Chinese? 是中国人吗？

Source: johnsonwkchoi.business.blog

I am one of the approximately seventy million Chinese living outside China, most of us are not even born in China. Yet, we are caught between trying to be good citizens of our adopted country. The realisation that non-Chinese in our adopted western country always see us as Chinese can be very frustrating to us Chinese. Even when our European fellow citizens are our work colleagues and even friends, we Chinese are expected to behave in their western ways.

我是生活在中国以外的大约七千万中国人中的一员，我们中的大多数人甚至都不是在中国出生的。然而，我们在努力成为我们收养国家的好公民之间陷入了困境。意识到在我们采用的西方国家的非中国人总是将我们视为中国人，这对我们中国人来说可能非常令人沮丧。即使我们的欧洲同胞是我们的同事甚至朋友，我们中国人也应该以西方的方式行事。

Before I went to England for my University studies, I never felt like I was a China-Chinese. I am a Singaporean of Chinese descent and my Singaporean friends include many other races living in Singapore together - Indians, Malays, Europeans, Indonesians and Thais, just to mention a few. It was only when I arrived in England for my further studies that I found people around me treating me as another China-born Chinese. Suddenly, I had a desire to search for my ancestral roots and later to become proud of my culture and my Chinese upbringing. It was at that time, some twenty years ago, that I began to be interested in Chinese history and I fervently followed my quest for learning Mandarin.

在去英国读大学之前，我从来没有觉得自己是中国人。我是华裔新加坡人，我的新加坡朋友包括许多一起生活在新加坡的其他种族——印度人、马来人、欧洲人、印度尼西亚人和泰国人，仅举几例。直到我到英国继续深造时，我才发现周围的人把我当作另一个在中国出生的中国人。突然间，我渴望寻找我的祖籍，然后为我的文化和我的中国教养感到自豪。正是在那个时候，大约二十年前，我开始对中国历史产生兴趣，并热切地追寻着我对普通话学习的追求。

I soon discover that the Chinese race had been bullied by the western countries for far too long in China’s history. It is sad to read about the history of overseas Chinese over the years. So many were discriminated, killed, bullied, just because they have Chinese roots. To me, God made the human race and there should be only one race, regardless of the colour of the skin. Our blood are all red and God loves all our souls equally.

我很快发现，在中国的历史上，华人被西方国家欺负太久了。读到这些年华侨的历史，令人唏嘘。这么多人被歧视、杀害、欺负，只因为他们有中国血统。对我来说，上帝创造了人类，无论肤色如何，都应该只有一个种族。我们的血都是红色的，上帝平等地爱我们所有的灵魂。

Let us join our hands in prayer that the non-Chinese will be able to accept those of Chinese roots as just a member of the human race. Let us pray for the day when racial discrimination will be a thing of the past.

将能够接受那些有中国血统的人只是人类的一员。让我们为种族歧视成为过去的那一天祈祷。

The following comments are received from Tony Pang and edited by E. Cheong.

以下评论来自 Tony Pang，由 E. Cheong 编辑。

My thoughts on Chinese migrants and the Chinese diaspora are as follows:

我对中国移民和中国侨民的看法如下:

(1) Malaysian Chinese are children of Chinese migrants who were escaping from abject poverty and a crumbling social order arising from feudalism and colonialism.

(1）马来西亚华人是中国移民的孩子，他们正在摆脱封建主义和殖民主义带来的赤贫和崩溃的社会秩序。

(2) We were colonised, displaced and uprooted with our way of family life, culture, religion and language disrupted and in some cases supplanted by the colonialist.
(2) 我们的家庭生活方式、文化、宗教和语言被殖民者打乱，在某些情况下被殖民主义者取代，我们被殖民、流离失所和连根拔起。

(3) Although the colonialists have now left us, the legacies of their conquests linger on. They are still in control of our minds, believes, and financial systems through their media and world financial institutions. It would take generations for us to break free and to heal.
(3) 虽然殖民主义者现在已经离开了我们，但他们征服的遗产仍然存在。他们仍然通过他们的媒体和世界金融机构控制着我们的思想、信仰和金融系统。我们需要几代人才能挣脱和治愈。

(4) The Chinese diaspora have suffered oppressions, discriminations and outright massacres in many countries.

(4) 华侨在许多国家遭受压迫、歧视和公然屠杀。

(5) The Kiwis and Aussies white occupier-colonialists have a history of oppressing Chinese who were initially brought to. New Zealand and Australia to work in the gold mines. When the whites saw the skills and diligence of the Chinese, they feared that the Chinese would overtake them financially and numerically. To sabotage and preempt the hardworking Chinese, the political white masters introduced special poll taxes and restrictions on the immigration of Chinese.

(5) 新西兰和澳大利亚的白人占领殖民主义者有压迫最初被带到这里的华人的历史。新西兰和澳大利亚在金矿工作。当白人看到中国人的技术和勤奋时，他们担心中国人会在经济和人数上超过他们。为了破坏和抢占勤劳的华人，政治白人大师引入了特殊的人头税和对华人移民的限制。

Watch: https://youtu.be/2fYsE5eb94c

(6) In the United Sates of America, the Chinese were treated even worse. From the years 1860s, Chinese labour was imported on a massive scale to build the 3,077 km of the American transcontinental railway line. The US Congress also introduced the Page Act in 1875, which banned Chinese women from emigrating from China to the United States. In 1882, the American Chinese Exclusion Act prohibited Chinese migration to American soil.

(6) 在美国，华人受到的待遇更差。从 1860 年代开始，中国劳动力被大规模输入，以建造 3,077 公里的美国横贯大陆铁路线。美国国会也在 1875 年出台了佩奇法案，禁止中国妇女从中国移民到美国。 1882年，美国排华法案禁止华人移民到美国领土。

USA: The impact of the Chinese Exclusion Act 1882, https://youtu.be/FbBatK7JWYc

(7) The fate of overseas Chinese in some Asian countries were no better. In the Philippines, thousands of Chinese were massacred by Spanish and their Filipino allies for fear that the overseas Chinese were plotting rebellion against the colonists.

(7) 亚洲部分国家华侨的命运也好不到哪里去。在菲律宾，数以千计的华人被西班牙及其菲律宾盟友屠杀，因为他们担心华侨正在策划反抗殖民者的叛乱。

(8) In Indonesia, ethnic Chinese were killed by Dutch colonies and natives due to economic rivalry. In 1965, a coup-de-tat instigated and backed by the American CIA, up to a million overseas Chinese were murdered by Suharto’s henchman. Chinese schools closed and properties owned the Chinese were confiscated.

(8)在印度尼西亚，由于经济竞争，华人被荷兰殖民地和当地人杀害。 1965年，在美国中央情报局策动和支持的政变中，多达100万华侨被苏哈托的心腹杀害。华人学校关闭，华人财产被没收。

(9) In Malaysia, there were anti-Chinese riots and many Chinese killed in the process.

(9) 在马来西亚，发生了反华骚乱，许多华人在此过程中丧生。

(10) In Vietnam, circa 1975, up to a million ethnic Chinese were harassed, persecuted and forced to flee in rickety boats to neighbouring countries.

(10) 大约 1975 年，在越南，多达 100 万华人受到骚扰、迫害，并被迫乘坐摇摇晃晃的船只逃往邻国。

In my opinion, no matter where we are, it is important to be in touch with our cultural roots, language and values.

在我看来，无论我们身在何处，重要的是要了解我们的文化根源、语言和价值观。

The Taoist-Confucian-Buddhist values of filial piety, integrity, modesty, should always be cultivated and retained. Always be guided by the Confucius dictum - Cultivate self, establish family, govern the country well before spread peace to the world.

孝、正、信的道家、儒家、佛价值观，应始终培养和保留。始终以孔子的格言为指导——修身、立家、治国，方能平天下。

At times there are conflicts of interests and loyalty between one’s country of residence and our ancestor’s land. In this respect, we have to look the matter from the position based on principles. As an example, when the western governments are ganging up to demonise, smear and spread lies about China, it is our duty and role to correct the misrepresentations.

有时，居住国和我们祖先的土地之间会出现利益和忠诚的冲突。对此，我们要站在原则的立场上看问题。例如，当西方政府联合起来妖魔化、抹黑和散布有关中国的谎言时，纠正错误陈述是我们的职责。

Currently, we can see clearly the main contradiction in the world is the struggle of China against USA.

当前，我们可以清楚地看到，世界上的主要矛盾是中美斗争。

The Chinese legitimate right to develop their country to bring peace and prosperity to their people should be supported by all the peace loving citizens of this world.

中国发展自己的国家，为人民带来和平与繁荣的正当权利，应该得到世界上所有爱好和平的公民的支持。

For more about the Chinese Exclusion Act in the USA, watch https://youtu.be/SqLuVnSrYHc .

For 61 years, the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act barred Chinese laborers from entering the United States and prevented those who did from becoming naturalized citizens. Applicants were questioned in detail at US ports of entry about their families and villages in China. This rich, biographical information is now accessible in Seattle, housed at the local office of the National Archives. Hear from National Archives’ volunteer Trish Hackett Nicola about the valuable information found in these files, and from Cathy Lee about how the files helped her uncover her great aunt’s story.

61 年来，1882 年的《排华法案》禁止中国劳工进入美国，并阻止那些进入美国的人成为归化公民。申请人在美国入境口岸被详细询问他们在中国的家庭和村庄。这些丰富的传记信息现在可以在西雅图访问，位于国家档案馆的当地办公室。听听国家档案馆的志愿者 Trish Hackett Nicola 讲述在这些文件中发现的宝贵信息，以及 Cathy Lee 讲述这些文件如何帮助她揭开她姑姑的故事。