Opinion | HKU student calls university out on lack of diversity: ‘I’m their pet gweipo’
An Estonian undergraduate at the higher-education establishment – a rare European studying at the venerable institution – says the university is not diverse, but tokenistic
“Can we touch your hair?” my classmates giggled. I stared at them, stupefied. “You are like a Barbie,” they added.
I came to the University of Hong Kong thinking I’d be one of many adventurous European students. I’d spent months snowed under in Estonia, my home country, dreaming of hot Hong Kong and a new group of friends from all over.
Having studied in an international school, I had it all figured out. Nothing’s easier than making international friends. Love of the same exotic dish is enough of a uniting force to create friendships that last a lifetime. Yet, two months into the academic year, classmates were still asking to touch my Barbie hair. Clearly, HKU wasn’t as diverse as I’d been led to believe.
Diversity – it’s what all institutions want to be known for, the epitome of inclusiveness and tolerance that yields innovation and progress. I know all about “diversity”. I hate it.
It has nothing to do with how inclusive an institution is. Diversity won’t be the end of racism, sexism or ableism. Because for most establishments it’s just a game of “how many people of different race, age, size and ability can we shove into one promotional brochure?” They are creating an illusion; it is not diversity, it is tokenism.