My Take: Why I Care

I cannot deny the fact that one of the reasons that the Sichuan Earthquake caught my attention was because I am ethnically Chinese. I also have relatives in the area, and of course I was concerned for their safety. However, this also puzzles me; why do I, a person who has always considered himself American, feel so urged to help in the relief efforts? Perhaps it is the same driving Chinese people are feeling around the globe. Although many countries have contributed millions to the relief aid, it has been the people themselves who have contributed the most, with over 128 million dollars given by residents in Hong Kong alone. People in China also have devoted much of their salary to the relief efforts as well. From the lowest paid migrant worker, donating his entire monthly salary, to the widow of Deng XiaoPing, donating her entire life savings, the entire nation is astir.

This feeling of nationalism has never been shown by the Chinese people before. It has completely changed the views of many people, who have previously viewed China as a oppressive Communist state, full of sweat shops and government corruption. However, it seems that it is the oppressive governments that gain the most attention; Myanmar was extremely reluctant to accept aid for the hurricane victims, same with the Sudanese government, concerning Darfur. Entire groups have been dedicated to these problems, sponsored the rich and elite, such as Not on Our Watch, sponsored by actors like George Clooney. I don’t think China recieves quite as much attention, nor is there as much awareness of the incident, which has driven me to form this effort, because I think the Chinese people deserve better. Please join me and my friends in supporting the Chinese people by donating to the Sichuan Earthquake Relief Fund. Because people doing good jobs should get some attention too.

-Brian Yu