My Response to Siyang Wei
The elections committee has been in contact with me, and I have set out my response to this here, I believe they are very misguided in their attempt to stifle free speech: My Response
But I am glad that Siyang has stated that it was them who reported my post to the election committee as this demonstrates their lack of commitment to the free speech of people who disagree with them.
I had included a paragraph about this in my original piece, but I thought it would detract from the quality of my argument, so I removed it, but here is the paragraph in full:
I would also like to clarify something, I am not some white guy turning up to a predominantly Asian society for ‘improper’ reasons. Before I came to Cambridge, I spent 10 months intensively studying Mandarin in Guilin, China. While I was there I met my girlfriend, who I love deeply because of who she is as a person, and not in any way because of her race. So Chinese culture is, whether I like it or not, a part of my daily life, be it meeting my girlfriend’s family, or just walking around town when I go to visit.
However, in the light of what Siyang has raised I would like to add to this:
Although Siyang has clearly stated that they do not wish to accuse me of “predatory and fetishizing behaviour” such behaviour, by generalising about white men they are doing just that, and I find that quite offensive, and not the kind of rhetoric the student body would expect in a CUSU President
I would like to clarify, that when they asked ‘What should the role of white people in ABACUS be?’, I was more than aware of the multiple interpretations possible, but I chose the one that would be most relevant to the role I was running for, which — like all the roles — is fundamentally apolitical, it is about organising events for all. I am — as you can probably tell — of course more than happy to have in depth discussions about racial bias in China, the fetishization of Asian woman by some Western men, and my opinions on the polices of the CPC, however, the ABACUS AGM was neither the time nor the place.
They refer to the fact they didn’t believe a discussion on the serious issues that they raised at the AGM would have been productive. However, I am someone who understands, and sympathises with those issues, during my 10 months in China I saw plenty of pretty sickening behaviour by certain individuals attending my language school — many of them white American men. I believe that a discussion had the potential to be extremely productive, and I apologise for whatever I did that made me appear unapproachable, and I hope Siyang will reach out to the incoming ABACUS committee if they have any further concerns (and if they don’t feel comfortable approaching me). I would also like to clarify that I heard nothing about the meeting they and their friend had with some committee members after the AGM.
If the linked post really did refer to their dismay at the hostile reaction (the majority of which came from the British Chinese students in attendance), I am confused as to why they referred to white men in their post, as I was neither the source nor the cause of the hostile reaction.
A couple of extra points of clarification about what they wrote:
- They state Vice President is a leadership role, however on the ABACUS committee no role bar the President really has a leadership aspect, due to the small and amorphous nature of the committee
- Implicit in the interpretation I chose for their first question (for reasons outlined above) was that they thought I didn’t necessarily belong in ABACUS, however as they have clarified that was not their intention, I withdraw that remark.
- After asking their question about white people they did try to ask another question, and I believe they did mention ‘safe spaces’, but was on the verge of tears, and quite quiet, so I could be mistaken, and I think neither of us would like to discuss this particular point further.
- The way the ABACUS elections work, the 6 best committee members are selected, and then the positions divided up between them, so yes, I did win the election (and I feel that such a comment has no place in a polite and measured response, as it is entirely irrelevant)
As for the candidate who ran for Secretary, I found his manifesto pretty tasteless, and he was grilled extremely hard by the outgoing committee for the immaturity displayed, and as a result was not elected. However, much as I find transphobia disgusting, I do not believe that personal opinions should have disqualified the candidate from running, just as I am not of the belief that personal opinions should disqualify one from running for CUSU president (but should certainly be both mentioned and challenged). This is especially true in this instance, as he both apologised for the contents of his manifesto, and clarified that it was in no way malicious, and merely intended as a joke — albeit one I did not find particularly funny at all (and which, to my dismay, many in attendance found funny, raising awareness of LGBT+ issues in the Chinese, and Asian community as a whole, is a serious issue facing us today). But, regardless, I think both Siyang and I are in general agreement on this particular issue, and that it isn’t relevant to my argument. (For those interested, here is a link to my manifesto from over a year ago, to dispel and potential confusion that mine was the transphobic one: here)
I am also extremely grateful for all the messages of support I have received, as I believe that electing the CUSU President for the coming year should be something we, as a student body, play a far more active role in, no matter who we vote for.
And to that end, vote HERE.
