The example of this that sticks in my mind the most is a passage in the book in which he discusses the relationship between the Great Wall and China’s ethnic minorities. Nowadays, the Great Wall is a symbol of national pride—though it has not always been so. After viewing a TV commercial in which members of China’s ethnic minorities appeared on the Great Wall singing “Love My China,” Hessler’s response was: "Your China built that wall to keep you people out" (p. 192). For him, showing ethnic minorities in China (e.g., Tibetans, Uighurs, Mongolians, Zhuang, Dai, etc.) celebrating the Great Wall was the height of hypocrisy on the part of the Han majority, as historically those minorities have not always been well treated by the majority. However, he then goes on to suggest that Americans are equally hypocritical in celebrating Thanksgiving, noting that "children [in the U.S. celebrate] Thanksgiving with traditional stories about the wonderful friendship with the Pilgrims and the Indians,” which he apparently believes distorts the sad history of the relationship between the white majority and the Indians. He then proceeds to assert:
Both countries were arrogant enough to twist their greatest failures into sources of pride. And now that I thought about it, I remembered seeing Indians dance more than a few times on American television
I have to say that after reading this, I couldn’t help thinking that by so writing Hessler showed himself to be a typical American liberal—“China and America aren’t that much different; they’re both irredeemably racist societies!”—but perhaps I am being uncharitable.
Having said this about Hessler’s observations, I hasten to emphasize that I would not belittle the inexcusable ways in which the American Indians were treated by whites—the taking of their land, the killing of Indian women and children in wartime, the broken treaties, the lack of appreciation for anything positive in the Indians’ culture (Perhaps it is easier for me to say this since I have a very distant Indian ancestor; however, unlike a certain senatorial candidate in Massachusetts I don’t claim to be an Indian!). Nevertheless, I can’t help feeling that Hessler is taking his point a little too far. For one thing, I don’t believe that most Americans (children or adults) view Thanksgiving as a celebration of the supposed harmonious relationship between the European settlers (and their descendants) and the American Indians. For most, I suspect, the story of the Pilgrims and the Indians is simply a nice story about a very American holiday. I think he reads too much into this.
Perhaps more significantly, I would argue that the attitude of the white majority in the U.S. towards the country’s original inhabitants is rather different from that of the Han towards China’s ethnic minorities. Certainly, in the last few decades at least there has been a change in attitude in the U.S. For example, whereas in the past Hollywood almost always portrayed the Indians as the villains, the more recent trend in American films is to depict the Indians as the good guys and most whites as bad guys (Dances with Wolves anyone?). Awareness of the historical wrongs done to the Indians is pretty widespread in the U.S. it seems to me, thanks to books, movies, and so on. Moreover, it seems there has been something of a revival of the old “noble savage” theme in American culture (which actually dates back to the 18th century or so), with the Indians being recruited, among other things, as symbols of the virtues of environmentalism (Indians live in harmony with nature, you see). Beyond that, there have been admittedly belated efforts by the government to address some of the past wrongs done to the Indians through restitution payments and the provision of governmental services.
Contrast all of this with China. My impression is that many Han Chinese tend to view the country’s ethnic minorities as exotic but also rather backward. The feeling seems to be that these minorities should be grateful for all that the Chinese government has tried to do to bring them “civilization.” Perhaps the most striking contrast with the U.S. is this: in the U.S., many Indian tribes (though not all) have their own self-governed reservations, with their own schools, courts, and police. The tribal governments governing these reservations have been granted a certain degree of sovereignty, especially vis-à-vis State governments. On the other hand, in China there are a number of “autonomous regions” and the like with large minority populations, and yet the minorities living in these areas do not enjoy much autonomy, nor is it likely this will change soon.
In short, I don’t think the Great Wall and Thanksgiving are morally equivalent, despite what Hessler says. The U.S. has much to be ashamed of in its past treatment of its indigenous peoples and no doubt more can be done in compensation, but I think the situation of America’s native peoples is not exactly analogous to that of China’s ethnic minorities. Thus, I find Hessler’s analysis to be somewhat simplistic. Instead, perhaps it would be better to view the Thanksgiving story as an example of what can happen when we act according to "the angels of our better nature."
Note to my readers: This post was originally intended for Thanksgiving Day, but technical difficulties prevented its posting until today. I offer my apologies for the delay.
Image from mychinaconnection.com