Poster of 'Great Helmsman' Mao Zedong, one of China's most
revered political leaders. It reads, 'The Great Thought of Mao
Zedong Shines With Splendor.'
Disrespect for Mao
Exposes Truth about U.S. 'Free Speech' (Huanqiu,
People's Republic of China)
Beijing is angry today with the U.S. Department of Education. Its infraction?: Removing a quote of China's late leader Mao Zetung from its Web site. According to this editorial from China's state-run Huanqiu, the knee-jerk removal of the quote, at the behest of Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, shows that far from being the world's leading advocate of free expression, America is just another nation with its own free speech limits.
U.S. Senator from Iowa Chuck Grassley has gotten Beijing's attention by forcing the removal of a quote of China's former leader, Mao Zedong, from the Web site of the U.S. Department of Education. The sentaor called Mao a 'murderous tyrant.'
The National Center for Education Statistics under the U.S.
Department of Education found itself in some trouble recently. On March 22, it
pulled a quote of former Chinese leader Mao Zedong from its Web site which
read, "Our attitude toward ourselves should be 'to be insatiable in
learning,' and toward others, 'to be tireless in teaching.'" One U.S.
senator demanded that the Education Department explain why it
cited the words of a "communist." The quote was reportedly replaced
by an aphorism from Abraham Lincoln. As if to apologize, the Department's
acting press secretary [Dennis Briscoe] called it a "poorly chosen quote."
[Editor's Note: According to the Washington Times, Senator Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, issued a statement saying, "As our society rightly does with Hitler, murderous tyrants like Stalin and Mao should be considered pariahs, their victims should be remembered, and their crimes should be taught to future generations so they never happen again." Dennis Briscoe, press secretary at the Education Department, apologized for a "poorly chosen quote," intended to "highlight the importance of teaching and learning."]
The fact that the United States, which prides itself on its
freedom of speech, can't even tolerate quotations from Mao Zedong, shows how
narrow-minded the American political system is in the face of the diversity of
global culture. It would appear that U.S. "freedom of speech" has
been exposed as counterfeit.
In China's media today, there would be no obstacle to publishing
the words of an American president, or even Douglas MacArthur, an
anti-communist general. Yet when the words of Mao appear on an American Web site,
it whips up a huge controversy. One shouldn't draw any blanket conclusions from
one simple comparison, but the situation certainly calls into question U.S. claims
of a lack of bias.
Free expression has its limits in every country, as it does
in the United States, and we can understand that. But this incident over Mao's quotation
reminds us of how determined the U.S. government is to maintain social cohesion
within a diverse environment. American elites not only maintain a high degree
of vigilance on ideas that tend to fragment society, but are quick and
unhesitating when seeking to maintain an "American consensus."
Most people in the news industry know that American media
are independent from government in terms of ownership, but they are not antagonistic
in relation to the government. U.S. media belong to various conglomerates, the
influence of which can be described as inextricably linked to relations with
the U.S. government. In short, communication between government and media is very
strong and well-established, which is something the Chinese general public is largely
unfamiliar with.
America's influence over the global definition of
"free speech" is based on its own standards. While the
U.S. considers itself a moral authority on the matter and has the greatest
capacity to set the boundaries for "free speech," when others seek to
set their own free speech boundaries, it is somehow considered an outrage.
At the time of the writing of this article, we don't mean to
say that free expression in China is as open as it should be in certain areas. Whatever
is taking place elsewhere, in terms of promoting a more open and transparent political
system in China, there is still much work to do. Reforms surrounding free
expression in China must continue to be steadily carried out.
Posted By Worldmeets.US
However, the storm over the quotes of Mao reminds us that
while the U.S. can provide a frame of reference for reform in China, by no
means should we consider it a model to be universally worshipped. The United
States in particular, is no paragon of free speech. In fact, it has developed
despite its "ugly face." As a rapidly emerging civilized society,
China must not sit on bended knee at the foot of the United States. China should
have the courage and wherewithal to see the U.S. as an equal that can both appreciate
America's achievements, and also recognize its deficiencies.
The experience of the United States has nothing to
correspond to that of China and its 1.3 billion people. American newspapers rarely
ridicule U.S. presidents, and behave as though history has ended. The world
should shine a light on the U.S. political system and take a good look. Perhaps
one reason for its arrogance is that the history of the United States is so
short and bereft of major problems, that it has engendered a lack of national
political understanding.
Mao Zedong was a pioneer of a new global geopolitics who
launched the revival of the Chinese nation. Sooner or later, when they overcome
their narrow-mindedness, Americans will acknowledge this man as one of the
world's political giants. But this understanding will likely have to wait for a
new generation which will grow up, in the world and in American, with a far
wider perspective,
