As someone who grew up and has lived for many years in Canada and the United States, Master Chi has long been puzzled by a strange phenomenon.
It is the pervasive sense of inferiority that seems to permeate the overseas Chinese student community.
If you have studied or lived abroad, you will certainly recognize what I am describing — particularly the way some female Chinese students idolize white men, which honestly leaves many of us in the Chinese community feeling embarrassed and ashamed.
These women are not simply searching for love, as many feminist voices would have you believe.
We are all adults. If you have found genuine love — whether with a white man, a Black man, an Indian man, or anyone else — that is entirely your freedom, and we offer nothing but blessings.
But if you treat your fellow Chinese with cold contempt while lavishing fawning attention exclusively on white men, then I am sorry — it becomes very difficult to extend you even a shred of respect or understanding.
The same dynamic plays out among male Chinese students, though differently: to fit into Anglo-Saxon white social circles, some men will bend over backwards to accept ridicule and humiliation from others.
To be clear, I am speaking only of some overseas students — not all. Though the phenomenon is, unfortunately, quite widespread.
Master Chi’s assessment of these individuals: “In a world where all people are equal, they insist on treating themselves as third-class citizens.” A complete and utter disgrace.
And then, just recently, a piece of news left Master Chi deeply unsettled.
Take a look at the image: this scene was captured a few days ago — June 1st — at the intersection of Finch and Bayview in North York, Toronto, Canada.
In the photograph, six Chinese students are kneeling in a neat row before a single police officer, as if he were their lord and master.
(Note: some media outlets misrepresented this incident, claiming the officer ordered the students to kneel and submit to a reprimand. The people involved have since responded with a different account — see the follow-up image below.)
So you might assume this was a case of Chinese people being mistreated — a white officer deliberately humiliating them?
No. In fact, the middle-aged white officer himself appeared rather at a loss for what to do.
According to those present: the responding officer had simply asked the students to get into the police vehicle and return to the station to cooperate with an investigation. But instead of complying — or even refusing — the students chose to kneel and beg the officer to let them go.
Because they were international students. If taken in and confirmed to have committed a criminal offense, they could potentially face deportation.
So they pulled out every trick they had, pleading with the officer to drop the investigation. They were willing to kneel collectively if it meant they could stay.
So what actually triggered this whole spectacle?
The chain of events went roughly like this: two Chinese students — let us call them A and B — were sharing an apartment. Over time, friction developed:
- B failed to pay rent on time.
- When B moved out, they left behind a large amount of garbage and caused damage to the apartment interior.
- A confronted B over these issues, and a heated argument broke out.
B’s boyfriend then gathered several friends and showed up at A’s home — where A and A’s boyfriend lived — and the situation turned violent.
During the incident, B and her boyfriend reportedly shouted: “Go ahead, call the cops! We’re not afraid of getting deported!” But when the police actually arrived, what followed was exactly the scene described above.
In the end, this was nothing more than a minor conflict between young people. A and A’s boyfriend suffered only minor scrapes.
To the officers responding to the call, this was a completely routine “minor violent dispute.” At most, once the responsible party was identified, they might face a penalty or a brief detention — a few weeks at the very most.
What they could not have anticipated was arriving on scene to find a group of people suddenly treating them as though they were gods.
(Follow-up image from the parties involved)
The reason Master Chi is taking time to address what might seem like a trivial news story is this: it carries a message I hope every overseas Chinese will take to heart.
Everything our homeland has strived for — every sacrifice, every effort — has been so that every Chinese person can walk through this world with their head held high and their dignity intact.
Because we know this: there is no one in this world who is better than us. And we are inferior to no one.
When you walk on foreign soil as an overseas Chinese, remember: you do not represent only yourself. You represent an entire nation and people.
On this front, many of our overseas countrymen cannot hold a candle to the Korean community they so often look down upon.
Yes, Korea — due to historical circumstances — has long aligned itself politically with the United States. But in North America, the Korean community’s solidarity and sense of self-respect are, without any question, far superior to ours.
Consider the 1992 Los Angeles riots. Black gangs and mobs saw an opportunity to target what they assumed would be easy victims: Asian business owners — “weak, conflict-averse, won’t fight back.”
Sadly, that assumption proved accurate for most Chinese business owners. The majority chose to flee, leaving warehouses full of merchandise to be looted at will. Having tasted blood, the rioters only confirmed their belief: “Asians — especially Chinese — are a bunch of spineless cowards.”
But when the violence spread into Korean neighborhoods, it met a wall of resistance. Nearly every Korean store owner chose to stand their ground. They fought back decisively. Some even took to the streets in direct armed confrontation.
The Korean community paid a price — one person dead. But in exchange, they earned the genuine fear and respect of the entire Black community in Los Angeles. The National Guard was eventually called in, and the riots were quelled.
(In total, 53 people died during the riots. One was Korean. That one Korean life bought peace and stability for the entire Korean community.)
I have no desire to condemn the failings of any other group. But I do hope that every overseas Chinese can grasp one very simple truth:
A person should stand upright, with dignity. Only then can you earn respect.
Only a servant bows their head and kneels before others — and only to receive the most pitiful scraps of favor in return.