The Power of Colour
Papua New Guinea. Thirty seven years on and we are still being treated and treating fellow Papua New Guineans like second-class citizens in our own country. Do you agree? Maybe, maybe not.
A couple of weeks ago I was appalled to hear a non-Papua New Guinean (he had an Australian accent and looked Australian) yelling at a check out girl “You an animal? Do you understand me? Canchya speak English?!” The yelling and the degrading comments continued and as incensed (utterly peed off) as I was – I just didn’t have the courage to stand up and yell back him to “Shut up and speak to her like a human being, It’s you that’s acting like an animal!” I just stood there boiling and boiling AND I did absolutely nothing except shoot him a contemptuous look. The shame of having not done anything sat like acid in my stomach for a long while after that.
Needless to say-I forgot about that incident like I always do, but it was brought afresh to my mind last Friday when I experienced a similar incident but this time it was a Papua New Guinean that was doing the demeaning.
It all began with this movie called ‘Avengers’. My friends had recommended it so I decided after a tough week of work and living life through a keypad and screen what better way to unwind then watch a movie that requires minimum thinking? It sounded like a typical less-advantaged-good-guys trying to defend their home (Earth), its people and its resources from a strong-evil-alien- force.
I arrived at that undisclosed location and went through the security doors in quite a state of excitement. I practically ran to the escalator and as I stepped off, I knew that I still had maybe 20 minutes to kill before the movie actually began. I decided that I would pay for the ticket and then go look for some unhealthy and ridiculously expensive (I know right!? The things we do in the name of entertainment!) pre-cooked food to buy.
As soon as my foot touched the lined metal that signifies the end of every escalator a security guard came up to me with his hand up in what I thought was a greeting for a second before it clicked that he was halting me! *“Nogat! Yu tanim na go bek!” I just stared at him in disbelief so he explained further, *“Yu no nap kam insait inap yu wearim su, mipla no sa larim ol lain wearim slipas kam insait. Yu laik yu ken go na baim su lo tamblo stoa na kam bek!” Initially I didn’t have an issue, I was disappointed but I thought okay fair enough, the management wants to maintain some sort of dress standards that’s their prerogative. UNTIL… about 5 seconds later when the escalator spews up this young Caucasian couple who were dressed pretty similar to how I was, jeans, tee-shirts (although I thought my shirt was funkier than their boring label emblazoned shirts) and HALLELUJAH they were wearing (Haviannas and Quicksilver) thongs. The guard practically saluted and bowed to them before he let them through!
AND that was when I realized that it had nothing at all to do with dress standard but everything to do with colour standard!
I was fuming! You can imagine what happened next; angry, indignant, insulted Papua New Guinean woman and righteous Papua New Guinean man, equals to heated words, spectators and security escorting the angry, indignant insulted Papua New Guinean woman off the premises. The drama dies and THEN everyone goes back to their business and just forgets about that incident.
The irony of the situation only dawned on me today. ‘less-advantaged-good-guys trying to defend their home (Earth), its people and its resources from a strong-evil-alien- force!’
Strong Evil Alien Forces being the operative words! But then again, after more thought I realized that it is not the alien outsiders that are the evil. No! Us ‘insiders’ are constantly letting our fellow Papua New Guineans down by letting them feel inferior to people of other Nationality’s.
Yes our Melanesian culture requires that a visitor be shown courtesy and special treatment. But for goodness sakes you don’t let visitors dictate how things are done, you most certainly don’t let your visitors live for extended periods without making sure they do understand how things are done and you most certainly don't let visitors have more of a say in your home than your family.
There are two sorts of visitors i) the short stay ones (tourists) and ii) the ones that end up living in your home on and off. You do give short stay visitors extra special treatment because their impression of PNG is based on that short stay. However if they are staying for an extended period of time then the same rules, conduct, courtesy should apply as those accorded to members of your family.
Constant special treatment usually ends up in people abusing our Melanesian Courtesy. It happens so frequently that most of us just accept it as a normal thing or let it go. We say that we are proud to be Papua New Guinean and that we are capable of doing things ourselves in our own way YET most of us are guilty of having an inferior complex. We think, "Oh yes that lecturer is American, she will be more intelligent and more informed!" or "Oh yes, she's half British and got her degree in an Australian University, she'll be better qualified for that position" and this one really stinks "Oh yes, she looks 'mixed-race' she has money!".
There are many situations/instances that many of us have a chance to make a point 'yes we are as important, relevant, intelligent, creative and knowledgeable' but because we are trying to tip toe around the whole race issue we just move on. Too many time it seems a persons ‘substance’ is dictated by how light (or non black) someone is. It seems that in this nation (where the majority of us are Melanesians) light colour is the ultimate power!
*Nogat! You tanim na go bek! = No/Stop! Turn around, go back!
* Yu ino nap kam insait inap yu wearim su, mipla no sa larim ol lain wearim slipas na kam insait. Yu laik yu ken go na baim su lo tamblo ol stoa na kam bek = You’re not allowed in without shoes, we don’t allow slippers/thongs here. You can always go downstairs; buy a pair of shoes and return.