2 Expats Face Investigation for Racist WeChat Comments

By Bryan Grogan

Two expats in Shenzhen are in trouble with police after making insensitive comments in a WeChat group on September 27. The two white males made multiple derogatary remarks within the chat group of 88 people organized by a small restaurant in Nanshan District.

Amongst the offensive comments were references to the Nanjing Massacre, in which Japanese forces committed a number of atrocities against Chinese citizens during World War 2. 

The conversation started when one of the expats used the offensive term 'chink' when referencing a story about Chinese rapper Pissy’s diss track against Sweden. One of the group’s members, a Chinese man using the alias Master Gao, responded by commenting “Wow, since when this group turn racial? Calling chinks will get you arrested in the US.”

Image via 高岩Master Gao/Weibo

The expat went on to ask Master Gao whether it was better to use the term 'gook,' another offensive slur popularized during the Vietnam War. Master Gao and the expat argued back and forth before a third member of the group, another foreign man, joined the fray and also proceeded to make racist and offensive comments.

The two expats also insulted Master Gao's home province, Jiangsu. The two foreigners called Jiangsu "poverty stricken," despite the coastal province having the second highest GDP within China. 

That's spoke to Master Gao on Weibo after the incident. He told us that the online conversation was the first time that he had made contact with the two men, although he had heard about previous derogotary remarks by the people in question. 

"One guy’s alias was 'n***er Jim,' he has had that name for a while. He used chink word once couple days before the incident and was disliked by another Chinese guy in the group. (I didn’t pay attention to that incident until later someone pointed it out to me.) He also called himself supreme race, and used heil hitler during talking with me."

Image via 高岩Master Gao/Weibo

Photos of the online conversation quickly went viral on Weibo and WeChat, with many rightfully outraged at the behavior of the two men. Some called into question how the men could teach young children in China (although it is unclear whether the two men are teachers), while others called for their hasty deportation. 

Image via 高岩Master Gao/Weibo

According to Sina Weibo, as of October 1, the case is being investigated, although further updates on the two men’s situation has not yet been verified. That's was unable to contact the Nanshan Network Police for extra comment. 

[Cover image via 高岩Master Gao/Weibo]

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