I was teaching a class of older Taiwanese students at the cram-school where I work this past week and one of the exercises for discussion involved deciding which of six fictional characters should be given a heart transplant. The other five were doomed to die. Before I go further, you need to understand that Taiwan is pretty homogenous, and people don't like to stand out. The school system doesn't really encourage individuality either. Anyway, in the discussion on who should get the heart, the students in my class didn't want to give the heart to any of the black characters. The reason they gave was that they thought black people were ugly. "I hate black people!" one girl (15) said with a nervous giggle.
Anyway, I got them to think about what they were saying and pointed out that different people make life more interesting. I also pointed out that saying something like that in South Africa, my motherland, wouldn't fly. In fact, you'd probably end up getting thumped or killed. They still couldn't understand. Seeing a black person is such a rarity for them.
What I took from this situation, was a feeling of gratitude that I have been able to grow up in such a racially sensitized country and in a country that is so culturally and racially diverse. South Africa is such and interesting place!
On another note, I can't wait to return to South Africa for my month's holiday before I fly back to Taiwan for another year of teaching. I intend to make a list of foods I want to eat and braai for a week straight.
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