Moral Seating Dilemma

[sea-au-don]

The point I’d like to get across is not giving away your seat isn’t culturally specific to any ethnic group. I always offer mine, except when I’m not well or something, even though such practice sometimes isn’t appreciated. She said it loudly; I bet the whole bus could hear her. I looked down in embarrassment, and didn’t know how to react. I’m not good at dealing with racism. I don’t even know if I could call it that. The rest of 15 minutes riding the bus was purely painful...seriously.

Edit:

I tend to be careful about applying the term of racism, as some white folks find themselves disadvantaged in social perceptions that ethnic groups are racially-victimised as a whole. I rarely encounter racially-motivated mistreatment. When I do, it’s actually mostly by people from other Asian backgrounds. Funny, I didn’t lose it till some hours after the incident, when I got home talking about this with my mates. I to some extent think she was racist, honestly. But then, as controversial as it gets, I avoid bringing up this concept.

Edited May 20, 2009 at 05:08 PM by sea-au-don
补充

[DrWatson]

Myself, I'd be giving up the seat to the pregnant woman, but perhaps I'm biased because I remember how hard it was for my wife to get around on buses and metros. Young and middle-aged business men often pretended to be asleep rather than give way to and old man or pregnant woman. However, if the old man was weak and could not very well support himself due to the rocking of the bus, I'd be more inclined to give the seat to him.

In Tokyo I am constantly amazed to see grandparents standing while their grandchildren sit on a seat in public transportation. I've seen mothers rush to put their children in a seat, and then and old man with a cane in one hand holding onto the railing on the bus for dear like as it sped through the suburbs of Tokyo at unusually safe speeds. It seems to be quite common here and I can only assume it is a cultural difference. When I was a child I was always told that children should stand for adults. I guess it has stuck with me.

[gato]

I don't think this lady was saying that she was entitled to a seat because of her skin colour but rather because of her age. She then proceeded to lecture an innocent person about how people give up seats for the elderly "in her country".

The same words may mean different things depending on the tone in which they said. It's hard for us to say since we weren't there. But my guess is that she was racist; otherwise, she wouldn't have lectured him about what's proper in "her country." Australia could be "his country" as well, though he isn't white and might have looked foreign.

[roddy]

Was on the bus yesterday - the number 718 if I recall correctly - and an old man gave up his seat to a woman with a young (carrying age) child. All the young folk were enjoying their mp3 players, and he was getting off at the next stop he said. I was already standing, by the way, having earlier given my seat up to someone who was faster than me at getting to it.

Further observation: nobody is quicker, more vicious and generally elbowier than an old Chinese lady homing in an an empty seat, which she then intends to give up to her grandchild. Seriously, you're better off playing Hide the Cub with grizzlies than trying to get that seat.

[DrWatson]

I like this metaphor! Don't mess with grandma, not only does she have a sharp mouth but she can also take on the toughest!