China

Author: Jake Bauer | Published: 2019-11-23

I have just finished reading Drew DeVault’s most recent blog post in which he writes about China.

Although I too would prefer to keep politics and world affairs out of my blog, I am in complete agreement with him in that it would also betray my personal beliefs and principles to remain publicly silent about what is taking place in China and in Hong Kong right now.

I strongly recommend that anyone who is reading this should read the blog post linked above in its entirety. Every word is important.

I have already been boycotting Chinese products and the companies that have given in to China’s ridiculous demands (e.g. Apple, Blizzard, Gap Inc., etc.) as much as I possibly can and I have encouraged my friend groups to do so as well. I have also written a letter to my member of Parliament (I encourage you to write physical letters as they are at least slightly harder to ignore than an email).

I know it’s not easy to boycott, especially if you are in the market for electronics, but I believe that it is our moral imperative to do as much as we possibly can to protest the actions of the Chinese government and to show our support for the citizens of Hong Kong in their fight for the same freedoms and democracy that we in the West take for granted.

The excuse, “Boycotting/Writing to my representative/speaking up is useless, I am just one person.”, is an old and tired one that people use so they can put the issues of the day at the back of their minds and keep living life as if thousands of people fighting for their freedom aren’t being slaughtered like dogs. Don’t be the kind of person who stands by and watches as this happens.

If you’re wondering, “What else can I do?”, here are some links:

Band in China – A list of what can be done to support Hong Kong.

Company Blacklist – A list of companies you should boycott for spinelessly complying with the demands of China.

Company Whitelist – A list of companies that have stood up to China. These are companies/people you should support but some you should still keep a close eye on such as Epic Games who are partially owned by the Chinese company Tencent.

If you have already written to your representative, boycotted companies, and spread the word about China’s despicable actions then I sincerely thank you for being a good person and standing up for what you believe in. I also encourage you to take a look at some of the other protests that have been happening around the world in places like Spain, Lebanon, and Bolivia. Some similar to Hong Kong, others about things like climate change and income inequality. Here is an article by the BBC.

To close out this post, I want to share one of my favourite quotes/poems:

First they came for the Communists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist

Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist

Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist

Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew

Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me

-- Martin Niemöller, 1946