Global Times: ‘Through my videos, people are learning what Xizang is like’

Editor's Note:

Xizang, a region known for its breathtaking landscapes and unique cultural traditions, has long become a target of Western smear campaigns and falsehoods about China. What is the truth? In the "Truth Seen in Xizang" series, the Global Times (GT) will publish conversations with and articles from scholars and observers from around the world who have visited the region, sharing their firsthand experience of traveling to Xizang and observing the daily lives of people there. Through their insights and experiences, we aim to present an authentic perspective on the Xizang Autonomous Region.

Lee Camp (Camp), an American comedian who was the host of the hit comedy news TV show Redacted Tonight, visited Xizang recently and posted videos of his experiences on social media. He told GT reporter Wang Wenwen that if the ordinary Americans could go and see Xizang, they'd have a very different view of everything. This is the second piece of the series.

GT: Can you share with us your first impression of Xizang? In your videos, you compared many differences between New York and Xizang. Can you elaborate on that?

Camp: As soon as any foreigner steps off the plane, they will be shocked by two things, the lack of oxygen and the stunning views. There's 40 percent less oxygen in every breath, so the moment you get off the plane, you'll feel dizzy. And then the beauty is unmatched. It really is another world. Having been to only 10 or 15 countries, I haven't traveled extensively in Asia. However, China's Xizang is really stunning, with snow-capped mountains, the Himalayas, and everything else that Xizang has to offer. It is totally gorgeous and I wish everyone could experience it.

In terms of differences, one of the biggest is the infrastructure. We in the West, particularly in the US, are still led to believe that Xizang is a very simple, rural place and there's not much infrastructure there. That's an antiquated view. It hasn't been accurate for many years, and today the infrastructure is immense in a lot of areas. For example, Lhasa is a truly modern city. I think 100,000 kilometers of highways have been built in the past 20 or 30 years. There is an endless number of tunnels through the mountains. Some of the tunnels that we went through in Xizang were longer than any I've ever seen. There are no 5-mile tunnels in the US through mountains. It was very impressive. The amount of effort that must have gone into creating this infrastructure is phenomenal.

I live in Baltimore in the US. The US has a lot of collapsing infrastructure. We have 60,000 structurally deficient bridges, which means bridges are in urgent need of repair, and are even unsafe for public travel, and we're not putting any effort into fixing these things. We spend a trillion dollars a year on the military, and yet we can't fix our bridges. It's just a totally backward way looking at what needs to be fixed, repaired and built in the US, and instead, we put most of our budget into forms of destruction around the world, which is extremely infuriating.

GT: What kind of stories do you read about Xizang in the US media? How does this compare with what you have personally seen in Xizang?

Camp: There aren't many stories. Most coverage about Xizang is censored, ignored or omitted. When there are stories about it, they are almost exclusively about how Xizang is not free and lacks religious freedom. Everything I saw there proves that this is not true. There are thousands of Buddhist structures and prayer temples, as well as many Buddhist monks and nuns. You have many mosques; and even a church. There seems to be a lot of religious practice in Xizang. Even though I'm not religious, I still think that people should have the right to practice their religion, and it's beautiful to see that in Xizang. The Buddhist monks and nuns I spoke to said they have religious freedom, which seems to be the opposite of what the US media says about Xizang.

Our mainstream media, which reaches most people, is designed just to further the US empire and its hegemony, echoing the talking points from the State Department. That's basically 80 percent of the reason it exists. That, combined with the fact that it is difficult for a foreigner to make it all the way to Xizang, means that there is not a lot heard about the area. That makes the mainstream media believe they can say whatever they want and people will believe them.

GT: How do you feel about Xizang's modernization? How does China manage to find the balance between preserving its cultural heritage and advancing modernization?

Camp: We spoke with a lot of Tibetan people who very much keep the old ways and the old traditions alive. For example, they wear traditional Tibetan garb for ceremonies and other occasions. Modernization around the world is inevitably going to come with cultural changes to some degree.

With modernization, some of the most obvious aspects of cultural heritage do decrease, but that doesn't mean they have disappeared. I think it's offensive when people say Tibetans should remain exactly how they were 100 years ago, as if they shouldn't be allowed to use modern infrastructure and modern vehicles and live in modern housing. It's entirely their choice how they live. Modernization involves the use of modern technology and no matter what culture you come from, we're all figuring out how to behave in the modern world, while holding onto the aspects of culture that are important to us from 100 or 200 years ago.

GT: "Forced assimilation" is one of the US accusations against Xizang. Did you find any evidence during your trip to Xizang? Given the US' dark history regarding the treatment of its indigenous people, do you think the US is qualified to point its finger at China?

Camp: I didn't see any. We met with people who chose to stay in some extremely poor areas in the hills of Xizang. I asked them why they chose to stay and we also asked those who chose to move why they left. Some said, "This is where I grew up and I want to stay here." That's their choice. One person we spoke to in the new city said, "I have clean water here." Everything I saw showed that they weren't forced to move. The government is trying to help them get out of extreme poverty. I don't think that's a flaw.

If there were hypocritical rankings, I think the US would be right up there. There is a really rough history in the US, not only Native genocide, but also forced assimilation. There were residential schools in the US and Canada, where Native American children were stolen from their families and forced into these schools where they were abused and had their entire culture ripped from them. Many of these schools continued to operate into the 1970s, just a few decades ago. It's a really disgusting history that the US doesn't like to talk about.

GT: After you posted your Xizang videos on social media, what feedback did you receive? How will it help the ordinary Americans gain a fair view of Xizang?

Camp: People loved my posts. Some said I am a propagandist, but 95 percent of the comments have been wonderful. People love to see new places. A lot of people were really surprised by how modern Xizang looks and everything that's going on there.

US social media heavily suppresses voices like mine and the topics I talk about. My content is not seen by as many people as it should in the US, but luckily, a lot of people have seen it. They're learning what Xizang is like, and when people learn about other places, other humans and other cultures, they tend to lose their hatred, xenophobia and stereotypes. The people on the streets of Xizang are kind-hearted, and they were all very friendly to me. If the ordinary Americans could go and see that, they'd have a very different view of what's happening there. This goes for most cultures in most countries. If you learn about a place and you really get to know it, even just a little bit, hate melts away.

This article first appeared in the Global Times: 

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202502/1328646.shtml