I could feel butterflies fluttering in my stomach as I opened the envelope bearing the purple W with shaking hands, aware of my heart throbbing nervously against my ribcage. Agitation turned immediately to relief as I saw “Congratulations!” at the top of my UW acceptance letter. As my breathing slowed and body relaxed, the little black words below my name that printed “Taiwan, Province of China” suddenly stole my attention. A huge wave of mixed emotions washed over me—delighted at being accepted, shocked that the name of my home country is attributed as a part of mainland China, dismayed at the lack of political awareness of the university. The fact that I was not being properly recognized as a national and political identity of my own desire—solely Taiwanese—led to undeniable feelings of frustration and disappointment with the school and with my current situation.
My initial reaction to the letter was to assert aggressively that Taiwan is definitely not “a province of China”. I pondered further on my insistence on being called a Taiwanese rather than Chinese even though our bloodline and ancestry stem from the same place. I believe that it is Taiwan’s unique heritage, language, form of government and even currency that differentiate us from mainland China. It is not a matter of superiority or wanting to stand out, but rather more about how history and experiences impact our identity. I’ve heard about the countless political tensions and conflicts that Taiwan has to face on the world’s stage in both the past and present. After the communists won the Chinese civil war in 1949, the Taiwan-based Republic of China government maintained US and Western recognition as a legitimate government until 1971. Since then, the United Nations recognizes Communist China as a sole government and ended all official diplomatic relationships with Taiwan because membership—the highest form of participation—is inextricably linked to sovereignty. China is adamant about preventing recognition of Taiwan as an individual country, insisting on the one-China policy and claiming that Taiwan is a part of their territory. As a result of a political compromise with China, our athletes are forced to compete in the Olympic games under the name “Chinese Taipei”, with a different flag and anthem that cannot fully represent how we perceive our nation. “When we stand at the Olympic ceremonies, we win cheers and acclaim, but at the same time we lose dignity and lose the nation. We have a medal in our hands, but no honor,” Ketagalan Institute president Chin Heng-wei has said. We are furious about the name because it suppresses the dignity of Taiwanese people and damages Taiwan’s international position.
This is the flag that we are required to use for international sports competitions such as the Olympics, under the name “Chinese Taipei”.
A phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and the President of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-Wen, caused a major uproar in the world, pushing this sensitive political dispute between Taiwan and China into the spotlight once again. China has formally complained to Washington about this incident, asserting forcefully that Taiwan is a “inseparable part of Chinese territory” (Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang), and that Trump’s recognition of Tsai as a sovereign leader indicates that US considers Taiwan as an independent nation. It is frustrating that over all these years, China still hasn’t budged and even threatened to start war if Taiwan declared openly about its independence.
As I stared at the three little black words on the acceptance letter that define where I come from in the world, I had the startling realization that the unfairness impacting Taiwan was happening on me at a personal level. It raised a huge political awareness in myself, telling me that I should not simply regard this issue with a shrug of defeat and an exasperated sigh. Growing up in Taiwan for nearly all my life, coming to the US for college is the first time that I am immensely aware of myself stepping out of the bubble that had kept me comfortable for so long, and I felt miniscule compared to the overwhelming flood of students that I had never encountered back home. As an international student, I was bombarded by so many forms of culture shock—the diversity in everything from appearances to behaviors, ethnicity and race…
The University of Washington speaks proudly and firmly about their diversity on campus, their ability to encompass such a huge spectrum of culture and ethnic backgrounds, but I am angry and confused that our feelings toward being conceived as a part of mainland China were overlooked. It also raised questions that keep nagging the back of my mind. Will I be treated fairly at UW? Will I have a hard time explaining to my peers about my so-called “country”? Fortunately, I have not met people that challenge my identity and viewpoint, even the numerous mainland Chinese students that I’ve encountered so far are incredibly friendly and generous, but the fact that the very thing that defines who we are—the name of our home—is unrecognized in the world and at the institution, shows that we have not yet gained the respect and pride we ought to receive.
It’s a simple name with serious political undertones. Even though my community within the University of Washington campus is quite small, I am immensely proud to say that I’m a Taiwanese international student, and I am glad that my political and cultural background enables me to be aware of the concerns happening around and on myself. While I acknowledge that it is difficult in UW’s part to regard Taiwan as an individual sovereignty since this problem stems from the United Nations, history and international politics itself, I hope that the school can recognize the preferred national and political identity of all students. I believe we should all dig deep into the meanings behind the words and really open our eyes to the world around us; we should be bold enough to pinpoint issues that cause conflicts, arguments, and tensions; and we should gain the sense of political awareness that allows us to be sensitive and empathetic to issues that seem to undermine those around us.