Chinese Expressions on the Streets of New York

Hopefully Americans have recently gained a little more understanding of China and the Chinese people they love and hate.

Since Jan.17, the screens in Times Square in New York City have debuted the video “Experience China—Important Figures,” a 30-second presentation of important figures in China, including the smiling on-screen visages of Yuan Longping, Huang Yongyu, Yang Liwei, Jack Ma, Yao Ming, Deng Yaping and Lang Lang. Many foreign media outlets have noticed the peculiar arrangement and its deeper implications. “Chinese Red” sparkles in the most popular part of New York — Times Square, one of the things that mark an important milestone in Sino-U.S. relations. Across the Pacific, the two giants confront each other, scrutinizing and reassessing their understanding of the other.

President Hu, the most important Chinese figure of all, recently made a state visit to the United States. With formal and ceremonious treatment, Hu began his visits across the country. At a welcoming event on the White House’s South Lawn, Hu smiled and said, “The Chinese and American partnership should be based on mutual respect, mutual benefit, joint efforts to meet challenges and the extensive involvement of both our peoples.”

The image he was trying to convey, and the words he was trying to express differ widely from American perception of what was once China. Foreigners perceive China through the lens of the Cultural Revolution, Mao’s Little Red Book and the “blue ants” (a term coined by French journalist Robert Guillain). They also perceive China through the overly popular, almost monotonous repetitions of pandas, Chinese embroidery art, men’s pigtails from the Qing dynasty, women with bound feet and the environmentally polluting but cheap Chinese products.

That was China in history, and while this continues to be a part of China, it does not represent China in its entirety. For various reasons, the Chinese and their stories have, to a great extent, been concealed, deliberately selected and misunderstood over a long period of time. The Western interests and biases toward China are both extremely strong. Unfortunately, the stories have been polished without further thought and demonized over time. Therefore, these stories cannot be truthfully portraying what China is: at times China seems weak, and at times it seems strong. Sometimes we see the image of a rising China, and sometimes we see a threat from the East. Abroad, the Chinese image is blurry and speculative.

　

Because of mistrust and a blurry perception of China, China has a lot to lose when it comes to mutual understanding and communication. The passing of the Olympic torch before the Beijing Olympics was obstructed in certain Western countries, which surprised the Chinese people and caused them pain. Fu Ying, the Chinese ambassador to the United Kingdom, said with heavy heart, “It must have dawned on many … that simply a sincere heart was not enough to ensure China’s smooth integration with the world. The wall that stands in China’s way to the world is thick.”

　

The East and the West, China and the U.S., have always been oceans apart, each separated by thousands of years of unique cultural developments and differing social systems and ideologies that lead to different decision making. Every separation is a thick great wall. These “walls,” these misunderstandings, won’t be broken apart in a day. But regardless of how thick the walls are, we can’t close the window to the world. Only communication leads to understanding, and understanding leads to trust, and trust leads to bilateral wins.

Peaceful developments are in the heart of every Chinese person. China needs this video to influence the world, diplomatic visits to discuss worldly matters and the Olympics and the World Expo to demonstrate its success. Last but not least, every citizen needs to sincerely and honestly interact with others. China needs to steadily and robustly improve the well-being of its citizens, focus on its people, strive for sustainable and realizable developments and be persistent in moving forward in its reforms …

Only by being part of the world in every aspect can China reduce the misunderstandings and re-establish trust.