Loaded question, but these people are upper-intermediate. They can handle a philosophical discussion.
Surprisingly (or maybe not...) they didn't know a whole lot about the Chinese takeover of Tibet, and the subsequent exile of the Dalai Lama, but they had heard a bit about the riots. They explained to me that politics is an afterthought in Slovakia. Their main focus at this point is economic stabiltiy and success, which they feel isn't really connected to the government, but an individual endeavor.
I explained to them the issues between the Chinese and Tibetan people, and how each side seeks to villify the other in an attempt to win global sympathy. What I thought was important was how as a citizen of the US, I am guaranteed basic rights such as freedom of speech, religion, assembly, etc. In Slovakia, they have something similar. The people of Tibet certainly do not. The issues there have been progressively escalating until an explosion of violence occurs and people die. The disputed number is between 80 and 13. Regardless of the number, I am hardpressed not to realize that I take my human rights for granted. That is why I asked them if people like us should fight for the rights of people like the Tibetans. Right now, different countries are talking about doing a soft-boycott of the Olympics (aka: just the opening ceremony), but is that enough? One of the students said that it is impossible to say, because we are not a part of the circumstances there, and do not know the culture first hand, so it is difficult for us to make a judgement based on the facts that we know.
I then asked them if Slovakia had any protectorates, territories, or anything like that. Peter, the General Manager, said "No, we WERE a colony". I thought that was hilarious. It is so different from the American point of view, which is all about exploration and annexing territory. They just wanted to be their own country...which was a long an arduous historical process.
In that vein of conversation, I told them that when I was young and learning Geography, it was really confusing to keep up with this part of Europe. When I started, everything was "Russia", and then all of a sudden, there was this explosion of countries with names that were difficult to pronounce, like Turkmenistan and Yugoslavia. We had to keep updating the maps because they changed almost every year. They thought that was humorous. I used exaggerated hand gestures for effect.
Therefore, I blame Russia for the inadequacies of the American education concerning Geography. We just didn't have the resources to keep up with the disintegration of the Communist/Socialist Dream.
BEFORE
AFTER
1 comment:
You're a tough teacher. Mixing English classes with philosophy, civics, sociology, geography and history.
I think the comments of native Slovaks about their country are especially important. Individual responsibility (after many years of living in a society wheee the government provided everything)and freedom after being a colony. Those are things many United States citizens have forgotten. We, too, began as a colony, and fought for our independence. We, too, began as a country founded on the notions of freedom and individual rights, coupled with the exercise of responsiblity. Today, there are many who clamor for their rights, but who have forgotten that those rights come with responsibilities.
The question really isn't whether it is the responsibility of people blessed with freedom and human rights to spread the concept, but rather how it is done. It can't be forced on the unwilling or unprepared. Democracy is a messy process. Things go wrong. People misbehave. But if a citizenry really wants, indeed demands, recognition of human rights and basic freedoms, and is willing to fight for that themselves, then it may well be the responsibility of those of us who already enjoy those rights and freedoms to help.
Help can come in many forms. The less desirable form, force, has played itself out in many areas across the globe, with little success. More successful have been the efforts of NGO's and others who provide basic technical and educational assistance, allowing the people of the country to work through the transition themselves, on their schedule, with their own sense of what works best.
By the way, what you were referring to as "Russia" was really the Soviet Union, the USSR, or as it used to say on their Olympic uniforms, CCCP. But you can still blame them.
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