communiquez ces informations en francais, je serai très contente. Je souhaite vraiment tout savoir.

thanks in advance

Il y a une forte presence africaine en Chine, beaucoup sont etudiants mais il y a aussi des hommes d'affaires et des gens qui y travaillent.
Il y a un forum francophone sur le site il faut y envoyer ton message ainsi tu pourras recevoir plus de details.
Patrick