The first political discussion I had in Putonghua was in Shanghai, in 1989. I was having lunch with some money changers when some Africans walked past the restaurant. The money changers started making strange animal noises and grimaces. Seeing my puzzled expression, they explained: 'They are black devils.' In broken Chinese, I asked the head money changer why he did not like blacks. 'They are dirty. Their skin is black because they don't wash.'
'How about Mike Tyson, do you like him?' I asked. 'Oh yes,' came the reply. 'But he's black.' 'Yes, but he is American black.' The whole table erupted in laughter.
That episode and many similar experiences have led me to believe that racism in China is not so much about skin colour as about what people perceive to be the haves and the have-nots.
I was, therefore, surprised by the vitriolic attacks on US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, posted on the popular mainland website Sina.com, before her state visit to China. Reminiscent of the Cultural Revolution, the rants were full of racist terms like 'black devil', 'black pig' and 'black bitch'. Another word frequently used was 'ugly'.
To my knowledge, Colin Powell - who is also of African origin - never got the same treatment. But then, he is a man. Interestingly, most of the racist slurs on the website had to do with Dr Rice being a woman. Indeed, it seemed that users of the website had the biggest problem with her being a woman and 'ugly' - her colour was thrown in almost as an afterthought. And, inevitably, because a woman was the target, the word 'whore' was trotted out.
Dr Rice deserves to be attacked for her country's foreign policy and for her own questionable taste in employer. Why would a black woman want to get mixed up with the Republicans at all? But devoting an entire rant to the two things she cannot help - her appearance and her sex - is just scoring easy points.
