By Alison Klayman
Food is one of first topics you learn about when you move to a new country, or learn a new language. In China, where everything from the staple foods to the cutlery is different from the West, foreigners are frequently met with the question: "Are you used to eating Chinese food yet?"
When I first came to China, some of the first phrases I learned were related to food. "Does this have peanuts?" I would ask, because I am allergic to peanuts. "Is there any meat or seafood in that?" was my second question, because I am a vegetarian.
I only became a vegetarian at college because of my beliefs about environmental sustainability and animal's quality of life, but I've always kept kosher. I never ate meat outside of the house unless it was at a kosher establishment.
So for me, becoming a vegetarian was an easy transition. It was also a non-negotiable one, because no matter how much I am prodded to try a really nice shrimp or pork, my eating habits are set by my religion.
When I reveal to people in China that I do not eat meat or seafood, the questions that follow are usually, "Why?" and "Is it because of your religion?" Yes, it's because I am Jewish.
In my travels around the world, this is not always a fact I feel comfortable sharing. But in China, I am always met with some positive response. "Oh, Jews are very clever." Usually followed by, "Jews are good at business," or perhaps more bluntly, "Jews are very rich."
No one is asking me for confirmation of these claims. Though they have never met a Jew before, they seem to think these stereotypes are factual. For example, I believe I am smart, but I have no penchant for business and I am not rich.
I think many Chinese people realize these are stereotypes, but since they are positive ones, they think there is no harm done. Although these are compliments to the Jewish people, earnestly uttered, they often make me feel uncomfortable.
They make me think about the danger of stereotypes, how there are negative stereotypes of people and how even positive ones can become detrimental when they inspire unwarranted jealousy and hatred.
In China, however, I am confident about my acceptance as a Jew and the good intentions of most Chinese people, with whom I share this fact.
(China Daily March 28, 2008)