On Korea, China, Unity, and Division

Even though I did not get the NSLI-Y scholarship to Korea, and even though I still love Germany, I must post something that has been bothering me for a long time.

As you all know, I love Korea. I think the country is just so interesting, and I love seeing its similarities and differences from the other East Asian countries, namely China, Japan, Vietnam, and Thailand. Recently, I realized there was a Korean Culture Center in DC after going on the Korean Embassy's website, and I thought of visiting there just to learn more about the culture. Then I found out that they had this really, really cool page on Facebook, with tons of giveaways, information about scholarships for studying in Korea, teaching English in Korea..you know, all that stuff I like.

Suddenly, an idea popped into my mind: does a Chinese Cultural Center exist in D.C. as well? I look it up on Google, and the closest thing I can find is CCACC, otherwise known as the Chinese Culture and Community Service Center. The front page is filled with pictures of people in their 40s+, and the website just looked kind of plain. I searched for any information on ambassador speeches, movie screenings, and more...none to be found.

My point? It just makes me sad that the biggest Asian country (population-wise) seems to provide less resources than the significantly smaller South Korea. SK wants its culture out there, and is promoting its country in a pretty good light. China, on the other hand, is not. I love China, but I feel like though the language is becoming more popular in the U.S. and more people want to know about the country, China isn't really...doing anything significant enough for people to pay attention. It reminds me of International Night back when I was still in elementary and middle school. Every year since Kindergarten, our family (along with one or two others) were the only ones who were willing to set up a table in the cafeteria and represent our country. We had the best food and activities (our table was the most visited), but after it was over, I noticed some people saying, "How come only two families came to support the China table? Where are all the other Chinese families? Just shows that China is too big for anyone to care about anyone else." Those words made me really upset.  It was like they were saying Chinese people have no unity or support for each other.

I really want to change that. Even at school, I see the Koreans all stuck together supporting each other; while the Chinese may be doing that, it is clearly to a lesser degree. Sometimes, I wished I was Korean so I could be in those tight-knit groups. I hope that one day China can truly rise up, take a stand, and break down some of their stereotypes--not just on the political stage. And of course, each country has its strong and weak points. I am by no means saying that Korea is the model nation, but it would be nice if people weren't viewing China as a dog eat dog land.