Power To The People- China

POWER TO THE PEOPLE

Sias University
Henan Province, China
World Academy for the Future of Women Program

April 2012

I am in the midst of some girl conflict, something I thought I left behind when I left the principalship.  But I guess this is all part of life, no matter where I go in the world.  Anyway, April 12 is the opening of sports week.  I think there will be lots of athletic competitions and I have been asked to join the faculty hula-hoop team and I AM NOT GOING TO DO THAT.

The student manager of WAFW came to see me with what she said was great news: “For the first time, the World Academy for the Future of Women has been asked to be in the opening parade and I think we might be first in line which will be a great honor.  We need to have at least 50 participants and everyone must wear the same uniform”.  

I told my student leader that we would participate but she had to organize everything since she knew what to expect.  So off she went to organize the first planning meeting. She came back and told me that we were all set.  We had the 50 participants.  

But I later heard some rumblings.  Even though we have 100 women in the academy, only 32 want to participate. So 18 students are being forced to participant.  As it was told to them, it is their duty and honor to participate.  Then there was a discussion on what to wear.  It was decided by a few that they would wear black skirts, a white blouse, white athletic shoes and everyone would buy a vest for 20 RMB (about $3.15 or three meals).  Those who were not involved with the parade were told that they would also have to buy the vest and come to all of the practices as well because it would only be fair.  Everyone had to suffer. This caused an uproar and I started to hear about it.

 I spoke to my student leader and asked for her side of the story. “It is China’s way,” she tells me, matter of factly.  “We do things for the duty of our academy and the university.  We have been honored and we have to accept.”  When I suggested that we only include those students who were interested, she stoically said, “No, we need more members and we have to force them to do this.  That is our way.”

I knew she had another meeting with her classmates in an hour. So I tried to coach her on the art of persuasion and I thought we were on the same page. I sent her off with some suggestions on how she could quell the rumbles. She liked my ideas, thanked me and went off with new optimism.

Then I got an email form a disgruntled student.  My student leader sent out a text message that everyone had to come to the next practice and anyone who missed the practice would be immediately expelled from WAFW.

I decided to go to the practice to intervene.  When I got there, it was announced that my student leader was not going to be attending the meeting because she had made dinner plans with one of the foreign teachers.  I couldn’t believe it.  But that did not seem to bother the others. They didn’t seem to think this was a double standard. So I spoke to the students and told them that no one had to be in the parade.  They had a choice.  And if we didn’t have the required 50 participants, we would have to reject the honor to participate.  And if we did not march, we were not to bully those who did not want to participate.  I told the students that they were to notify me by midnight to let me know if they were not going to be involved.  The choice was theirs.  One student said she was not going to participate.  One student said she is not going to wear the skirt because when she bends over, you can see her underpants and that embarrassed her.  With the exception of one student, the other disgruntled students did not contact me.

Below is an email I got from one of the disgruntled students:

“Bridget, today you've set a great example of leadership for us. I'm always thinking about what you have said and done. You gave us a platform to speak out our opinions and you also encouraged us to earn our honor of the whole team and fight for our team glory. As I've told you, I'm really worried about TEM 4. That's the first important exam for English major. And I want to get a good performance. However, after hearing what you said, I felt ashamed if we could not participate in the parade for the lack of me. So I decide to take part in the parade if I'm needed to make up of 48.  In that case, I will buy a vest. I have to say it again that I want to be a person like you, patient, encouraging, influential, respectful and respectable”.

I wrote back to the student and told her that I wanted to be more like her.  Then I offered to buy her vest because I just know how poor she is.  Here is her response:

“No, Bridget. Thank you so much, but please do not do that! You came to China to teach us leadership and management abilities, which mean a lot to me, especially in my process of growth. I am grateful and appreciate all you have done. And I don't like to cost you more. Being a friend with you is a treasure. Learning from you is enough. Plus, I did not concern so much about the money but the way of human reaction and behavior. I realized people are easily constrained by their positions. When we are common people, we tend to surrender to the authorities, even serving them like servants. We lose our own voices and minds, though sometimes we are given opportunities to speak. Once we are in the position of decision, we'll become the ones who we were used to hate yet envy. It is a severe phenomenon in China. I, too, feel restricted by unknown things, maybe customs, or the way I was raised. But I'm trying to fly freely. And you are my role model.”

Certainly, this student is very complementary to me. But that is not why I am writing this story.  I just continue to be amazed at the general acceptance of authority.  In all aspects of their lives, they sit back and wait to be told.  They are told want to do and they do what they are told.  Now, we, Americans, are slipping in to their lives and talking to them about giving voice to women and just when I think they understand what we are trying to accomplish, I see that we aren’t even close to our goal.  When I spoke to my student leader again the next day, she told me she just doesn’t know any other way to get people to do things if you don’t force them, bully them and threaten them.  “It’s China’s way” is a response I heard from her and from so many other students on numerous occasions. She spoke with sincerity and a genuine interest in the academy, and with the only leadership style she knows.

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