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[Calach Pfeffer]

Is this odd? You can become American. You can become Australian. You can almost become British. The Brits are having their multiculturalism (aka many cultures together yet separate) crisis, but still assimilating people... sorta. But can you become Chinese? Or is one endlessly and always foreign?

[Stil]

You can become African but can you become black? For most of us, nationality and race (for lack of a better term) are separate. Not so much for China.

if I say to you "What do you think of Xinjiang people?" Do you have province or race in your mind? How about if I say Hunan?

This is how I get into arguments with people who tell me it's impossible that I'm Canadian because I'm not white. It's also why some of you illiterate bastards can get a job in China teaching English.

[The Local Dialect]

Chinese people will never accept someone without Chinese blood as truly Chinese. The closest you'll get is a 中国通, an Old Hand, but no matter what citizenship papers you might acquires (ahem ahem) Chinese people will never accept a foreigner as one of their own. My kids were born in China and have Chinese blood and Chinese people still call them "little laowai" because they look white(ish). They still get asked where they come from. My kids look at them like they're nuts and say "here." And Chinese people get frustrated. No, where do you really come from?

This happens back home of course with immigrants (my Cambodian and Vietnamese American friends in high school were often asked where they were from) but of course they were also accepted as American. They were American and something else. Multicultural society and all that. And there were people who didn't feel the need to ask, who knew these kids were as American as anyone else. Not so in China, no one is going to accept foreigners as being Chinese. Even Uigh*rs and Tib*tans, they only count when it is politically advantageous to "claim" them. Otherwise, they are clearly "other" in the eyes of Chinese people. The way Chinese people view the minorities in their own country is very similar to Western Orientalism. somewhat ironically. 

It works in reverse too. You can never not be Chinese, if you or your ancestors were ever Chinese once upon a time. That's why you have Linsanity. Lin isn't technically any more Chinese than my kids are, and they probably speak better Mandarin than he does, but he looks Chinese, he has Chinese blood, so of course he is part of the group.

I do not really worry too much about trying to become Chinese or trying to fit in. I'm a lost cause, irrevocably foreign. I worry about the implication for my kids though, who see themselves as Chinese but who are seen as "other." Immigrant children back home have issues enough with identity, I can only imagine what it must be like for children growing up in a culture that outright rejects their native status.

[kitano]

I wonder if it'll change. Remember hardly anyone was even allowed to visit China while Mao was top boy, considering how much western countries have changed in the past 50 years....
To be honest with regard to kids I wouldn't want them to be Chinese,

[Fozzwaldus]

I would want dual citizenship for my kids. No matter what they say, China is going to be super-important in the next century, and bilingualism and/or dual citizenship would be a huge leg-up for my kids.

I found what LD says to be true however... it's very much a race thing, with the average Chinese person's consciousness of ehtnic identity and nationality being a very very simplistic thing.

My father in law, after a week of touring Ireland, got tired of my subtle attempts at explanations and asked 'but who are the Irish?  what race are you?' and I told him there are two possible answer.

1. We are Celts

2. The notion of the Irish as Celts is a retrospective political construction that was meant to differentiate us from the 'Saxon' others across the waters. In fact our genetic and cultural make-up has been woven from an ancient and complicated tapestry of invasions and migrations, dating back to approx 5000 BC.

Can you guess which one he was more comfortable with?

Now the conversation rotates around the phrase ’你们凯尔特人都。。。‘

At least it's better than ’你们老外都。。。‘ 

I love my father in law...

[zero]

Lin's Chinese is not good. He does sometimes do interviews in Chinese, but he limps along -- maybe a high beginner, but with good pronunciation.

[Raoul F. Duke]

Fozzie, hate to tell you but China doesn't recognize or allow dual citizenship...

An outsider can never, ever, EVER be seen as Chinese, even if you become a citizen, no matter how long you live in China. Just won't happen.

[kitano]

I think there is a good linguistic clue in how country is 'guo jia' like 'jia ren' (family)
The Chinese idea of China is very different to a western idea of a country, Chinese people are still Chinese even if they have lived in Europe for 200 years. I think Germany is a bit like that, there are Germans have lived in Russia for 500 years who still call Germany their motherland

[Fozzwaldus]

and Irish Americans often take their 'oireshness' much more seriously than those of us who were actually rasied in the 'auld country'

[piglet]

I have this trouble all the time trying to explain to students that I am British but I am also Israeli (as a I live there now permanently) but that Jewish is another different category more a racial thing. (since I am not religious I don't define it as a religion even though it is also that of course) so this is very very hard to explain to them....

[kitano]

I have this trouble all the time trying to explain to students that I am British but I am also Israeli (as a I live there now permanently) but that Jewish is another different category more a racial thing. (since I am not religious I don't define it as a religion even though it is also that of course) so this is very very hard to explain to them....

haha. My Dad's side is half Irish half Jewish and my mum's side is British, but the English British who are really from north Germany and France....

It's quite refreshing just being 'rest of the world'

[Fozzwaldus]

Fozzie, hate to tell you but China doesn't recognize or allow dual citizenship...

An outsider can never, ever, EVER be seen as Chinese, even if you become a citizen, no matter how long you live in China. Just won't happen.

sorry, I should clarify, yes of course China doesn't recognise dual, but, what I mean is having Chinese citizenship and keeping Irish citizenship secretly.

my singaporean friends have done this quite successfully, though I'm not sure how practical this is with the PRC.

Anyway, this is all pipe dreams for me and wifey, no plans for kids as yet...

[Paul]

Is this odd? You can become American. You can become Australian. You can almost become British. The Brits are having their multiculturalism (aka many cultures together yet separate) crisis, but still assimilating people... sorta. But can you become Chinese? Or is one endlessly and always foreign?

I'm glad you include the 'almost'.

You can acquire British citizenship, but you can't become British by doing so.  If you have to acquire it other than by birthright then yes, you'll be endlessly and always foreign.

So no, it's not odd.  It's America that's odd (statistically speaking) but all the better for it.

[CaseyOrourke]

I remember when I was still still single and working at the local VA hospital.  I had to go to the nursing home section to get some paperwork.  One guys granddaughter was visiting him and she had a small Chinese girl (adopted daughter) with her.  I asked her her name and her mother said her name was Sarah. I asked where she was from and her mother looking at her said, "Sarah is from China." to which Sarah suddenly said, rather forcefully, "No! I'm from Texas."

Her mother and I had a laugh as she replied, "Yes you are."

My wife is always telling her friends, "My body may be Chinese, but in my heart and soul, I'm an American."