Tibet’s many languages are under threat from Beijing’s policies and economic realities, putting cultural traditions and memories at risk. Tsupkhu Lama in Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh, India in June 2019. (Photo by Li Keira Yin) This story won honorable...
Li Keira Yin of The Thacher School examines the difficulties that minority languages face surviving in Tibet without falling into the trap of concluding that it’s all the fault of the Communist Party leadership in Beijing when economic pressures in a globalized economy are part of the explanation. For her nuanced view, Yin draws from her unique perspective as someone raised in China who is studying in the United States. Her account of the complexities of language in Tibet started when Yin listened to her Chinese grandmother speak a dialect at home while speaking in Mandarin when picking up the phone. “I started wondering why dialects and minority languages have to be overpowered by Mandarin in China, and so I dug deeper,” Yin said. A lesson for other students struggling to understand how their lives fit into the bigger scheme of things.
Exercise: Ask students to discuss when it’s important for authorities to protect minority languages.
Curious about my family’s roots, I visited a remote region of China where minority Uighurs celebrated and laughed despite repression and a pandemic. Uighur Women in Procession at Sunrise, Kashgar, July 2021 (All photos by Li Keira Yin) I took these photos on a...
Pro-democracy parties in Hong Kong have won a big electoral victory after months of protests. Will Beijing listen — or crack down? Pro-democracy protesters in Kowloon Bay, Hong Kong, China, 26 November 2019 (EPA-EFE/FAZRY ISMAIL) Six months into often violent...
By Richard Hubbard The U.S.-China trade dispute is currently one of the greatest threats to the global economy. But amid all the talk of on-again, off-again tariffs, there is a danger of missing a more fundamental change in international relations. While to U.S....
Youth in Hong Kong have poured into the streets to protest against a proposed law they say threatens the city’s autonomy. Are they pushing their luck? Protesters against an extradition bill in Hong Kong, China, 16 June 2019 (EPA-EFE/Roman Pilipey) Twice in the...