This week’s feature story is about three young athletes from BC who are sliding for the gold in Beijing. I have always loved the Olympics, and I’m beyond excited that we got Olympic athletes to talk to our small, independent newspaper. I poignantly remember watching the Canadian men’s hockey team win gold in the 2010 Olympics, promptly shutting down entire intersections as every neighbour came out of their house to celebrate by screaming and dancing in the streets. I was in Brazil when their men’s soccer team won gold in Rio in 2016; the twenty Brazilians I shared a house with all jumped on each other, crying and shouting in sheer joy. I will take all of the figure skating, snowboarding, luging, biathloning, ski jumping, and even curling, that I can get. There is something about watching humans perform almost superhuman-like abilities and seeing them cry on the podium as their dreams become manifested into reality that makes my heart just sing.
The modern Olympic games are the brainchild of Pierre de Coubertin, who founded the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1894 in the pursuit of a more peaceful world. With over 200 countries competing side-by-side, the Olympics are the perfect platform for friendly diplomatic relations, as well as acts of political rebellion. Jesse Owens, a Black American runner, smashed Hitler’s theory of Aryan-race supremacy during the 1936 games in Berlin. Cathy Freeman, a runner of the Kuku Yalanji people, celebrated her victory at the 2000 games in Sydney by waving both the Australia and Aboriginal flags. A team of refugees was formed in 2016 during the height of the refugee crisis in Europe. Athletes from North and South Korea walked together during the opening ceremonies in Pyeongchang in 2018. While the IOC claims political neutrality, theirs is a rather lofty, idealistic view. Not even the best ice dancers will distract the world from China’s grotesque and inhumane treatment of Uyghur muslims.
Human Rights Watch labelled China’s treatment of this minority group as crimes against humanity, as the communist government’s tortue of the Uyghur people of Xinjiang has reached “unprecedented levels.” China has been accused of committing genocide to the Uyghur people as they have forced over a million people into detention camps, conscripted them into forced labour, seperated families, and sterilized women. Chinese authorities have totally denied all of these documented abuses. China has also denied allegations of the mistreatment of Tibetans, stripped the democratic freedoms of Hong Kong, and silenced anyone who dares to critique their regime, like tennis star Peng Shuai and political cartoonist Badiucao. For all these reasons and more, countries like Canada, the US, the UK, and Australia have declared a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Olympics.
The purpose of this week’s feature is to highlight the talents and perseverance of young BC athletes, and is not meant to white-wash over the extensive list of human rights abuses China has been at the centre of. Between one to three million people have been sent to “re-education camps” (ie. concentration camps) that enact physical, psychological, and sexual torture. This year, I’ll be cheering on the athletes who have dedicated their lives to perfecting their craft, all while shunning the host country for being straight-up fascist dictators who have no regard for human life or sanctity.
Image: Brian Matangelo / Unsplash
Andrea Sadowski is working towards her BA in Global Development Studies, with a minor in anthropology and Mennonite studies. When she's not sitting in front of her computer, Andrea enjoys climbing mountains, sleeping outside, cooking delicious plant-based food, talking to animals, and dismantling the patriarchy.
