You want to be considered “Canadian”? Stop acting “foreign”!

Asians being perceived as foreigners, even if they have been in Canada (or the US, Australia, etc) for generations is common. But has anyone ever thought of why? Other than the fact that Asians aren’t white or the fact that the vast majority are either immigrants or second generation? Maybe it’s because SOME people don’t want to act a certain way? You know, if some people, especially people who may be distinct in one way or another do something, people outside of that group may automatically believe that EVERYONE in that group is just like that.

Being treated one way doesn’t necessarily depend on what you look like, but how you act. Remember the musical/play, My Fair Lady/Pygmalion? Eliza Doolittle’s transition from flower girl to “lady” wasn’t because she was dressed well, but because of the way she spoke and acted. If it was all about appearances, Henry Higgins would have finished his “experiment”as soon as Eliza was cleaned up and out of her flower girl clothes!

Right now, the rain hasn’t fallen on the plain just yet. I’m actually not even sure when it will fall. People who question whether there’s a “real” Canadian identity, people who question why it’s necessary to adapt to the local cultures, etc, aren’t really helping much. And yes, even if you don’t assimilate/integrate/whatever you want to call it, you need to have an idea of what people are talking about. Don’t want to? Why on earth are you here (and regardless of what some people say, these people DO exist…I know a few who’ve been in English-speaking Canada longer than they were in the old country and STILL sound like they’re fresh off the plane. And these people aren’t older. They’re like 30! Look, if you came to this country at the age of 11 or 12, I expect a bit of an accent, but HALTING ENGLISH?? C’mon!)? And if you were born here, what on earth did your parents tell you? Did they brainwash you? It also doesn’t help that some people, especially the immigrant generation (and this is really common with Hong Kong Chinese in my circle), treat anyone who isn’t from their culture as foreigners (and some of these immigrant parents DO brainwash their children). Yes, this includes white Canadians who have been in the country for decades (though this may be out of habit, but still). You know, if you treat people one way, expect that treatment back. Thanks.

(BTW, I would like to see other people’s comments too.)

What exactly is a Banana?

Racialicious has an interesting post on Bananas today.  And I don’t mean the fruit. I mean people who are “yellow on the outside, white inside.”  But is there only one kind of Banana?  Or are there several?  Can a FOB (is this term even accurate anymore?  Shouldn’t it be FOP or Fresh off the Plane?) be a Banana?  I mean, most Hong Kongers and Koreans, at least those who live in a western country have had some training in western classical music (usually in the form of piano or violin).  Would even the most old country of Hong Kongers or Koreans there be at least a little banana?  Or is classical music no longer a western “thing”?  After all, most white/multigeneration Canadians/Americans (dont’ know about Aussies, Kiwis or Brits) don’t send their kids to piano at a young age.  In fact, the only white kids I know who started piano at say, age 5 or younger are of Eastern European descent (and no more than third generation). Do you have to date a white person?  Take certain courses? Play hockey, if you’re Canadian?  What about all those Hong Kong Canadians who not only send their children to old line private schools, but also seek membership at country clubs that would have blackballed them decades ago?  Maybe a better term for them is YASP (”Yellow” Anglo-Saxon Protestant…of course, they aren’t ethnically Anglo-Saxon, but we’re talking about a cultural perspective here.  I mean, Grace Kelly was Irish Catholic, so she wasn’t WASP either.)

I’d say I’m a Banana because:

• Barely read/write Chinese (I speak fluent Cantonese though…..pretty much accentless, because my grandmother took care of me when I was little, and I learned to talk from here)
• I don’t really have the baby voice/Hong Kong mall rat voice that is really common with women under 40, though I sometimes speak with the equally bad “valley girl” mall rat voice (like, I’m soooooo sorry, okay?)
• Went to a university that the so-called “majority” sees as being “very white” (ummm, no, the school is NOT “very” white, at least not compared to smaller schools.  It’s only “very white” compared to places like the University of Toronto, UBC and Waterloo.)
• Took lots of drama and social science courses rather than sciences or even business (I was one of two Asian students in my high school drama classes (out of a class of between 15 and 20) and probably the only one in my year who actually majored in the subject in university.
• Didn’t highlight my hair in high school (the majority of the Chinese kids who highlighted their hair at my high school were foreign students or recent immigrants).
• Didn’t (and still don’t) follow Cantopop bands or HK movie stars…unless you count the few days when the Edison Chen scandal hit the news EVERYWHERE
• My boyfriend isn’t Asian
• I don’t play badminton (the badminton teams at my high school were OVERWHELMINGLY Chinese…I think there was only like one white girl on the team)
• I’m not obsessed with big brand names
• I didn’t live in an area that is “seen” as a Chinese suburb (i.e. Markham, Ontario)
• Most of my closer friends aren’t Chinese
• I do volunteer work for non-ethnic-specific organizations

But the following are kind of questionable:

• I played piano from ages 4 to 17
• I actually SPEAK Cantonese
• I’m fairly familiar with Chinese (or at least Hong Kong) culture
• A manicurist in Hong Kong didn’t believe that I was CBC - she thought that I went to school abroad at a young age (i.e. high school) - probably because of my lack of an accent

I also don’t understand why some people are so critical of the banana (or Oreo, apple, coconut, etc) identity.  A person’s identity is what he/she chooses! And no, I don’t think it’s derogatory, as one of the commentators has indicated.  It’s just part of me.

Is this dude just being sarcastic?

Found this online. Not sure if he’s joking or not…he might be…or he might not.  I actually replied to his post, so I hope it’s approved.  Whether or not it is, here’s my reaction:

I’m all for integration/assimilation to mainstream culture, but only if the mainstream culture isn’t about food that can kill you.  I’m not for assimilating into a diet that is just about awful.  Chinese food found in most North American towns isn’t the “real thing”, which, I guess the poster doesn’t realize (unless, of course, he’s completely joking).  In order to get the “real thing” you have to go to cities with not only a large Chinese population, but also one where the population is somewhat more “sophisticated” or “cultured”.  This means the city should have decent museums, galleries, theatre life, etc…Otherwise, you probably  won’t have the clientele.  In any case, if American/Canadian Chinese food were “real” Chinese food, I certainly wouldn’t be skinny, now would I?  In any case, the stuff is gross.  Please people, note that chop suey is FAKE, FAKE, FAKE (considering it’s mostly MSG anyway).  Egg rolls are fake, but spring rolls are real.  At most Chinese restaurants in Toronto (and Vancouver and San Francisco), spring rolls are dipped in Worscestershire sauce or vinegar (vinegar is more Vietnamese, I think), not plum sauce.  Plum sauce is for barbecued duck.  Real fried rice isn’t cooked with soy sauce and always contains eggs.   You’ll also find lots of steamed dishes, and steamed food is really healthy.  Oh, and outside of the US, fast food containers aren’t cardboard, but foam, foil or plastic.

The only westernized Asian fare that is decent is fusion anyway.  Even Hong Kong style western fare is comme ci, comme ça, though better than American style Chinese food.