碰撞|大选时分：共和妈的“香蕉人”孩子们

第一代华人移民经过十几年的奋斗，终于在美国社会成为中产阶级，多多少少是实现了自己当年的美国梦。与此同时，在这些年离乡背井的打拼中，我们形成了我们独特旅美华人的文化，而我们的下一代则被称为是“香蕉人“，因为他们的外貌是华人的黄皮肤，内里是白人的文化。到底这个称呼套在他们身上合不合适呢？了解了他们的见解，我们就明白他们其实也是有着自己独特文化，体会他们在成长和生活中的喜怒哀乐。

我们这些做父母的，尽管无微不至地照顾养育他们，其实未必这么了解他们。相反的，我们发现这两代人之间对很多看法都大相径庭。比如这次美国大选，大多数二代是偏左，而第一代华人对川普的热情令第二代跌破眼镜，当然他们并不是没有看见希拉里的”毒性“。

大多数的父母认为孩子们的左倾是源于：

1）受老师和所在群体的影响；

2）年纪轻，阅历浅，过于理想主义，容易过于激进。

受师长和同伴们的影响固然重要，不过，他们从小被教导的可都是右倾的观点。

其实，现在的二代，并不像我们想像中的那么天真稚嫩，他们从小就在竞争中长大，高中时就学着削尖脑袋去找实习机会，大学的竞争则更加讲求实际，学校在四年中安排有“出国留学”项目，使很多孩子二十岁出头，护照上的戳就超过父母的了。这些二代从小参与社区服务，对社会各阶层是有所了解和接触的。他们是独立思考的一代，尽管他们阅历是不如我们深。在与他们接触中，明显的感觉就是他们不太追求功利（看来我们这些共和妈还是教子有方的）。比如，在对AA问题的看法上，他们很多人是经过这个体制而进入大学的，深知自己与生俱来的这个“张李王杨”的姓氏所要付出的代价，理应痛恨这个AA。可是，他们中的很大一部分人则认为，要改变美国非裔墨裔贫困高犯罪率的现状，必须要给与他们更多的机会受良好的教育，才能使美国的整个社会走上良性循环，最终华裔是得益的。

他们的观点也许理想主义，不过不妨做一下开明的父母，聆听一下，因为他们毕竟是这个国家的主人，未来的管理者，说不定十年二十年后，他们中的某个人成为美国总统；而我们辛苦地把他们拉扯大，但不意味着我们自身没有盲点，即使不同意他们的观点，也不表示谁对谁错。

正值美国大选进入高潮，就美国大选的议题，让我们的“香蕉人”来说几句吧。中文的篇幅是原文翻译的缩减版，有兴趣可以看本文后面的作者原文。

作者Emily（大四学生 ABC ）

文章大意：

对于第一代华人支持川普的种种理由，我很不同意。就举其中的两点：

1） 厕所案：为什么厕所要区分性别呢？我们的课堂，餐厅，游泳池，我们自己家的厕所都不区分性别。撇开变性人这个话题不说，就是因为女厕所排队人太多，有很多次我真的希望能用男厕所。以下是基本常识：厕所不是一个我们应该保护的圣地，厕所是我们排泄的地方，性别问题与厕所无关。另外，关于那些对于性骚扰的恐惧，我要问：父母们就不担心你们的儿子们跟那些男性捕食者同去一个厕所吗？你们是不是意识到，其实大多数（60%）的性骚扰发生在受害人的家里，或朋友邻居亲戚家；10%的性骚扰发生在家以外的地方；1/12 的性骚扰发生在停车场。从以上数据看，你们的问题不是担心性捕食者，而是对性别的解构。

2） 非法移民：这个问题是我最不能理解的。你们自己就是移民，你们在移民的抽签中胜出。现在你们没有身份问题了，你们难道不能打开自己的心允许其他人进来吗？为什么你们觉得川普会保护华裔不受种族的暴力攻击呢？川普的所有说辞是建立在种族纷争的基础上的 – 尽管他最近表现出对非裔和墨裔的关心。

华人应该认识到，我们在这个国家的权利是民权运动争取来的，是非裔用自己的身体为所有少数民族争取来的。而川普的竞选就是集中利用美国白人蓝领阶级的怒气，在很多次川普的集会时，攻击有色人种。我没有想要说服你去选希拉里，可是从我的角度看，选川普的理由本质上是种族歧视。这是亚裔群体里的一种无视全局“我们” 对阵“他们”的心态。

蔑视非法移民态度的有趣之处就是很多表达这些情绪的人们本身也是移民。你们当然记得当时离开故土的动机和感情以及美国对你来说意味着什么。你们幸运地成功进入美国，为什么你们会反对那些在自己国家生活煎熬的人们来美国接受你们所接受的福利呢？你们担心有人会欺骗系统，可是我们必须意识到这个系统本来就是不公平的。

Daniel （大四学生 ABC）

文章大意：

这次的大选绝不是一个笑话。我们要选的领袖必须不仅仅为美国服务，而且能在全球政治舞台上代表我们。这次大选不是有关于你个人，而是关于我们。所以我们要问自己: 我们要的候选人能不能把我的群体建造起来? 能不能提倡对所有人公正？ 我们需要以智慧的方式选可以把我们国家在社会、经济、文化、政治向前推进的候选人。

我是为我们的孩子来选。我们要选这样一位对亚裔、拉丁裔、非裔甚至女性歧视的候选人吗？针对贫富分化的现状，我不选加剧贫富分化的政策。用川普自己的话来说，他的经济政策就是给富人和大公司减税。这种从上至下的经济政策是行不通的。

另外，我不能支持一位只关心富有美国白人利益的候选人。他不关心亚裔、非裔和拉丁裔的生活，只关心将白人至上主义继续下去。回顾美国历史，亚裔曾受过很多暴力种族歧视。我们不想任何人再被同样地对待。

以下是两位作者的原文：

Emily:

During this election season, I saw many first generation Chinese American supporting Trump for many different reasons which I , as an American Born Chinese, disagree with most. In the below paragraphs, I will point out 2 of them, and explain why I disagree.

1. political correctness, LGBT issues being incorporated into education, and the “bathroom law.”

Most first generation Chinese immigrants state that they completely respect homosexuals and respect their right to get married. They even have some gay friends. But once they realized that their seven-year-old was being taught about LGBT issues, they were upset. They wanted to teach their kids themselves, when they were a bit older.

First off, your child is already constantly being socialized into their gender identity and sexual orientation, even at seven year old. They see it in movies, in all their friends with straight parents. You say that you have gay friends, but what does your friendship mean, when you feel uncomfortable about their lifestyle being affirmed. Your own response to it means that you do not actually respect others’ choices to love whomever they want to.

And then your issue with transgender people entering bathrooms – that men can arbitrarily decide to enter women’s bathrooms. Obviously, the fear is not impossible. But what is more important is to try to understand the position of a transgender person. Gender is a construct, and just because you and I may fit more comfortably within that construct, does not mean everyone does. Masculinity and femininity demand so much from us, from our bodies, our behaviors. Transgender people, especially non-white transgender people, must survive every day, facing threats of violence and a constant struggle to be accepted as they want to live their life. This is a radical upheaval of gender structures, and even if you cannot wrap your head around their life, at least understand that the violence against trans people characterizes much of the trans experience, and that there is much pressure to pass.

But then again, why must bathrooms be segregated by gender? Our classrooms, our dining halls, our swimming pools, our own bathrooms at home are largely not segregated by gender. Separate from the transgender issue, there have been many times when I wish I could use the men’s bathroom because the women’s bathroom was too long. Just based on common sense, the bathroom is not a sacred place that we must protect. It is where you go to relieve yourself – gender has nothing to do with that. And even more, all these fears about sexual assault – you don’t care about your sons who already go to bathrooms with sexual predatorial men? You don’t realize that a majority sexual assault cases take place at home or at the home of a friend, neighbor, or relative (6 in 10)? One in ten take place outside, away from home. And about one in 12 take place in a parking garage. Your issue clearly is not with sexual predators, but with the deconstruction of gender.

2. Your second issue is with undocumented immigration, or the encouragement of immigration. This is where I start to go in on you. This is what I cannot understand – you are an immigrant yourself – you beat the odds in the immigrant lottery, you made your way into this country through toil and struggle, and you continue. But — somehow, now that you have made it, you cannot open your heart to allow others to come into the country?

Why do you feel that Trump will protect Chinese Americans more from ethnic violence, race-based attacks? Trump’s rhetoric is based on creating racial divisions — despite recent attempts to make it seem like he cares for African Americans and Hispanics, his campaign revolves around riling up white anger – which as immigrants, viewed as perpetually “foreign” you bear the brunt of white anger and white resentment. There needs to be an inherent recognition that your rights in this countries have been fought for you by the civil rights movement, by Black Americans who have fought with their bodies to allow all people of color, and other marginalized identities to have an easier survival, a chance at happiness and equality. Trump’s campaign is focused on using the anger of working-class white Americans — who on many accounts at his rallies have physically and verbally assaulted people of color. I do not want to convince you necessarily to vote Hillary, but that the justification I see for voting Trump is inherently racist. It reveals a us vs. them mentality that fails to see the bigger picture of the Asian community.

A disdain for illegal immigration is interesting to me because many of these people expressing these sentiments are immigrants themselves. You can surely remember the feelings and motivations for leaving your home country and what America represented for you. you “made the cut” and in the luckiest circumstances was able to come to America; why does this mean that you are against other people who are facing horrid circumstances, difficult lives back in their countries to be able to enter the US and receive the same benefits that you do? You are afraid of people cheating the system – but the bigger realization should be that the system is unfair to begin with.

Daniel:

I am excited. Excited that I am able to exercise my right to vote. Many people in the world do not have this right. Therefore, I will act upon this privilege and actively participate in the 2016 Presidential Election. This upcoming election is not a joke. We will be electing a leader that has to not only work to better our country, but to represent us in the global political sphere.

So, we need to ask ourselves the big questions. This election is not about you as an individual, but it is about us as a community. Will the candidate you elect be able to build up your community as a whole? Will your candidate promote equality for all? We need to look past ourselves and our own individual interests and vote for the candidate that can move our country forward socially, economically, culturally, and politically in an intellectual manner.

I am not voting for my own personal benefits that my candidate “says” they will support. I am voting for the future of the children of this generation. Of every single person. Do we want a candidate who promotes hatred and racial injustice toward all minorities, Asian, Hispanic, Black, even women? Of course not. I am voting to fight against income inequality because the rich are just getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. The middle class has practically disappeared. Trump in his own words said that his plan for economic growth is to cut taxes on the wealthy and big businesses. This trickle-down economics has not, will not, and cannot work. History proves this over and over again. Right now, in America, the wage inequality is the worst we have ever seen in the history of the world. We need a candidate who is looking out for the marginalized and oppressed and willing to sacrifice to advance equality.

Furthermore, I cannot support a man who does not care for ANY LIFE besides his own and his own people- wealthy, white Americans. He does not care for minority groups. He does not care about the lives of Asian Americans, African Americans, or Hispanic Americans. All he cares about is perpetuating the status quo of Whites.

I am an Asian American. My parents were immigrants. It is very important to look at the histories of violence and racial discrimination done against Asian Immigrants in US history. From early as the 1850s, Asian immigrants migrated to the US to do hard labor in sugar plantations, gold mining, and railroad building. They were treated as slaves, as dogs. White business owners referred to Chinese as animals and the “Yellow Peril.” There were plenty of laws passed to discriminate against Asians, notably the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act. During the building of the Transcontinental Railroad that started from California to the Midwest, most of the workers were Chinese. When it was completed, there was great celebration throughout the nation, but not one Chinese was credited.

So, if we take a look at the history of rejection, of discrimination, of abuse of Asians in America, we do not want anyone to be treated that same way! We do not want a president who wants to maintain White supremacy and wealth.

I am speaking for this next generation and your children’s generation. I must let my voice be heard. I must fight against racial inequality, wage inequality, gender inequality. I must fight for justice because this is my country. We are responsible for this country’s future.