At the start of every academic year, a seismic fissure appears in the University of York student body. The crack is so massive that it shapes the destinies of many students for the rest of their academic lives. Yet this chasm is largely invisible, and rarely discussed.
The rift that I am referring to is the gap created between local British and International students during Freshers’ Week, a series of daily clubbing events that usually comprise of pub crawls and end with a night of partying in a pre-selected nightclub.
While many British students tend to throw themselves enthusiastically into the revelry, International students (usually from East Asia or South-East Asia) tend to shun clubbing and stay in their rooms. This creates significant inter-group tension. British students often feel offended that their attempts to welcome Internationals for a night of fun are rebuffed, and they then perceive Internationals as being anti-social, nerdy and unwilling to integrate.
On the flipside, Internationals perceive British students as disorderly and undisciplined. This is magnified by the fact that in many International students’ home countries, clubbing is viewed negatively as an activity that only rebellious or problematic teenagers partake in. Clubbing can also be viewed as a promiscuous way to get hooked-up, which is shunned by some Asian societies who view pre-marital sex negatively. The adverse perception of each other and the sizeable interstice that emerges becomes regrettably entrenched for the remaining academic years.
However, I (a Singaporean Chinese who does not club in his home country and who loves to spend Friday night reading The Economist) would like to point out that both misconceptions are largely a false narrative. The truth is, British locals and Internationals simply have different cultural expressions of solidarity, and synthesis of these different ways of life is possible and beneficial for all.
British clubbing, far from being disorderly, is actually a positive form of community formation. From personal experience, whenever I go clubbing with British friends, they are always very welcoming and happy that an ‘International’ joined them.
The clubbing group expresses care and concern for each other by making sure everyone stays together throughout the night and returns home safely. Very often, clubbers can be seen offering to help an inebriated stranger call a cab. It’s simply a different expression of welfare and friendship that is not often seen in Asia.
Internationals tend to express solidarity in a different manner, usually through gathering for a potluck or steamboat dinner. They gather together for fellowship via the medium of tasty food.
This is especially important given the blandness of British food. Potlucks and steamboats are also an acknowledgement of the fact that many Internationals are on PM scholarships (Papa Mama scholarship.) Their parents have worked hard to save up money to fund their childrens’ education, which is often double the amount locals have to pay.
A PM scholarship means Internationals are obliged to spend their time in England wisely. They are expected to score well and do their parents proud. This is compounded by the fact that for many Internationals, English is not their first language and they have to spend extra time mastering it. To many Internationals, clubbing and getting inebriated is viewed as either being unfaithful to their parents or a frivolous waste of time.
It is also likely that both sides have been guilty of ethnocentricism; neither are empathetic to each other’s cultures. Therefore, when Internationals and British locals interact, intergroup behaviour is triggered rather than interpersonal relations. In other words, the Asian flatmate is viewed by the locals “as a foreigner who is unwilling to integrate” rather than a potential friend. And the British flatmate is viewed as an “ill-disciplined and party-crazy white” rather than a friend who simply wants to have a good time.
I think that a synthesis between the two seemingly disparate groups is possible. British locals need to understand the context from which Internationals come from, and how they generally do not like getting drunk. Internationals need to understand that British clubbing is simply a different way of life, and rather than being a disorderly activity, it is actually one of the most sincere expressions of friendship.
So why not have a potluck coupled with pre-drinking, followed by a night of light clubbing? It may just make everyone’s three academic years so much more fun and meaningful!
Really insightful article! Enjoyed reading it.