No Chinese Or Dogs Allowed
There is a Peking Duck post (and the follow-up) about the authenticity of a sign that says "No Dogs Or Chinese Allowed" at the entrance of a park in foreign-leased-territory in Shanghai. That issue has been beaten to death without a definitive answer as to whether such a sign really existed. Hearsay doesn't count and unauthenticated photographs don't count. What is required is a dated photograph of such a sign published in the 1910's/1920's, and that has not yet emerged.
But it is not the purpose of this post to deal with that piece of history. As far as I am concerned, the case is closed -- since Bruce Lee included such a scene in his movie Fists Of Fury (also sometimes known as The Chinese Connection) the entire Third World already believes this to be true! And we live in a globalized democracy and the majority rules! Here is the sign and Bruce kicking it to smithereens! See, it is true!
Anyway, I hope that you understand the preceding was said in jest. I am really more interested in contemporary examples of the same sign that can be readily authenticated. Here is the first one that was reported about a month ago:
(Nanfang Metropolitan News via Tom.com) By Xu Linuo. May 8, 2005.
[in translation] "Chinese and dogs not allowed" is well known to be a public notice that insulted the Chinese during the semi-colonial era. But this sentence has publicly appeared in front of a factory on Yuannan Street in Lihuan District, Guangzhou. But the people at the factory did not think much of it, and they even claimed that this was 'freedom of speech.'
"Notice: All unauthorized Chinese and dogs are not permitted to enter, or else you are responsible for all the consequences. May 1". This unsigned notice was written with a chalk pen on a small blackboard hung on the gate of a factory on Yuannan Street in Lihuan District. When the reporter went there yesterday, the old factory building appears to be empty with no sign of production activities. On the outside were two stone tablets which said "Guanzhou Bicycle Axel Cover Factory" and "Guangzhou City Wuyang Bicycle Enterprises Sports Equipment Factory."
When the reporter entered the factory, she observed several males and females watching television or sleeping. Periodically, someone comes out pushing a bicycle. A female who claimed to be from Henan province told the reporter that she had been hired by the "boss" to look after this factory building to make sure that no one steals anything. She has no idea who the "boss" is as she has never seen him/her before.
The female said that she had no idea who wrote those words on the little blackboard. The reporter asked, "Don't you feel that these words insult people?" The men and women by the door laughed and said it was good fun. When the reporter pursued the question further, the female said, "This way, it will stop strangers from barging into the factory."
There was a row of motorcycles lined up outside the factory wall. So this was an open-air parking lot. While the reporter was asking questions, a man came over and took the blackboard down. The man claimed to be with the parking lot. He said, "These words were written by children." The reporter asked, "Why did you hang the words out?" But he turned around to asked the reporter, "If I want to enter your home now, would you let me in?"
The reporter asked again, "Little children don't know enough and so they write 'Chinese and dogs not allowed in.' But when the adults see that, shouldn't they lecture the children?" The man claimed, "It is the freedom of speech to write whatever you want."
About this notice, a lawyer said that freedom has to be balanced against rights. When a citizen exercise the freedom of speech, it must be legal and not discriminatory and insulting so as to infringe on the rights of others. This notice was intended to protect property, but it cannot be directed against a specific group nor equate that group of people with animals.
The above case might be taken as something of a joke. If the reporter had a real wicked sense of humor, she should have sent a foreigner in there and then watch what happens. "But your sign says I can come and go as I please ..."
In the following, I am going to offer some more similar case studies to test your sense of humor. You may not be amused. I am sure that there are many more examples, as there must be plenty of idiots in this world, inside and outside China.
(China.com, May 7, 2004) Dongguan City, Guangdong Province. Public notice at a park: "Xitou Elementary School has applied to become a Level One Provincial Elementary School. Consequently, Dongxi Park will be administered by the school. All outsiders (except for residents of Xitou Village) may not enter without permission. Offenders will be fined 100 yuan. Thank you for your cooperation."The explanation of the Xitou Party Committee was that the park was built with village money, and the students have to go through the park often. When the park was open to everyone, it was full of couples making out or prostitutes looking for clients, and this had a bad influence on the school children.
After being contacted by the newspapers, the Xitou Party Committee said that the sign will be taken down.
In the late December 2004 edition of Hong Kong's Next Magazine, there is a special section about Shenzhen. It is estimated that Hong Kong people will make about 3 million visits to Shenzhen over the Christmas holidays. Among the places that some might go is the Great Gray Wolf bar, next to the Great Wall Hotel. The sign on the bottom right reads: "Japanese people not allowed to enter." The text explains that the bar has been opened for nine years, and this sign has always been there. The bar owner says that he hates the Japanese for never having apologized for the war crimes that they committed when they invaded China. Inside the bar, there are articles and photos about the Japanese invasion of China (see photo on the left). The bar owner said that Japanese people have attempted to enter the bar many times, but the owner and the workers have always stopped them so that no Japanese person has ever successfully 'invaded' this bar.
(yninfo.com, September 23, 2004) Recently, it was came to the notice of the Commerce Department in Panyu, Guangdong that a certain coffee house had the sign "This shop only receives Japanese persons" written in Japanese. When our reporter got there, he found a Japanese sign that said: "Japanese Karaoke Club" and then in Chinese, "Open for business between 7pm and midnight." According to local residents, when they attempt to enter, the staff would tell them that the coffee shop only serves Japanese customers. The reporter called the listed telephone number and asked if the shop only served Japanese customers. The staff said that the shop had no beverage or music suitable for Chinese customers. If Chinese customers come in, they may not be satisfied. But if they come with Japanese clients, then they are quite welcome.This one is peculiar, since it is not totally discriminatory. A Chinese passerby will only recognize the shop name ("Beautiful and Fragrant"), the telephone number and the business hours. There is no description of the nature of the business in Chinese. A Chinese person could not tell if this is a coffee shop, karaoke bar, perfume shop or whatever. This shop is not interested in attracting non-Japanese-reading people to come in. As such, it did not offend everyone (whether they are potential customers or not) in the sense of a "No Dogs Or Chinese Allowed" sign written in Chinese. For example, what if a Guangzhou store puts out a sign that says "Boulangerie" with no other explanation? Is that discriminatory?
(NewsQQ.com) Yesterday, our reporter went to this furniture store in Zhengbian Road South in Zhengzhou City. There was a sign outside that said: "Notice: This furniture store sells fine furniture for successful people. No admission to anyone making less than 100,000 yuan per year." Our reporter stood outside and watched people going in continuously, but there wasn't anyone checking their economic status. The reporter went in and looked around. The furniture pieces were quite expensive, including a 16,800 yuan bed, a 20,000 plus yuan sofa but also some pieces that costs around 1,000 yuan. The assistant manager explained to the reporter that this is a high-end store and the purpose of the notice is to advertise the price/quality levels. The managing director called the reporter later to say that his workers misunderstood his original intent. He had said that he intended to establish the store as a high-end store, but then the store was seeing boisterous and poorly dressed people hanging around, some of whom even urinated on the floor. So the workers misunderstood his intent, and hung out this sign. He said that he has ordered the sign to be taken down.
(Chongqing Evening News via gb.chinabroadcast.cn) A bar in Chongqing, China. The sign in yellow reads: "The Lost Bar: We Refuse To Admit Japanese Inside."
(6Park) In the city of Jilin, a western-food restaurant has a Chinese-language sign outside the door: "Japanese must apologize before entering." The restaurant said that if Japanese customers want to dine here, they must properly apologize for the fact that Japan invaded China, or else the restaurant will not offer any services. The owner said, "We welcome those Japanese customers who look at their national history correctly, and our restaurant will certainly offer them our excellent services. But we do not welcome those customers who refuse to regard their history properly."
(Xinwenhuabao via Yahoo! News) On September 18, the national day of infamy, a certain flooring sales store in Changchun, China, raised a banner that said: "Japanese and dogs not allowed inside." Reviews were mixed. A man walking with his 6-year-old daughter said: "While we should remember the day of infamy, this is not the right way. It is exaggerated and misdirected. Not only does it fail to exhibit patriotism, it actually makes people uncomfortable with this extremely narrow-minded emotionalism."
The manager said that this was the ninth year in which he had done this on 9/18. "I am not exaggerating even if I am somewhat extreme. But this is how the warning message gets through better. This generation must not forget and the next generation must not either, or else their suffering may be even worse. My hometown is Dunhua. Last summer, two Dunhua children were burned by chemical gas bombs left behind by the Japanese army."
(Qihoo)
(船山筆記)
「華人與狗不得內進」
石川禎浩 有關文章所引用的上海外灘公園「華人與狗不得入內」告示牌史料. 按時序重排.
第一眼讀到這篇文章, 就有衝動把裡面引的史料重排一次來看. 史料從1903到1927年. 前後20幾年, 還不到一代人.
注意那20幾年間的變化. 公園的禁例一直在放寬, 最少字眼不斷地變得客氣. 似乎到了20年代初, 雖然成文的規則沒有改, 公園遏抑的只是華人形像在公園出現. 再過三幾年, 似乎公園連這政策也放棄了, 只剩下外國人的排拒目光.
1903年還是光緒年, 27年已經是民國16年. 但我並不認為這些變化, 跟推翻清朝建立民國有關. 有沒有辛亥革命, 故事也是一樣變化.
這些引述中的各種言論, 以訛傳訛者有之, 打稻草人者有之, 口不對心者有之, 自以為偉大者有之. 各種古靈精怪的心態, 並列紛陳.
(事實記述或親身經歷的記述以黑體標明, 以資識別.)
# 1903年. 上海外灘公園規則：
* 第一條 腳踏車及犬不准入內。
（No dogs and bicycles are admitted.）
* 第五條 除西人傭僕外，華人一概不准入內。
（No Chinese are admitted, except servants in attendance upon foreigners.）
# 1903年7月20日. 《周作人日記》(癸卯)：
在入口處，掛有大書「犬與華人不准入」的「金字牌」。
# 1913年. 上海外灘公園規則：
* 第一條 這些公園為外國人專用。
（These Gardens are reserved exclusively for the foreign community.）
* 第二條 狗與自行車不得入內。
（No dogs and bicycles are admitted.）
# 1917年. 上海外灘公園規則：
* 第一條 這些公園為外國人所用。
（These Gardens are reserved for the foreign community.）
* 第三條 服裝不體面者不得入內。
（No Persons are admitted unless respectably dressed.）
* 第四條 狗與自行車不得入內。
（No dogs and bicycles are admitted.）
# 1917年. 姚公鶴《上海閑話》：
【華人不得入公園內】租界中外人公共建築之所，每不准華人之闌入，喧賓奪主，無過於此。今之跑馬場及白大橋下之公園，其最著矣。…… 今門首高標英文於木牌，所云「狗與華人不准入內」是也。
惟此事並無國際強弱之關係，乃國民教育之關係。聞昔時外人並無此項禁令，歷見華人一入公共地方，折花驅鳥，躁踏地方，無所不為，於是跑馬場首以營業公司名義，禁止華人之涉足。…… 嗚呼！教育不普及，又曷怪公益心之薄弱耶！
# 1923年11月. 蔡和森〈被外國帝國主義宰制八十年的上海〉《嚮導》46(1923):352：
上海未開埠以前，一草一石，那一點不是華人的？但是既開埠以後，租界以內，最初是不准華人居住的，而「華人與犬不得入內」的標揭，至今還懸掛在外國公園的門上！…… 所以住在租界裡面的華人，簡直當不得一條洋狗！
# 1924年4月14日. 韓祖德〈上海租界公園開放問題〉《時事新報》：
聽說上面幾個公園，從前是公開過的，因為我們同胞的公共道德心太缺乏了，所以遭西洋人的厭惡，曾經有「華人與狗，不准入內」的牌示。…… 聽說外國人所持為唯一的拒絕我們華人享受公園的娛樂的理由，因為歐戰和平紀念開慶祝會的那天，花園的花都被人家摘盡了。…… 我不敢擔保不再發生我們華人的弱點，所以也不敢完全要求自由地開放公園。不過像現在的嚴格的取諦，我總不顯意自號為文明的友邦人久長維持下去。…… 我願上海的華私快教你們子女們去培養些公德心，不要叫他們貪了一些花草，便被自利和自私戰勝，連累全體的居民都得不到應有的權利。
# 1924年7月. 《楊闇公日記》(中共黨員, 楊尚昆兄長)：
* (7月7日) 入夜往訪新民，偕同子于赴黃浦江〔公園〕。子于著常服，不能入公園內，心內憤甚！外人壓迫的痕跡，國人沒有見著嗎？
* (7月9日) 六時許與子于、新民等赴黃浦公園一遊（子于因欲入內，特改作洋服），瀏覽至九時許，改赴法國公園。此地較〔黃〕 浦江公園要好得多，耍至十一時許才歸，到滬來最快活的了。
# 1924年11月. 孫中山神戶演說 (《孫中山全集》卷11)：
上海的黃浦灘和北四川路那兩個公園，我們中國人至今都是不能進去。從前在那些公園的門口，並掛一塊牌說，「狗同中國人不許入。」現在雖然是取消了那塊牌，還沒有取消那個禁例。
# 1926年. 後藤朝太郎《支那游記》：
那座公園雖說是不允許支那人進入的，其實並非不允像支那人者進入。因為是上海工部局所公認的公園，所以並非支那人的我，進入其間散步則理應無礙。…… 我因懷以支那服為常服的心情，故不怕別人是如何看我的。站在園內小徑交叉口的印度巡捕亦以不審之眼光掃視我的行蹤。雖然沒有貴婦人等把視線注入於我，但有些紳士、淑女用奇怪的眼光注現著我這個不懂公園規矩的支那人。…… 我自己因為有這身支那服竟能進公園散步的緣故，內心充滿了一種俠義心，甚至希望印度巡捕會衝著我來說一些什麼訓斥的話。但是他們半信半疑地盯著我，終於欲言又止，結果是什麼也沒說就算了。如果他們因為支那服而訓斥我的話，還想等待著同他們好好辯駁一番，不幸的是，這番辯駁終於沒有發生。
Source: 石川禎浩,〈華人與狗不得入內告示牌問題考〉，收於黃克武編《第三屆國際漢學會議論文集歷史組：思想政權與社會力量》（台北：中研院近史所，2002）.
