The Osama Bin Laden Kebab stand
- added December 31, 2007
- 4 responses
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- sherif
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- Art and Style (17997)
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- Kebab (3)
I took this picture down stairs of my house in Wuhan China, where I have been living for the last two years teaching English. The picture shows a kebab stand with a sign that has Osama Bin Laden on it and it reads "Arabic Barbecue."
I asked the owner why he used his picture and he said because Bin Laden is a famous Arab and because in the picture Bin Laden is gesturing a one and each kebab stick that he sells is one Chinese Yuan.
I thought this was interesting because it, in an extreme way, symbolized how closed off, and perhaps oblivious, Chinese society still is from the outside world.
I asked the owner why he used his picture and he said because Bin Laden is a famous Arab and because in the picture Bin Laden is gesturing a one and each kebab stick that he sells is one Chinese Yuan.
I thought this was interesting because it, in an extreme way, symbolized how closed off, and perhaps oblivious, Chinese society still is from the outside world.
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Why be shocked at how cut-off the Chinese are when Bin Laden's in Brighton!!
China I can understand, Brighton - should know better! -
"It symbolized how closed off, and perhaps oblivious, Chinese society still is from the outside world."
Not sure I agree with that...it may seem hard to imagine, but in a lot of countries Osama is kind of revered. In Ghana it's common to see Osama on T-shirts, posters, etc.
That's the first time I've seen him used to sell kebabs though. -
I am very aware that in many parts of the world Osama is revered as you mentioned, but he is used here in China in a very different way. I think it's silly to use a picture of an "Arab" to sell Kebab and even more ridiculous to use him.
Part of the reason I say that Chinese society is still closed-off (mainland), is that after living here for two years and experiencing the constant bombardment of curiosity many Chinese people have about foreigners, in the form of stares, pointing, hearing "look it's a foreigner," asking to take pictures with you and of course the occasional nose grab by some children.
I don't think there is anything wrong with people in China doing that, in fact I personally think it's entertaining, I am simply saying that many Chinese, in the mainland, have this very inoccent facination with foreigners and I thought the Kebab stand played into that .
I think if you've been here you'd know what I mean -
Ease up on that sass pedal, ramsay.
I never said that China celebrates Osama. I was disputing the characterization of China - one of the world's oldest societies and home to over a billion people - as "oblivious" (because to me, that's an ugly generalization).
Are you in China? If so, please tell me about it. Are the Chinese as "oblivious" as you claim they are? What's that like?
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