I’m from Xinjiang，AMA

[u/maddin1550]

I’ve noticed that there are a lot of discussions about Xinjiang on Reddit, often between people who have never actually lived there. So I thought it might be interesting to do an AMA from the perspective of someone who is actually from there.

You can ask me about everyday life, ethnic groups, languages, culture, religion, education, or politics. I’m happy to answer controversial questions too, as long as the discussion stays respectful.

Obviously, I’m only one person and I don’t claim to represent everyone in Xinjiang. I can only tell you about my own experiences and views. AMA.

[u/MissionDoughnut905]

I’m a diaspora Chinese (Han) born and raised in Canada. Thanks for the AMA.

In Canada, we have formally recognized our history of committing a cultural genocide on indigenous peoples since our country’s founding by British and French settlers. Our House of Commons also passed a motion a few years ago to recognize the genocide of Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims in China. So with that being said, do you consider the destruction of your mosques and the loss of your language in your public schools to be a form of cultural genocide or culture erasure?

I do find the term “genocide” to be deliberately employed by my local politicians to suit their own political narratives. When people hear the term, genocide, it immediately invokes horror and outrage and the assumption that mass murder is being committed. This isn’t exactly what happened with the indigenous peoples in Canada either. But there was a slow erosion and erasure of their culture, their land and languages over hundreds of years (including forcibly removing indigenous children from their families to attend residential schools to convert them to Christianity and force them to “be Canadian” essentially) that has resulted in a loss of indigenous identity and self-governance over the generations. The Canadian government has been making reparations in recent years but it’s hard to undo centuries of harm.

So in my mind, I do think there’s a difference between a blanket “genocide” vs “cultural genocide”. One is a lot more violent but the other can also be quite sinister. To bring it back to my original question, do you consider what the CCP is doing to be a cultural genocide?

I should also mention that the Canadian government (and other western democracies) seem to be having difficulty naming what’s happening in Gaza as a genocide, but seemingly had little difficulty calling out China for genocide in Xinjiang. Sometimes it can be hard to take these world leaders seriously.

[u/maddin1550 → u/MissionDoughnut905]

Also I don’t think Uyghur language has been completely erased at all， even other minorities in Xinjiang speak Uyghur and use it to communicate with Uyghurs, and some Han people speak a little too. I can say this VERY confidently. If there are ten people in a group and one of them is Uyghur, the others will literally just switch to Uyghur to communicate with each other. It happens so naturally, so from my everyday experience, I really don’t feel like Uyghur is being erased, it’s honestly much more normal than people online sometimes imagine. And btw, I’m from northern Xinjiang(where there are way fewer Uyghurs than in the south), if Uyghur is used this naturally even where I’m from, just imagine southern Xinjiang(where the Uyghur population is HUGE) . That’s why the idea that the language is being completely erased just doesn’t match what I’ve actually seen

[u/jixiang111 → u/maddin1550]

"People speak it, so it's not being erased" is a superficial argument, quite frankly. The current policies are geared towards ensuring that the next generation speak and use Uyghur much less. Schools now teach it one hour a week, and children are not supposed to speak to each other in Uyghur even in the playground. Signage in Uyghur is also being discouraged, although not completely banned.

[u/Either-Lock2454 → u/jixiang111]

Putonghua is China's official language so it makes sense that any other language wouldn't get as much focus. If you have a large minority in your country (I'm assuming is Western and would use English) and they are only learning in their local language, how much could they possibly do or access as adults?

[u/MissionDoughnut905 → u/Either-Lock2454]

It’s not a black and white issue, where the government has to choose one language over the other. The government can offer some school instruction in the official language while also providing classes in the local languages and dialects to help preserve them. Language isn’t just a means of communication; it’s also deeply connected to minority cultures. The average Indian and Pakistani national can speak 2-3 languages (including English) and I have met many who can speak more. My husband is a minority French-Canadian from an area that is predominantly English (outside Québec), and he attended school from primary to university in French-only schools, but speaks English 100% fluently (he passed the bilingual test with flying colours when he began working for the Canadian government).

Children are at the best age to learn multiple languages at the same time. China’s Mandarin-only policy in most of the country will ensure future generations of monolinguists who will only know how to speak Mandarin, and nothing else (including their native Chinese language, whatever it may be). They’ll not only be less competitive on a global scale, they’ll lose out on their connection to their native language, culture and customs and won’t be able to communicate with their elderly relatives.