Culture Clash or Culture Excuse?
I have often had debates and discussions with people concerning what happens in different cultures as compared to the ones that you are in. Like when I voiced my opinion in the changing of a countries laws that allowed capital punishment to my girlfriend and was told that other countries or cultures should not meddle in the way that other countries and cultures are run, but then when I asked about should we meddle in the state of Malaysia where temples are being destroyed by the ruling gov't because of religious prejudice, I was told that she was taking the fifth and would not comment. It is often hard to suggest how much people should or should not assimilate into the other countries that they are going into. I can see that most people want those immigrating to their country to take up the customs and cultures of the new country. After all, it does make for an easier life and living conditions when everyone is on the same page and we are all doing the same thing. Boring, perhaps, but still nice. But, then again, being the Canadian that I am, I am also for the whole freedom to do as you like as long as it does not hurt anyone in the process. If I want to wear a kilt down main street in the dead of winter to show off my nobby knees and scottish heritage then no one should take me aside and say "men dont wear dresses in this country, you must change". Then, stories like the one below come along that make me shake my head and wonder.
This is a story of a 7 year old boy from the Philippines who was reprimanded in school for eating with a fork and spoon, as they do in the Philippines, instead of a knife and fork, as we do here in canada. The boy was removed from his classmates as punishment. When the mother called to question this she was told that 'this is Canada and here in Canada you should eat the way Canadians eat.'
Personally this takes me back to the time when I was in grade school myself and a young boy (no not me) was removed from his classmates as punishment for eating with a straw and fork. Injust and cruel, right? I mean, just cause you eat with a straw and fork does not make you a criminal. However, it does when you are eating your food by pressing and compacting the food into the straw using the tines of the fork and then shooting the food, spit ball fashion, into the air and trying to catch it into your mouth. Still, cruel and unjust to remove him from the classmates.
The thing that got me is in the end of the one article suggested that (my thoughts are put in between the astri) "If the investigation finds the school board at fault, Niemi hopes this will lead the school board to apologize to the family **ok, just and fair** and the Filipino community **going a little far on this, but ok, can accept this**, review its race-relations policy **stretching it a bit, but yes to stop this from happening again the race relations policy should be looked at and perhaps teachers given new insight into the whole culture mixture** and provide the family with monetary compensation. ** WHAT??!?!??! come on now, what the hell does someone need monetary compenation for???**" I mean, it wasnt like the boy has been removed from a class that was training him for the future and he is now losing out on major career choices. He was asked to eat alone. Perhaps it was because he was loading his food onto his fork and then catapulting it into his mouth. Aside from embarrassment, which we all get growing up and it perhaps taught him to be a bit more accepting of other cultures because he knows now what it is like to be singled out for a small little thing, what has he suffered with?
Personally I have been subjected to being giggled and laughed at when I eat. When I was living in New Zealand for an educational exchange for a year my host family at the beginning laughed at me because I would hold my fork in my left hand to cut my food and then put my knife down and use my right hand to work the fork to get food to my mouth. They all used their left hand for their fork, right for their knife and only that for the whole meal. They would squash their peas onto their fork underside and transfer it to their mouths where I used my fork like a shovel to move peas to my mouth. I guess at sometimes they thought it was disgusting and strange, but they let me be. However, when my host sister copied me once her mother yelled at her "THAT is not how we taught you to eat at the table young lady!" while I was at the table and in plain hearing of this outburst. I was embarrassed slightly and then for one day tried to change my habit, but found it cumbersome and that night realized that how I eat is a part of who I am and therefore no one should take that away from me. So, unless the poor boy is making a huge mess in the lunch room and shovelling food down his face and getting it all over the others at the table, he shouldnt be forced to change.
Now, however, I am curious as to what actually happened in the lunchroom. I was once a kid and I was once reprimanded in schools for things that I had done. Everytime that I was embarrassed and told my parents the story, I usually found a way to glaze over my faults about the situation and make it sound like I was the innocent little angel and they were the evil bullys out to discredit my name and make me look bad. So, I wonder how exactly he was eating because as you can see in the one picture with the link, he is eating with decorum and taste. Though, if I was in front of a camera, reenacting the scene, I would definitly be a tasteful and polite young man. But, this is something that might never be known since there are always three sides to the issue "their side, your side and then the truth" and the truth is often that hardest to hear and learn about.
I wonder if the truth really is a family trying to get a few bucks from the growing number of frivilous law suits that are striking Canada these days. As much as I hate to say it, I am wondering if it is true. This is also not a case of me attacking immigrants, this is a case of me wondering about greedy people. They could have been Canadian born citizens or could trace their lineage back 400 years to the first english colonist who set foot on this country, I still scratch my head everytime a person in Canada screams out "that person embarrassed me, I need $300,000 to make me feel better!"
Guess this is just another case of cultures clashing and people trying to make life livable. Do we all conform to one way in life so that we can all feel comfortable knowing that we are the same, or can we take our own way to life and be happy that our own little idiocyncracies make for an interesting way to life.
http://start.shaw.ca/start/enCA/News/NationalNewsArticle.htm?src=n050585A.xml
http://www.westislandchronicle.com/pages/article.php?noArticle=6063
This is a story of a 7 year old boy from the Philippines who was reprimanded in school for eating with a fork and spoon, as they do in the Philippines, instead of a knife and fork, as we do here in canada. The boy was removed from his classmates as punishment. When the mother called to question this she was told that 'this is Canada and here in Canada you should eat the way Canadians eat.'
Personally this takes me back to the time when I was in grade school myself and a young boy (no not me) was removed from his classmates as punishment for eating with a straw and fork. Injust and cruel, right? I mean, just cause you eat with a straw and fork does not make you a criminal. However, it does when you are eating your food by pressing and compacting the food into the straw using the tines of the fork and then shooting the food, spit ball fashion, into the air and trying to catch it into your mouth. Still, cruel and unjust to remove him from the classmates.
The thing that got me is in the end of the one article suggested that (my thoughts are put in between the astri) "If the investigation finds the school board at fault, Niemi hopes this will lead the school board to apologize to the family **ok, just and fair** and the Filipino community **going a little far on this, but ok, can accept this**, review its race-relations policy **stretching it a bit, but yes to stop this from happening again the race relations policy should be looked at and perhaps teachers given new insight into the whole culture mixture** and provide the family with monetary compensation. ** WHAT??!?!??! come on now, what the hell does someone need monetary compenation for???**" I mean, it wasnt like the boy has been removed from a class that was training him for the future and he is now losing out on major career choices. He was asked to eat alone. Perhaps it was because he was loading his food onto his fork and then catapulting it into his mouth. Aside from embarrassment, which we all get growing up and it perhaps taught him to be a bit more accepting of other cultures because he knows now what it is like to be singled out for a small little thing, what has he suffered with?
Personally I have been subjected to being giggled and laughed at when I eat. When I was living in New Zealand for an educational exchange for a year my host family at the beginning laughed at me because I would hold my fork in my left hand to cut my food and then put my knife down and use my right hand to work the fork to get food to my mouth. They all used their left hand for their fork, right for their knife and only that for the whole meal. They would squash their peas onto their fork underside and transfer it to their mouths where I used my fork like a shovel to move peas to my mouth. I guess at sometimes they thought it was disgusting and strange, but they let me be. However, when my host sister copied me once her mother yelled at her "THAT is not how we taught you to eat at the table young lady!" while I was at the table and in plain hearing of this outburst. I was embarrassed slightly and then for one day tried to change my habit, but found it cumbersome and that night realized that how I eat is a part of who I am and therefore no one should take that away from me. So, unless the poor boy is making a huge mess in the lunch room and shovelling food down his face and getting it all over the others at the table, he shouldnt be forced to change.
Now, however, I am curious as to what actually happened in the lunchroom. I was once a kid and I was once reprimanded in schools for things that I had done. Everytime that I was embarrassed and told my parents the story, I usually found a way to glaze over my faults about the situation and make it sound like I was the innocent little angel and they were the evil bullys out to discredit my name and make me look bad. So, I wonder how exactly he was eating because as you can see in the one picture with the link, he is eating with decorum and taste. Though, if I was in front of a camera, reenacting the scene, I would definitly be a tasteful and polite young man. But, this is something that might never be known since there are always three sides to the issue "their side, your side and then the truth" and the truth is often that hardest to hear and learn about.
I wonder if the truth really is a family trying to get a few bucks from the growing number of frivilous law suits that are striking Canada these days. As much as I hate to say it, I am wondering if it is true. This is also not a case of me attacking immigrants, this is a case of me wondering about greedy people. They could have been Canadian born citizens or could trace their lineage back 400 years to the first english colonist who set foot on this country, I still scratch my head everytime a person in Canada screams out "that person embarrassed me, I need $300,000 to make me feel better!"
Guess this is just another case of cultures clashing and people trying to make life livable. Do we all conform to one way in life so that we can all feel comfortable knowing that we are the same, or can we take our own way to life and be happy that our own little idiocyncracies make for an interesting way to life.
http://start.shaw.ca/start/enCA/News/NationalNewsArticle.htm?src=n050585A.xml
http://www.westislandchronicle.com/pages/article.php?noArticle=6063
posted by Capt_Canuck at 9:41 PM
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