No American Devils...Japanese, maybe.

When in remote areas Chinese sometimes accost me and demand, "Who are you?"
I answer, "I'm an American devil." Almost (but not always!) this disarms them, and they laugh, and protest, "No! No! American friends, not devils!" But very many add, after a thoughtful pause, "Japanese devils, though."

Many of my elderly Chinese neighbors still remember the horrific experiences of the Japanese occupation of Amoy in 1938 and afterwards, but Fujian's encounters with the Japanese go back much further. In remote areas of Zhangzhou province, Lindun town for example, I've found the ruins of city walls built almost 400 years ago to protect villagers from the "pygmy bandits" (their derogatory term for Japanese invaders--still used in a plaque today in Quanzhou's Maritime Museum!). Oddly, another wall ran down the middle of Lindun town because the town had two factions that feuded each other--except when the Japanese came, at which point they united to fight off the pygmy bandits.

100 years ago the Japanese were taking Manchuria, Taiwan and other parts of China, and at the same time working overtime with the propaganda to convince Western nations that they had only peacable intents. We'd have probably not been taken by surprise at Pearl Harbor if we had paid attention to people like Millard, who way back in 1916 warned the U.S. and Europe that the Japanese had infiltrated Western peace organizations to encourage pacifism. It's sobering. Even today, I think we should seek peace, not war, but I suspect even now some of those crying "Peace!" really mean "Piece!" (as in, "I want a piece of Georgia, or Kosovo, or....).

This photo is from Millard, 1916 (p. 205) the caption says it all.

Fortunately, China's youth today seem to have forgiven Japan. They love frequenting Japanese restaurants, listening to Japanese pop stars, watching Japanese movies. And families like the Sabayashis from Japan have lived for years in China, teaching Japanese language and culture, and helping bridge the gaps of fear and mistrust. Hopefully, one of these days Japanese devils will go the way of American devils.

Enjoy Amoy!

Dr. Bill Xiamen University
www.amoymagic.com