I used to read news headlines about China on how the country was, and still is, becoming a world power, an economic powerhouse and a military steam horse. China is often portrayed in our media as a potential threat to the United States and its interests. It is almost as if a battle is being played out between communism and democracy in the pursuit of being Number One. However, so much is unknown. The two countries are both paranoid and intrigued with each other. Yet, beneath each governmental mask, there are citizens who are not that different from each other; both are just curious. I came to China to learn firsthand about its people and government, and to share this knowledge with others.
I wish to start this reflection paper by discussing the movie, Last Train Home, directed by Lixin Fan. I have always been interested in helping others and doing community service work. But, after watching that movie, I decided to ‘be the change I wish to see in the world,’ to borrow from Mohandas Gandhi. I acted immediately by bringing people together who were also inspired from watching that movie, which explored in depth the hardships faced by migrant factory workers in China. I then brought NYU Shanghai students together over the web by forming a Facebook group, and within less than a week, I was able to get together 15 dedicated members with the common goal of helping migrant factory workers. Our aim was not to just talk about the issue, but to actively fundraise and spread awareness. By week two, I had found a factory and gotten permission from its owner to visit. I recruited three of my members to come with me to investigate in person. Our goal was to talk with workers to figure out their needs and then raise money. I wanted to provide a long-term functionality to improve their workplace. It would be a win-win for the factory owner and the worker.
When we met with the workers and factory manager, we were shocked by the work conditions. Some of them work 14 hours a day, six days a week, and haven’t been home in one to six years; and even when they do go home for a visit, it is only for a week. Their families are poor, and many have a sick family member back home. One worker said she yearns for more education. Some of the workers have no form of entertainment and want an entertainment common room with a projector and screen to watch movies on. Others just want a heater in the production and living areas, so they can stop shivering while working in the cold season, and even a fan in the warm season to reduce the chance of heatstroke, which apparently is a common phenomenon at that factory. What shocked me the most is that these conditions are better than most of the factories in China, and yet still disturbing and terrible by American, or at least by my own, standards. My team and I are now sharing what we learned and going full force in brainstorming and coming up with ways to fulfill the workers’ needs. Time is running short with the end of the term near, but our compassion is just starting to blossom and there will be change. I am also hoping that students who are here for the rest of the school year will carry on this task.
Working with the factory manager and fundraising are the solutions to reaching our goal to help these workers. I personally raised 13,200 RMB (2,200 USD) for factory migrant workers in a matter of days from family and friends back home. The factory promised they would match any money we raised. If it is up to my team and I, the workers in this factory will no longer be shivering in the cold season and suffering heatstroke in the warm season. Improving these conditions, as well as providing a recreation room for fun and relaxation, will also lead to more productivity, which will make the factory owner happy as well. Win-win.
Moving on, one of the lectures, “The sexual revolution in twentieth century China” by James Farrer, reminded me of a long conversation I had with two ECNU students. It seems from the data that China is more ‘prude’ than the United States or Japan. They often do not date much in college and they have an insane amount of parental pressure to get married in their early 20’s to the best candidate. Even though Chinese people say that love comes first and is essential to a relationship, people are often pressured to marry someone with more economic backing, superseding the notion of love. I spoke with two Shanghai ECNU male college students about what they think about their culture and dating in China. They said it is viewed as bizarre to go out with someone of the opposite sex one-on-one in college, unless you are 'in love' already. I asked, “how does one fall in love then?” They looked at me bewildered.
Unlike the typical NYU student, the average Chinese student cannot afford alcohol, clubs or bars. They also think Shanghai is growing too fast, and they view nightclubs and bars as places where people just go for sex or to get into a fight. Chinese students experience competition in all aspects of their lives. They have to do well in school, so most don’t have time for nightlife. If they do well in school, they can get a good job, and with that good job they can buy an apartment and live a decent lifestyle. Without that, they are less likely to find a girlfriend or get married because the girl’s parents will not approve of them. Online dating is also very rampant and available in China. And in China, one can argue that the girl has the upper hand due to the uneven population ratios. There are around 20 to 30 million more men than women. In Shanghai at least, the groom’s family has to pay for the wedding, unlike in the U.S., so this is another huge family burden on the male side. Perhaps soon, people will prefer having girls to save money, as long as they don’t mind losing their family name, thus balancing out the uneven ratio in the future.
The lecture “Translating Between Operating Systems: Challenges and Opportunities for NYU Shanghai students-and some clues” by Dan Guttman reminded me a lot of my experiences and confusions in everyday social and commercial life in Shanghai. One of his quotes “fake markets; from which what follows? Is China all bargaining and discrimination-and is the US different?” (Guttman 13) reminded me of, and linked perfectly with, one of my field trips to a fake electronics market. It is a fascinating place, with many illegal actions taking place right next to police or security guards. My visit to this shady place was extremely informative. As I tried to bargain, I wondered whether or not Westerners are discriminated against, and if prices aren’t dropped as much for them. It was also interesting to ponder whether the stores and their products were legitimate or 100% fake and therefore a rip-off. And it seems that, if confronted, the government would at least pretend to try to put an end to the illegal actions. But, at the same time, the government needs markets like this for its economy to function.
I remember trying to take a photo of a stall and the clerk giving me the middle finger. In Chinese, he said, 'Don't take photos,' and immediately another clerk put clothing over the glass counter to hide the goods. At another stall, the store clerk said all the products were real and he let me take any picture I wanted. We witnessed the shadow economy first hand. It was fascinating and left me with a lot of questions that probably will never be answered (at least not on the record). I’m not sure if the United States has an equivalent to a Chinese electronics market full of fake, stolen or copyright-infringed goods, aside from the typical Haymarket’s in the United States or Canal Street in New York City.
Even the back gate on campus bewilders me. As learned from the lecture and my Global Connections class, retired city inspectors and laid off workers, who are employed by the government to keep the streets in order, are allowed to seize illegal vendor goods for themselves, even though they have no power to arrest anyone. So, this leads to abuse and terrible governmental regulation on some of the corrupt city inspectors. But, it also leads to fascinating under-the-table deals. The city inspectors know that unlicensed vendors are selling goods at the back gate and some other areas, but they allow it to occur because people want the vendors to be there. So, what ends up happening is that when the city inspectors are on duty, the unlicensed vendors agree to go away until the inspector is off for the day or on a break.
Most of China operates like this: it knows illegal, unlicensed action is occurring all over the place; however, in an strange way, the government and the street shadow economy coexist. It is another win-win situation because the government gets to say the streets are cleaned up of these illegal actions, while in reality they are still going on beneath the surface. The United States is not as lenient, which has its pros and cons. A lot can be learned from a more bottom-up approach than a top-down one. As professor Guttman points out in his lecture, street vendors are entrepreneurs; and nourishing the growth of the shadow economy, street culture and bottom-up approach often yields unforeseen innovation.
The Newsweek article, “The Rise of the Rest” by Fareed Zakaria, reiterates my introduction; the United States is paranoid of China coming into the world as a new power. The U.S. is afraid of the unknown, afraid of being knocked off the throne. The media at least makes it seem that there is room for only one real superpower; and that if China comes to power, the world will plunge into darkness. But, this notion obviously isn’t true. As stated “The post-American world will not be a world defined by the decline of America but rather the rise of everyone else […] the Immediacy and intensity of the 24-hour news cycle combine to produce constant (pessimistic) hype” (Zakaria 3). The article argues that this is the normal trend for powers to emerge and disappear. The United States has nothing to worry about. The world is relatively peaceful. The media exaggerates and reports on almost every negative event. The United States’ paranoia leads to false pre-emptive strikes, ridiculous military spending and world involvement.
The future is unknown but one aspect is certain: China is on the rise and the media is amplifying the anxiety felt by the United States and its allies. As Zakaria points out, “American Society can adapt to this new world. But can the American government?” (Zakaria 8). As a New York University student studying abroad in Shanghai, I cannot answer this question. But, what I can do is pass on what I have learned to my friends and family back in the States. Ignorance may be bliss, but I refuse to sit back and believe all that is disseminated to me. I’ll continue to be a global citizen by investigating and judging the situation for myself as a neutral party. But, after three months of living in Shanghai and exploring China, I at least welcome China into the new world order. After all, the world is becoming more and more globalized each day. China and the United States are more intertwined than they may want to admit.
Works Cited
Fan, Lixin, dir. Last Train Home. EyeSteelFilm, 2009. Film.
Farrer, James. "The Sexual Revolution in Twentieth Century China." Introduction to Contemporary China. NYU. Shanghai. Lecture.
Guttman, Dan. "Translating Between Operating Systems: Challenges and Opportunities for NYU Shanghai students-and some clues." Introduction to Contemporary China. NYU. Shanghai. 31 August 2011. Lecture.
Zakaria, Fareed. "The Rise of the Rest." Newsweek. (2008): 1-9. Web. 21 Nov. 2011.
