This is a blog post written by Mr. Zhai hua.
Mr. Zhai graduated from Tsinghua University, Beijing. He continued his study in France, and received his Master’s degree and his PhD there. He has worked in France, Thailand, Côte d’Ivoire, Philippine and many other countries.
Mr. Zhai is the organizer and main contributor to his group blog, Eastern Cultures, Western Words ( 东方文化西方语). His posts mainly cover his interesting experiences in different countries.
In this post, African, Our Brothers, Mr. Zhai refutes some Chinese common stereotypes of African with his personal experiences. Also, he talks about his various interesting encounters with African.
African, Our Brothers
Original post: 《称兄道弟说非洲》
Translators: EPIN
Editor: Jacky Peng
I had stayed in Africa, a place far away from China, for seven years. The China-African Forum reminds me, an “old African buddy”, of those old African friends, more accurate, my African brothers. Chinese always say, “While we’re strange in the first time we meet, we will get familiar in the second time.” However, when African meet others in the first time, they can fraternize. It does not matter whether he is a king, a president, or an ordinary people, all men are brothers. Since they are brothers, they will make some casual remarks. At that time when we were at work, whenever some black colleagues saw me, they would shout to me loudly, “Mon frere, on dit quoi?” (“My brother, something to say?”) “Something to say” is a customary term for many French-speaking Africans. It is for greeting, and also means “Is there any news or anything interesting?” As we met every day, normally there was nothing new. So I often responded frankly, “My brother, there’s nothing I can say.” After listening to my words, the African guy deliberately argued, “Hey, why? Aren’t you my brother?” When a white colleague saw this, he joked with us, “You guys look not like brothers; you are comrades!”
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