Whither the Chinese?

In other parts of the global Chinese Diaspora or community of migrant Chinese, much discussion has taken place on the history, sociology, economic patterns of behaviour and achievements of the community.

In Trinidad and Tobago, which celebrated the bicentennial of the arrival of the Chinese to these shores in 2006, there remains much that has not entered the realm of discourse and assessment of the presence of descendants of the “golden dragon”.

That this should be the case may be attributable to the tiny size of the community (3,800 souls in 2000) or as part of a failure (or perhaps, unwillingness) to come to terms with a presence in this country which, many will say, is no longer a transient one, but one in which members recognise this country as an abode of permanence.

This is a valid issue as in the discussion of Chinese migration patterns conducted by Chinese academics as Wang Gungwu and North American scholars like Sucheng Chan, the recently deceased Him Mark Lai, Lok Siu and other writers, the Chinese have in some societies been seen as “sojourners” who are biding time while en route to another, probably more lucrative destination.

The other salient aspect of the discussion about the Chinese resident in this country is whether having recognised this country as home, there is no longer the need for members of the community to operate at the level of harping on achievements as if such pronouncements would buttress the community’s legitimacy in this country as Chinese lay claims to asserting that they are as much Trinidadian or Tobagonian as members of any other ethnic group in the society.

In other words, Chinese need not presage every statement they make with the “back up” that members of the community have made sterling contributions in the fields of business, medicine, law, public service, sport, culture or what have you. The Chinese shopkeeper’s son/daughter who has gained a national scholarship has achieved such feat in testimony to the hard work and application exerted both at school and at home, but this is as much a tribute to the values taught to him by his parents as it is as a result of a myriad of other non-ethnic specific factors.

The mere continuing presence of Chinese and their descendants in this country attests to their belief or conviction (implied or otherwise expressed) that they do not, in the least, entertain as remotely feasible a return to the homeland.

A further aspect of the discourse that can be considered is the paucity of studies, published or otherwise, that constitutes scholarship about the Chinese community of this country.

True enough, one may point to Walton Look Lai’s publications on the migration history of the Chinese, Descendants of the Dragon produced on the occasion of the bicentennial, Trevor Millet’s Chinese in Trinidad and academic contributions at UWI, but these are relatively few in number even when compared to work done in relation to other chapters of the Diaspora in the USA, UK, Canada or even in Jamaica.

Scholarly discourse within a community is much more than the tomes produced for significant anniversaries but can also be measured by articles in occasional publications or in the media which can examine and discuss some serious aspect of life in the community.

Steps could be taken to raise the level of awareness by members of the Chinese resident in this country of the intellectual effort that has focussed on the Trinidad and Tobago chapter of the diaspora. Bentley and Henry’s 1969 study of the local Chinese or other studies such as Professor BW Higman’s 1972 article in “Caribbean Studies” or the 1987 contribution to the noted journal Ethnic and Racial Studies by Howard Johnson of the Mona campus of UWI come to mind.

This intellectual lacuna in the collective tradition of the community should not fail to give one pause as it reflects the absence of a function one associates with any community that is intent on celebrating its values, traditions or stories as they are handed down from one generation to the next.

It is true that not everyone is expected to know the findings of every academic study produced but at least one should have some interest in familiarising oneself with the life and history of one’s ancestors.

In this context Christine Ho’s 1989 article “Hold the Chow Mein, Gimme Soca: Creolization of the Chinese in Guyana, Trinidad, and Jamaica” published in Amerasia Journal, volume 15(2) should be recommended reading for those with an interest.

Gregory O’Young is a PhD

student at UWI