28/05/2007
從英國學校說起
英國泰晤士報說, 有一些英國中小學正在減了收華人學生, 原因是很多英國家長都不願意把子女送入有太多華人的學校, 怕子女成為全校的少數族裔。
以前華人學生以香港人最多, 現在, 大陸富起來, 不少家長都想子女放洋, 千方百計要浸咸水, 英國是其中一個首選, 現在華人學生已佔了英國外籍學童的40%。
原來, 人多真的很可怕的。可怕到不想自己的子女和你的子女一起上學。是啊, 人人生而平等, 人人有書讀都是權利, 不過有人有權可以選擇和誰一起讀書, 或是不和誰一起讀書。其實, 情況就像香港人不想和新移民一起上學一樣。到底, 這個是華人/新移民有問題, 還是英國人/香港人歧視人?
我都做人做了一段不長不短的日子, 都叫做見過下個世界一點點, 但是在種族問題上, 基本上都來來去去走不出以下兩個observations: 就係, 一、 其實世界上是沒有種族歧視的, 只有有錢人歧視沒有錢的人, 而剛好沒有錢和資源的大多數人, 都是有顏色的種群; 二、如果你上一代或上兩三四五代都沒有錢, 到你這一代即使發了財立了品, 其他人依然會在背後或者當面說: 「佢阿爸/阿爺以前係咩咩咩之嘛。 」, 即是說, 你依然被人指指點點, 世界有幾多人能夠英雄漠問出處?
這個情況不只存在於個人與個人, 而且可以是整體對整體, 形成stereotyping。那可以是自覺和不自覺的。自覺的, 即故意的, 很容易有歧視成份, 不談, 都話係專登囉, 仲有咩好講。講下不自覺的。
在幾個非政府組織(NGO)工作了一段也是不長不短的時間, 也和不少其他團體合作過, 卻發現, 日日倡議世界和平人人生而平等的機構, 其實也有不少不自覺的steretyping/歧視。
大陸同事和歐洲同事來港開會工幹, 同胞住北角的華僑賓館, 外老住冇四星都有三星。(這個我想了好久, 都想不到一個可以justify的理由)
英國人始終惡曬, 最叻就係話你英文唔好。仲有, 你拍的照片沒有"European sense", 所以, 最後找了個歐洲人來拍。(英文唔好? 你係native, 都唔等於你英文好過我, 仲有就係, 我地要表達的message係要比七百萬港人十幾億同胞睇, 我為咩事要同你鬥英文? 你學下中文唔好? European Sense, 請界定一下什麼是European Sense, 係咪要將一個本來在田間玩得好開心既小朋友, 拍到衫又冇得著, 喊到口水鼻涕都流埋咁先叫有你要果d sense?)
當然, 也有人說過, 其實NGO本身就源於西方, 在非洲中南美洲甚至亞洲「濟世為懷」, 其實是另一種殖民, 製造了另一種階級和歧視。
好似講遠左, 講返轉頭和誰一起讀書的問題。正正認識有一些NGO中高層, 要見報時同記者講, 我地應該要令新移民有一個更好的環境去乜乜襪襪, 轉頭送曬d仔女去英國, 然後就話英國種族歧視其實好嚴重。
我都唔再覺得咁樣有太大問題了, 反正這個世界一直都充滿自相矛盾。有時候問自己, 有冇做過d類似既事, 我可以好坦白咁認有, 而且, 邊個冇? 我都鍾意去旅行, 搭飛機我都想坐頭等, 不過我都知飛機飛得多會製造大量二氧化碳, 令地球升溫。有時間我都想搭火車, 不過, 依加搭飛機仲平過坐火車, Oasis飛倫敦係二千蚊, 由倫敦搭火車去法國都係咁上下, 搭easyjet係兩英鎊, 我係小市民, 你話喇, 點揀? 就算係讀書, 如果我有仔女, 有錢, 睇怕, 我都會送佢出去讀書, 教統局真係教壞人, 自己都做過香港式教育的受害者, 有得選擇就唔好再害下一代。就算去到英國比人歧視, 對個細都係好, 因為, 佢會知道呢個世界唔係人咁品, 最緊要自強不息, 救唔返個地球都唔好做殺佢既主腦。
篇文講到亂曬龍, 唔講喇, 都係返歸, 飲返碗阿媽靚湯先。
18:00 發表於 我們的地球儀 | 永久網址 | Email this
留言
Dear Miss Chow,
First-time commenter, long-time reader.
You are spot on about the "rich" discriminates against the "poor". The (western) media tend to magnify the racial, religious aspects of SUCH dsicrimination or even in some cases "riots" while the rioters only happened to be ethnic minorities and have another religion different from the "mainstream". But the whole lower socio-economic status of this group of people were hardly mentioned in reporting. Examples are the Cronulla riot in Sydney, Malaysian Chinese in Malaysia, in Rwanda, Iraq. I even tend to believe "ethnic cleansing" of the Jews during Holocaust were stemmed from the jealousy, ineqaulity in terms of income distribution and marginalisation of the other low SES group.
It is utterly laughable the western media has this tendency to film the polarisation within a foreign country. Example is reporting the "economic boom" in China with shots of Shanghai in the background in the opening and probably like you said, a child with a runny nose in a pair of too worn-out pants next with no mentioning of labour exploitation behind such economic boom to meet the demands of foreign investment etc.
發表人: ta | 28/05/2007
你講起NGO的xyz，令我想起以前俾總部話唔夠global 的往事，還有成個office用英文開會，用好多詞彙講解成個office都知道什麼是揮春之類，只因office裡有個西人...
發表人: percy | 31/05/2007
As the Beatles's song goes, "We all live in a Yellow Submarine" and the environment has limited one's horizon. Some people are living in a bigger submarine and others are living in a smaller one, it is only that we are not aware of it unless we have been to a bigger submarine.
When I was in HK, I am surprised to know the local newspaper is not reporting as much international news as their English counterparts. More emphasis is placed on local news instead.
Language is just a means to gain another horizon, and it is not limited to English alone.
發表人: CL | 31/05/2007
The school district even goes as far as to limit the number of students from an ethnic group in any one school in San Francisco.
Six years ago three Chinese American parents sought to dissolve a decade-old consent decree. In the landmark case Ho vs. SFUSD, the parents took the San Francisco Unified School District to court in a class-action suit. They alleged the district’s 40 to 45 percent cap on any one racial group unfairly kept their children out of the city’s most prestigious and competitive schools. Since Chinese Americans students made up the largest proportion of the district’s students, they were the group most likely to be affected by the race cap.
發表人: Matt | 01/06/2007
Is race or ethnicity that important? I think the rich and powerful around the world have more in common with each other than their fellow countrymen who must toil to make ends meet. Chance are the children of the rich and important would all go to similar schools, have similar tastes, speak the same language (presumably English) and have a lot of expensive toys to play with in life. The only thing missing for those rich 'Chinamen'/'Chinawomen" is their English proficiency - or the lack of it. Not for long, though. It is not too dififculut to learn a foreign language when you're young. By the time they graduate, you will see little difference. The privileged, period. Who says Communism is dead and buried?
發表人: Vincent | 01/06/2007
多謝各位留言。我還有一些觀點想修正, 但時間關係日後再討論。不過你們的留言又啟發了我思考另一個問題, 而且最近也不斷凝繞我的, 就是語言所帶來的權力。 的確, 今時今日,英語是強勢, 有一口流利的牛津/紐約英語就更是強勢中的強勢, 任何人都會對你留有幾分尊重。相反, 如果你講singlish, inglish, 甚至是cantoglish, 就成了次等。太可怕了, 人的口音, 定了人的身份。
不過我最近常想起的, 是語言的滅亡。最近對澳門的土生族群十分感興趣, 他們可以算是世上獨一無二的群體, 有自己的語言, 有很獨到而深厚的文化。可是澳門有個太光芒的大佬香港, 而澳門本身又愈來愈中國化, 這個社群愈來愈邊緣化。前幾天, 我問了一位土生朋友, 你怕不怕你們絕種? 討論如何, 留待下回我們見面時再分解。這將是一個有趣的討論!
發表人: learnedfriend | 09/06/2007
Immigrant parents thrive to send their kids to schools where students predominantly speak the native tongue--English. Why? They feel the strain to assimilate, not only in the appearance, but in the way, the tone, the accent, they speak. Looking back and reflecting upon "My Fair Lady", however absurd and luaghable it seem be, second generation immigrants face the same to be part of a mainstream society.
發表人: Matt | 11/06/2007
I am thinking of "My Fair Lady" too. An opposite trend, neverthelss, is visible as BCC's reporters have become more diversified with different ethnic groups. Even their accent is a bit different than what they used to be.
I am, somehow, a Macanese Chinese, though have no association with 土生. I left Macau right after my high school. My identity is confusing, even for myself.
發表人: CL | 11/06/2007
I should say Macau Chinese. Absolutely out of my mind in my writing.
發表人: CL | 11/06/2007