Personal COVID-19 Experience in Beijing

• Started 2020 normally - Paris fashion week interview in January
• Returned Beijing January 22nd, found atmosphere tense due to rumors
• Having lived through SARS, wasn't initially concerned
• January 23rd: had dinner with friend from New York who had flu
• Another friend left next day for Australia vacation by plane
• Not taking situation seriously until lockdown implemented

Cultural Differences in Pandemic Response

• China vs. Western countries have completely different human experiences culturally/historically
• Chinese lockdown acceptance: people okay with government measures
  • View government as "good parent" - sick child isolated to protect others
  • Expect government to take protective actions
• Western response: becomes political issue about personal freedom infringement
• Democratic societies face issues China doesn't have to deal with

Chinese Cultural Concept of Authority

• Chinese word "guai" (乖) - doesn't exist in other languages
  • Describes child who listens to parents
  • Chinese people are very "guai" as culture
• Chinese always look up to authoritarian figures
• Expect government to take action, will endure suffering if "Big Brother" says necessary
• Defines China's separate mentality from Europe/America
• Collective responsibility sometimes absent from Western culture

Surveillance vs. Privacy Trade-offs

• Balance needed between individual freedom and collective safety in Internet age
• Robin Lee (Baidu head) quote: Chinese willing to give up individual rights for convenience
  • Was criticized on Chinese social media but speaker agrees he's right
• Chinese proud of payment system - iPhone face scan payments everywhere
• Current semi-lockdown: app scans mobile number, tells guards where you've been past 14 days
• American friend horrified by privacy invasion
• Speaker (20 years in China) feels safer knowing everyone scanned before entering mall
• Individual freedom as abstract concept meaningless during pandemic
• West needs to move toward East thinking - collective vs. individual focus

US-China Relations and Nationalism

• Antagonistic rhetoric between US/China troubling
• Countries interlinked through global supply chains
• Nationalistic sentiments on both sides most horrifying pandemic outcome
• Optimistic view: both sides will realize need to fight together as human race
• Global economy integration makes decoupling extremely costly/painful for both countries

Dr. Li Wenliang Case and Public Opinion

• China criticized for downplaying death toll, demonizing Dr. Li (Wuhan whistleblower doctor)
• Weibo users posting on Dr. Li's last post as living memorial
• 870,000+ comments and growing on his final post
• Night Dr. Li died: Chinese social media exploded with anger/frustration
• He was unjustly treated as whistleblower but continued working, died from disease
• Government narrative changed 180 degrees: from "misbehaved doctor" to "hero who warned people"
• Authoritarian government still aware of public opinion
• People don't want to change system despite complaints - only dislike particular decisions
• Reason: never known another system, this is what they know how to work with

"Wok Throwing" Concept

• Chinese slang: blaming someone else, making them scapegoat
• "Carrying black wok" = being made responsible for something bad
• Trump calling it "Chinese virus/Wuhan virus" = trying to blame China for entire pandemic
• Chinese "threw wok back" at Americans
• Viral joke on Chinese social media about "wok throwing gymnastic aerobics exercise"
• Speaker also doing TikTok dances during lockdown

Silver Linings and Unity

• Pandemic exposed inequities/inequalities in systems, broken structures
• Opportunity to rebuild better if smart
• Virus doesn't discriminate by race, skin color, nationality, wealth, or importance
• Time to be together rather than pull world apart into nationalistic shells
• Human race must work together rather than be distinguished by superficial differences