Last Minute Foreword

Though my original direction was to examine the relationship between “Women & Islam” it proved to be a project that was to ambitious. It is a subject that is so complex and has so many contributing variables that should be done properly and done justice.

With this being said, I found myself particularly interested in Chinese minority policy, more specifically minority policy with respect to education. Though I do not explicitly discuss Chinese Muslims within this context, they are nevertheless included under this category and therefore affected.

I used  “Contemporary Minority Migration, Education and Ethnicity in China” written by: Robyn Iredale, Naran Bilik, Wang Su, Fei Guy and Caroline Hoy to both inform myself further on this topic.

On Misrepresentations… Post #5

Initially, I thought I was going to lean towards addressing  about the influential aspect of the Chinese education system, then I realized that there was so much more that had to be discussed before the state – sponsored vs mosque – sponsored discussion could be approached properly. As we do spend a good portion of our lives from the ages 4 – 18 in the classroom, and within this space, develop academic and social skills which prove to be invaluable in the future, the role of school cannot be discounted.

However, what is of greater interest to me is how so many cultural, societal, and political factors play into the education system. How a child is educated, inevitably shapes a good portion of their identity, and therefore, by virtue of the fact that there are state – sponsored and mosque – sponsored schools, it  speaks volumes about the Muslim populations wish to educate their youth in a more traditional manner.

First off, the Chinese government naturally wishes to have as many children enrolled in their education system, as this would mean that the younger generation is being developmentally shaped in a more united manner. It becomes quite apparent that these systems in place by the government is a means of acculturating the minorities. However, in order to acculturate, children must be enrolled in the appropriate school system, and a way of encouraging enrollment in state – sponsored schools, is by creating the idea that the Han majority are culturally “elite”. This is done in a variety of ways, one such being making the Han synonymous with “modern” and “educated”. It is stated that the “values and beliefs of a dominant class take on the radiance of truth in the eyes of ordinary people.” (David Johnston) In this case to be “cultured” and “modern” is what is valued by the dominant Han race, however, Johnstonealso notes that “this top – down view often excludes those it fails to inspire, particularly groups like Muslims … who follow different moralities according to different religious texts”.

This would explain why mosque – sponsored schools are still a popular choice amongst certain Muslims, especially if the Muslims are unjustifiably exoticized and eroticized in the media. This misrepresentation of the Muslim community by the state – sponsored media  is unfortunate, as the Muslims are in fact generally more conservative, socially and morally. This just speaks to the greater issue at hand is that there is a significant discrepancy between how Chinese – Muslims view themselves and how “everyone else” views them.

Muslim’s see themselves as coming from a respected religious and scholarly tradition which has done much to enrich Chinese culture and society, but as they are a demographic minority it is hard to successfully transmit this image to the population at large. As this population has been stigmatized in the past, it serves to complicate the task of presenting an alternate view of Chinese – Muslims that is different from what the state – sponsored media is presenting.

Furthermore, as a whole, the Chinese – Muslim population is not by any means geographically localized and this has led to the development of the emphasis on different linguistic branches.  The difference in education level between urban and rural Muslim youth is considerably lower than the national average. An interesting but obvious point for me was that, as there is a difference within the Muslim population in what language is used, it serves either to work against or for the youth in the education system. Drawing upon a typical example, the Hui who are the most similar to the Han in every domain are able to attain education levels that are closest to the national average because for them, there is no language barrier.

There is no way that I can address the multitude of issues that are involved in the education system. I have attempted to outline what I have found particularly interesting, but as I found many points interesting, I fear that it is rather fragmented in nature. So I will leave you with this:

The Chinese – Muslims seem to be in an unfortunate situation, where they prove to be struggling to shape a true and clear identity of what it is to be a Chinese – Muslim. However, due to the structure of the Chinese government, it does not allow for this type of cultural variation to flourish in the same manner as it could in other countries. The Chinese majority seems to be dictating Muslim identity by using the the media and education. As the state has control over what is allowed to be broadcasted in public spaces, not only is China not allowing Muslims to develop their own identity, but they are also tainting the view of those who are not exposed to Islam by only presenting one side of any issue.

The Quartered Hui … Post #4

Ah yes, much discussion has been devoted to who the Hui are, the historical events that have contributed to shaping the Hui, and it has even been discussed at much length as to the range of practices that Chinese Muslims may engage in. However, the living conditions and the environmental context which the Hui live in has not been sufficiently addressed, and for this reason the Chapter 3 of “Between Mecca and Beijing“, by Maris Boyd Gillette piqued my interest.

In this particular chapter she chose to address the intimate connection between housing, education, and race within the Hui quarter of Xi an. It has been noted there are two local proverbs about Hui residence patterns that I find revealing: “widely scattered but locally concentrated”  and “around the mosque”. Each of these proverbs reveal the strong sense of identification with being Hui, as they choose to geographically associate themselves with an area and a religious institution which is recognized to be distinctly Hui.

The Hui’s highly recognizable residence pattern has allowed the government to justify treating these Hui populated quarters as separate entities from the larger urban center that they may be part of. The differences within Hui quarters go far beyond just being densely populated by Chinese – Muslims; differences lie in public maintenance of streets, sanitation, how businesses are conducted, urban planning, and even the education that is immediately available. Due to the neglect of public maintenance in these areas, the quarters come across as messy and dirty (not depicted in the above picture), furthermore, the family – run businesses  (the primary source of income for Hui) crowd the sidewalks along the road, causing much pedestrian and locomotive congestion.

As one can imagine, the combination of these variable makes for a chaotic environment. What is interesting is that due to this, the Hui residents are then labeled as being “low – class” and that they require better education to become more “cultured”. This issue of education appears to be a situation that may not be readily resolved, as the education does not seem to be readily available for the children in these quarters. The government does not seem to be jumping at the chance to rectify this situation, rather they choose perpetuate the differentiation between the Hui and Han, stating that the Hui are good at business, but maybe not so good at culture (due to being less educated of course). This racial distinction has been encouraged by offering advantageous outcomes for the Hui if they take part in the state’s economic reforms.

This was all part of the state’s commitment to viewing the Hui as a evolutionarily backward race, officials using this as reason to establish institutions and policies that perpetuated this notion. I personally find a key part of this was the wish to restructure Hui residences from their traditional level houses to apartment complexes. The very fact that this proposition was made to address the much needed urban renovation, proves to show the insensitivity the state has towards the Hui. They completely discount the fact that the traditional urban structure is an integral part of their social fabric, facilitating social and economic functions that may be uniquely Hui.

Though it is recognized that “modernizing” the Hui quarters are necessary, it should be done in a manner that is considerate to the social structure of the Hui. I fully believe that by compartmentalizing them within apartment complexes, the short term outcome may be favorable, but with time a whole new set of issues will come to pass. Issues that may not be easily remedied after so much money, time, and resources have been invested. It would be beneficial for the state to view this renovation of the quarters as both a public service and an investment to better relations between the Hui and state.

“Chinese Gleams of Sufi Light”…Post#3

When a tradition takes root in a region that it formerly did not exist in, what occurs with time is an eventual “blending” of traditions and cultures. The image to the right which is described as the “Chinese Qur’an”, clearly depicts both Arabic and Chinese characters, hence is a prime example of the two parties accommodating to the other. This accommodating manner is not restricted to the written language, and transcends multiple domains. The domain of interest that is of particular interest, is that of scriptures.

A prime example of this would be Wang Tai – Yu’s  “Great Learning” as discussed in Murata’s Chinese Gleams of Sufi light. Wang Tai – Yu attempts to make Islamic scripture more understandable by putting using a framework that people would be more likely to relate to. Hence, the framework chosen, was to be Neo-Confucian in nature. I must say, when looking over the “Great Learning“, I found the parallels drawn between Islamic and Neo-Confucian thought to be rather convincing. The manner by which the parallels were drawn, was due to the manner Wang Tai – Yu decided to interpret the Islamic scriptural material, this gave rise to the metaphors and terminology used, that seemed both Islamic and Confucian at the same time

The issues that are raised when it comes to interpretations such as Wang Tai – Yu’s generally revolve around one core problem, legitimacy/authenticity/accuracy, or however you would like to put it. As per usual my bias as a cultural relativist will be exposed once again when I say: “These issues are of no interest to me. It has become recognized as their scripture, and therefore legitimate in their eyes.” In my opinion to discuss issues of legitimacy seems to be a step backward, as it seems like it would be in favour of the tradition for efforts such as Wang Tai – Yu’s to be put forth. Such efforts show that the tradition has taken enough of foothold that individuals feel that it is necessary to make it relatable to a larger demographic. Interpreting a tradition in a manner that is more conducive to the native culture is a move that will likely further the tradition in that particular region. Now, I must ask: Is this not the goal of any tradition?

Women & Islam I.5

Hmmmm … this is in fact the face that I am making right now as I realized the logistic problems that will occur  if I continue along the original path of research. I realized that even examining female Muslim behavior based on geographical location is too wide. There are numerous societal, cultural, and environmental differences to take into account – and in each area, these variables are uniquely related to each other. This poses difficulties, as there is not enough time in a day to understand the intimate ties between the various factors in the distinct regions.

This topic needs to be addressed in a different way that has a higher probability of doing it justice.

Will ponder this as I watch my mother marinate lamb for dinner…

(This transition post was done to benefit myself – so I can keep track of where I am going with this – I get sidetracked easily)

The Hui…Post #2

Who are the Hui?

Hui: “In present day China, Muslims who are not classified as Uyghur, Kazakh etc. Historically, the term has also been used to mean Muslim, of whatever ethnic group, but with a bias towards Muslims of Persian – speaking Central Asian origin.” (as defined in the article “Chinese & Arabic terms” in my course reader)

So basically, Chinese – Muslims who do not fit into any other ethnic category – but if you are a Muslim individual of “Persian – speaking Central Asian origin” … you are more likely to be Hui. What a fantastically general definition.

I realize that this term and definition is more than likely here to stay, as the use and meaning has been established within Chinese culture for many years. This definition must be a contributing factor behind why the Hui are considered to the largest ethnic Muslim minority in China. Therefore, though it goes against my nature to consciously generalize – I will be addressing the Hui as though they are not culturally heterogeneous.

Despite being regarded as the most culturally similar to the Hans, it is important to note that the Hui have not been assimilated, rather the process of acculturation has occurred. The Hui have not only developed, but also maintained separate social – cultural and economic practices. In addition, they prescribe to a different language and history that is distinctly Hui.

How have they been able to prevent themselves from being absorbed by Han culture?

These distinctions that make the Hui different are exactly what preserves their ethnic identity. Ethnicity is key here, as it strengthens the minority groups identity, providing common ground between individuals which ties them together. Furthermore, these differences become amplified as they become the distinguishing characteristics that indicate membership to this group. Group membership is something that as social beings humans innately lean towards. As time passes and the groups gain more support and increase in membership, religious and political policies are instated to further define the parameters of a particular group. The Hui proved to be no exception and social dynamics were affected by these policies.

A policy that I found particularly interesting was one that backfired on the Chinese majority. As the Hui grew to be the largest Muslim minority group in China, the Han stated that non – Hui individuals were forbidden to marry Hui, and encouraged to marry the Han. It turns out, that this was not to be the case, but rather, the opposite happened. For whatever reason, individuals were more inclined to marry the Hui, in particular the Hui seemed particularly appealing to the newly arrived immigrants. The natural result of these unions were children, however, what is of more interest is the fact that the children more often than not became Muslim. This served to increase the Hui Muslim community.

The Hui are key examples of acculturation. It is my opinion, resisting cultural change is harder than embracing it, and by embracing cultural change it does not mean one is  discarding their ethnic identity. Rather, by being open to the idea allows for greater cultural (and even religious) flexibility. To me, this flexibility is key, since it better provides a way of accounting for cultural and social practices that one may come across. To me, this is why the Hui have lasted the test of time.

Women & Islam

Religion has so many fascinating aspects to it. You don’t have to be a person of faith to appreciate it’s different levels of complexities. Religion has the ability to shape who a person is; how a community represents itself; and how countries are governed.

What has always been of interest to me, regardless of the discipline, are gender relations. As we are required to complete a research project (which is an aside from the blog posts) I am toying with the GENERAL idea of “Women & Islam”. I realize this is nowhere specific enough and somewhat on the conventional side. However, it is my hope that by the end of the term, I would have examined different aspects of what it is to be an Muslim woman. What is their role in society?  Their views on Islam? How do THEY feel about women in Western society? Are Muslim women as oppressed as outsiders believe them to be?

If you have not guessed already by the small sample of example questions provided, perspectives are both interesting and important to me. How does one see themselves fitting in their family/community/society vs. How one sees them fitting in based on their perspective on the matter. The beauty of examining perspectives is that any one topic has the ability to look different to individuals based on their own exposure and experiences with the topic. This is key, as it is not uncommon for individuals to generalize the feelings of one group, to another group that appears to be similar, without taking their differences into account.

For instance, when addressing a topic such as “Women & Islam” I could assume that Muslim women in the Middle East, SE Asia, N America, and China experience Islam the same way, all of them after all are women practicing the same religious tradition. This would be a terrible assumption to make as the traditions are affected to by the culture and society that it is practicing in.

For this reason, I have decided (as of right now) that a whole separate post needs to be dedicated to outlining the basic differences that Islam may have based on geography. Without a doubt these basic differences have influenced the perspectives of individuals on others and themselves. In the spirit of perspectives, I will share what I am aware of in regards to Muslim women.

So far, this is what I am aware of:

1. I am under the impression that women are not quite equal to men
2. It appears that there are a series of clothing and social restrictions that women are subject to – degree of restrictions dependent on different variables
3. I don’t know very much at all and the bare minimum which I do know comes from the media that I happen to come across

I hope #3 makes it apparent WHY I wish to do research on this topic. There are three things that will eventually be addressed: Islam, Women, and China; within in each, independent complexities are present. These complexities serve to complicate this dynamic relationship, and realistically, I would be satisfied with being reasonably versed in one of the three elements that I wish to examine.

Now, that the goal has been established – research can commence – and the discoveries can be documented

To be continued…

And so it begins … Post #1

The intention behind this blog was to provide a different medium of communication to reflect on the material that is being read in class – “What EXACTLY came to mind when I read the material?”  A task that I seem to be running a little behind in. Therefore, without further ado, the reading that I found particularly interesting was by Johnathan N. Lipman, titled Familiar Strangers: A History of Muslims in Northwest China.

The name “Lipman” makes the probability that he is either Muslim or Chinese quite slim. Looking at his picture on google, I could say with almost 100% certainty he has no Chinese in his genetic make up. This leads us to a common issue among scholars, many investigate cultures where they are considered outsiders. Then the questions are raised: “How can these scholars properly understand a culture that they are considered outsiders in?”, “What kind of cultural biases are these scholars using when examining a group of people?”, “Will they be able to write a paper that is free of biases?”, and list of potential issues can go on and on. However, if a scholar writes about a people that they are part of as an insider – a whole other host of issues are then raised. My point is biases exist. The authors are biased, I am biased, people are just biased. This is old news, but the anthropology department has conditioned me to state something about biases before I write on anything that seems remotely anthropological.

My ignorance within the realm of foreign affairs did not run as deep as to not be aware of existence of Islam in China. However, I must admit it did run as deep to not be aware of the extreme differentiation within the Islamic communities of China. I appreciated the effort Lipman put in to address each community as the separate entity they are. Not to generalize what you know about one people to others that hold any degree of similarity is quite a feat. His sensitivity to the fact that Muslims in China are not quite accepted by either the Chinese or Islamic community resonated to me due to my background.

This is where my bias is going to play a role as I will now choose to expand on this one aspect of his article. My understanding of this matter is that the few scholars who have studied Islam in China have not appreciated the  degree of heterogeneity that is present within China, let alone within the Muslim community. This is problematic as China occupies a huge geographical space, and it is impossible to discuss the Chinese people as a uniform whole. As with anything else, Islamic China is not confined to one area, but rather is scattered throughout the country. Depending on the area these communities are subject to the pre – existing or passing cultural influences that happen to come through. Over time, syncreticism occurs developing hybrids of the tradition, unfortunately these hybrids are not viewed with equal importance or validity as the “original” traditions.

With that, a lil’ anecdote from the family vault. When I was reading this what came to mind was something my Grandma told me about her childhood. My grandmother’s childhood was spent in Hong Kong, along with the majority of her adult life. What made her and her brother’s childhood a different experience was the fact that they were half Chinese and half Irish. These days, mixed children are not an anomaly, but back in her day, they definitely were. Mixed individuals were regarded as the bottom of barrel in regards to social status. This resulted in a degree of social ostracism as neither the Chinese or Caucasians were accepting of their background as they were not pure. Instead of accepting them as individuals as they are people wished to categorize them as either/or which of course they could not, as they were both. We have made much progress in accepting individuals with mixed backgrounds, why can we  not do the same with religious traditions? It is essential to appreciate how a tradition works within a certain locality despite the fact it might fall under a larger religious umbrella.