Hong Kong protesters should not be afraid to use English to tell the world their side of the story
- Overseas media reports of the protests here lack a genuine local voice, in part because many Hongkongers shun speaking in English for fear of making mistakes
As I read media reports overseas on the protests in Hong Kong, I notice that the representation of this crisis lacks a genuine voice from Hongkongers. One factor, of course, is the popularity of Cantonese in everyday usage.
Another factor, I would argue, is that Hongkongers are afraid to speak English that is different from that spoken by “native English speakers”, which usually means British or American English.
I grew up in Hong Kong with Cantonese as my first language. The ability to speak “proper English” is praised in Hong Kong. Our education system stresses the importance of following standard English, making Hong Kong youth especially self-conscious when using English. We are afraid to be wrong.
At the same time, speaking good English is also seen to be pretentious.
Because no one wants to be judged for using “improper” English or perceived as being pretentious, many of us shun speaking English. For these reasons, its usage in Hong Kong is limited.
To solve this problem, we should embrace Hong Kong English, a variant of the language unique to us. It follows the structure of British and American English, yet also has its own features – even though, according to the rules of standard English, these features are often considered “grammatical errors”.
I attended a Hong Kong high school that used English as a medium of instruction. Despite having learned English for over 15 years in Hong Kong, the day I arrived in Toronto, I could not understand what people were saying to me. I remember the first day I attended university, I did not learn anything because of the language barrier. However, as I started to talk to other people, I realised that people are not like schools. It is OK to make mistakes and speak differently. What matters is what you have to say. The world wants to know your story.
While Hong Kong English is different from other varieties of English, it should not be treated as “lower” than other kinds of English. We Hongkongers are afraid to be different because we are afraid of being “wrong”. But who is judging us?
If we want our stories to be heard, it is time to get globalised. Let us capture the world’s attention with our own words.
Ernest Leung, Toronto