[VIDEO] Expats Featured in National Patriotic Campaign
If you find yourself not well-liked by your Chinese peers, it may be that you're singing the wrong tune.
A recent Chinese campaign to bolster patriotism features expats pledging their allegiance to the Chinese "motherland," earning them high praise from the Chinese internet.
A number of videos show different groups of expats singing "I Love You, China," a Chinese patriotic song with lyrics vowing to "dedicate my prime youth" to China, described in the song as "my motherland."
One well-received homemade video below features a group of Caucasian singers gathered casually around a grand piano and singing under the direction of what appears to be a Chinese national.
https://v.qq.com/txp/iframe/player.html?vid=h05579kebxb&width=500&height=375&auto=0
Another video of an "I Love You, China" performance comes from a recent Chinese television broadcast from Hangzhou. With an international lineup described as "blue-eyed, blond-haired," the singers include Julie Laurent, who had sung this same song at another opera performance earlier this year.
And just last month, a crowd at the Beijing Institute of Technology "burst into cheers" when Takunda Rukanda from Zimbabwe regaled them with his personal rendition.
Although some Chinese netizens were critical of the campaign, one person saying, "Do we need to rely on foreigners to raise our self-confidence?", many praised the expats for their performances, choosing to quote their favorite lines from the song.
With most of the videos posted by the People's Daily newspaper, the campaign coincided with National Day celebrations, commemorating the founding of the People's Republic of China.
But while the outpouring of devotion from non-Chinese may seem strange, the campaign has made a point of showcasing a diverse group of people from different backgrounds that are all united in their love for China.
Other widely-circulated performances of "I Love You, China" this past week include those made by schoolchildren (see video below), a contingent of Chinese scientists stationed at the South Pole (see also video below), and Chinese workers stationed on a deep-sea oil rig. All the same, the most-important video would be the celebrity jazz and rock version that has been forwarded over 300,000 times since debuting on October 1. Featuring the star power of the TFBoys, this version juxtaposes a Chinese landscape against the country's military vehicles.
https://v.qq.com/txp/iframe/player.html?vid=q055896yvdv&width=500&height=375&auto=0
https://v.qq.com/txp/iframe/player.html?vid=b0558oq14tr&width=500&height=375&auto=0
This wasn't the only patriotic campaign to take place over the National Day holidays. Last week also saw the "My Country is So Amazing" (厉害我的国 lìhài wǒ de guó) campaign that displayed its slogan across landmarks in cities across the country.
Because expats aren't always perceived in the most flattering light by the Chinese public, it appears that ingratiating yourself with your hosts is a sure-fire way to win instant approval. But although pledging allegiance to the "motherland" may seem like a heavy price to pay, the singing of "I Love You, China" is often done with other motives in mind.
Katherine Whyte performed "I Love You, China" in Beijing last year as a way to celebrate 46 years of diplomatic relations between Canada and China. Meanwhile, Rukanda performed "I Love You, China" as part of a university contest, and ended up taking first prize.
And if that's not enough, then you should know that "I Love You, China" isn't actually a red song from Revolutionary-era China, but comes from a 1979 movie called Overseas Compatriots. In the film, a character (played by Joan Chen) sings this song not as an expression of her inner thoughts like other musicals, but as an audition piece to enter a music conservatory.
It seems you can pass even the most difficult of tests in China with flying colors – just so long as they are the right colors.
Images: Miaopai.com, Weibo.com, GlobalTimes.cn, Sina Blog (sina.com.cn)
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