Session 10 - May 9 (Symposium on Xinjiang)

[Jessica Ng]

Funny you should mention hospitality: as I waited for my friend to buy tickets for a boat ride (we were in Astana/Nur-Sultan), a woman sitting next to me started up a conversation, in very broken English. In fact, she kept nudging and bugging her niece to use their translating app. Long story short, fewer than 20 minutes into meeting her, she invited me and my friend to her house for dinner. Unfortunately, we couldn't take her up on the offer, but it reminded me of stories I've heard of the generosity and hospitality of Middle Eastern cultures, especially when it comes to meals.

I agree, it's important for us to try our best to impart to our students some of these values of treating others well and making them feel welcome, especially in a district where so many of them are from other places.

[Jessica Ng]

Hi Meghann! It's tricky, indeed, knowing when and how to teach about difficult topics. While the XUAR issue is too abstract for 4-year-olds to comprehend, they do hear (inadvertently or not) about events and subjects closer to home like Black Lives Matter and viral videos of race-based confrontations. My opinion is that even very young children can understand and start to talk about things like racism if it is brought to them in a way they understand. For example, one Black History Month activity we did was guessing what whether the insides of different-colored eggs would be the same or different (you'd be surprised how many young children have never pondered such a thing). After cracking the eggs open for them to see, I segued into a discussion about the ways we all look different, but love to play, learn, sing, etc. all the same. Hands-on experiences like these help them better make sense and form opinions of (in)justice at their level.

[Jessica Ng]

Ok, I promise this is my last post about muqam! An ethnomusicologist friend of mine tuned me in to this resource, The Music of Central Asia, a companion web site to a book about musical life and traditions of that region. The web site is full of audio and video recordings, lyrics, translations, and more. Of course, there is a chapter on muqam with a great clip of a suite that features dancing. It reminds me of some Slavic or Eastern European dances, where the women seem to float through their choreography. It would be interesting to do a movement study with students in a dance class, perhaps to talk about shapes and levels that can be formed with the body or the way we can travel in different directions when we dance.

[Cynthia Stults]

Chad, I think that your idea is exactly right. The suppression of information is the biggest threat to people. Think about how much worse the plight of the Uighurs would be if the limited information we have didn't make it out of China. The people in China need this information so they can rise up in defense of fellow citizens and in defense of human rights. Sadly, I don't know if there are enough otuside sanctions that could make China back down and change their stance on human rights. I think, in the end, it will have to come from within the citizenry who decide that they are done and want better for themselves and their country. The only way China can prevent this is to, like you said, control the flow of information. I am continuously surprised that the government continues to allow citizens to come to the U.S., stay for 1-2 years, and then return. I can only hope that the Chinese families that I have been in contact with and taught, can take their positive experiences home, and share them, share the differences in individual freedoms. Hearing about the reeducation centers, I do worry that while the parents of my students may be permitted to keep the knowledge and skills they gained while studying/working here, but what about the other knowledge? How do they stifle the information that they were exposed to while they were here? WIth cell phone cameras and social media, there are more sources of information now, than ever before. That the goverment is able to control as much informationas it does, with the technology and platforms available is no small feat. I agree that we need to show our students that information is not an automatic right, and can be restricted, but also that they need to look closely and carefully at the sources of information. China still disseminates information. Are the citizens able to evaluate the sources of information provided to them? We need our students to critically examine all information, even that coming from our own government.

[Betsy Ures]

Mario, your idea for students to do research on different types of injustices around the world seems like an appropriate way to be inclusive while working with the limitations of time in our school year. I think my elementary students could benefit from using multiple sources like  photography, art, music, and poetry in addition to research. Thank you for sharing this project idea. As we are teaching students about injustice, we are preparing them for a life of awareness that has become the new norm.

[Betsy Ures]

Many things stuck with me about what Dr. Nurnisa Kurban shared about her experiences. One that I have been thinking about is the treatment of Uyghur people traveling inside and outside the country. She shared that her traveling documents include a label of Uyghur and it greatly restricted her treatment in traveling and upon arrival to China. As I am thinking about the racist structures that exist in the United States, it is critical that we continue to analyze the ways that groups of people have been forced to live under increased scrutiny. At times I wish I taught middle school or high school in order to have more complex discussions on types of injustices. However, even with elementary students, we can use the subject of social students to start conversations about creating fair and empowering systems for all. Looking to less "mainstream" sources will be essential for preparing students to be well informed. 

[Betsy Ures]

I also love using art to create a deeper understanding of a topic. I found some poetry from a detained Uyghur poet: "Tarim" . It might be helpful to you as it was for me.

I Believe (我相信)

I believe
They say there are two “cannot-leaves”*
The Han Chinese can’t leave the minorities
The minorities can’t leave the Han
What a lovely slogan
What honeyed poetry

I believe
When the hotel refuses me
And I sleep in February 7 Square
The earth and the sky are the same
The stars are just as gorgeous
That fruit has no race

I believe
I speak good Chinese
In Chinese I clearly explain to the police
That I am Chinese
I believe that the hotel refusing Uyghurs
Has nothing to do with whether I speak Chinese

I believe
I can’t leave the police
I can’t leave my ID
I can’t leave Xinjiang
My papers are worth
More than myself
Facing me, nothing
Is prouder than my papers

They believe
More than I
That I’m Uyghur

—Zhengzhou, Henan, April 2013 [Chinese]

[Brigid Schmidt]

Betsy, 

 Thanks for sharing this poetry piece. Especially today, my emotions are raw. For me, writing poetry helps me express my emotions and I feel that is what "Tarim" seems to do as well. It is so scary to see so much hate in the world against people just based on their physical identity or cultural identity. Perhaps this poem would be a start in drawing parralles with what is going on in the US this week? I might share this with my students and encourage them to write a poem to explain the emotions they are feeling about the dangers our countries are facing. I am trying to promote respect and change. 

[Betsy Ures]

As we are making historical comparisions between the Uyghur "education camps" and the concentration camps of the holocaust, I see a connection to the Manzanar concentration camp. The alleged purpose of detaining over 10,000 Japanese Americans in these camps was to control the behavior of a group of people while at war with Japan. The decision to choose national security over the freedoms and rights of Japanese Americans was made. This is important to use as a lesson that war crimes are not something that happen only in Germany and China, but also in the recent history of the United States. To make even more of a recent connection, the United States apprhended and detained over 800,000 immigrants and held them against their will. How can we bridge the connection for our students that the Chinese mistreatment of the Uyghur people? We can do research on various human rights infringements of governments and make connections to the modern era. 

[Betsy Ures]

I really felt moved by the poem as well. The role of identity and the way that is percieved is extemely formative. Students are experiencing trauma on multiple levels right now. I personally have felt raw and angry constantly this week, so allowing your students to express themselves will be critical. I feel hopeful that the current self-expression I've seen with protests will inspire meanigful change. Take Care Brigid.

[Betsy Ures]

I too am impressed, but I also think it is definitely happening in the United States, but on a different scale. Because China has control and ownership of all media, the government directly controls the flow of information. It is very transparent from the outside.  Here in the U.S. information is controlled by large media conglomorates, which funnels information in a way that affirms the markets and political status quo. That's why we have news channels with extreme bias, they are pushing a certain political perspective based on the beliefs of the people in power or people with wealth. The supression of information seems much more muddy here, and we do have some laws in place that protect our right to information.

It's interesting how two different countries with large populations have taken different economic and political paths, but in both there is suppression of information. 

[Mario Ruiz]

Hey Samantha,

Yeah that would be a pretty tough thing to teach fourth graders and I'm not too sure how your parents, admin, or even school district would take to that. But I really like the idea of teaching the younger students to stand up for what is right. It's important to let them know at a young age how their beliefs and actions can help shape not only their futures, but the world around them. I think that is a great take away from this lecture, even though you are not using the specific content and material in your teaching with your kids. 

[Mario Ruiz]

Hey Chad,

I totally agree with you on that. I think because we are able to look up and find any bit of information on the Internet, we kind of assume that everyone else can do it, too. It's hard to believe that anyone can control that much information that gets out to the people. I also think it's safe to say that we all probably live with that same naïve assurance, so don't feel alone on that one. Knowledge is power. 

[Alma Ochoa]

Jessica, thank you for sharing the comic link you found!  It was very powerful just as Nurnisa Kurban story was.  I must admit that I did not know that this was happening to Uyghurians.  It is heartbreak to hear and learn about these events that are taking place.  Many times we don’t know or learn about things that don’t directly have anything to do with us or affect us.  My heart breaks and I feel helpless but I know that in talking about these horrible events that are taking place and bring awareness to this issue is a start.  I know that as a teacher I can have some influence within my classroom with my students.  Perhaps as Jessica suggested introduce the topic through the comic she linked.  As a class I can have a guided discussion with the students as to what this currently means for Uyghur people and what the implications of these events mean for their future.  It is a difficult topic but as I high school teacher after learning about this I feel a responsibility to bring some light to this issue.  In learning about this students can think and question what other groups have faced similar circumstances and how many other groups currently are.  It would be something that I could tie into a stats lesson that might be even more eye opening and powerful putting number to these atrocious stories.          

[Alma Ochoa]

Mario, I really like your minority ethnic injustice project idea.  When I first started teaching I was part of AmeriCorps and while participating in this program I had to do a yearly service learning project with my students.  A lesson on this topic is perfect to turn into a service learning project.  Not only does this bring knowledge of this issue with our students but it is something that they can then take out to the community and teach others about.  In response to one of Jessica’s post I mentioned trying to do a stats lesson about this topic which I can then carry over into a project where I can have my students take the information that they come up with and have them share with other students in other classes.  Possibly work with a couple of other teachers that would be willing to allow my students to come and share what they have discovered about the injustices that minority groups have faced and possible are still facing.          

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