Don't You Have A Heart?

Our family just can't do it. We can't find it in ourselves to hire a maid here in Hong Kong. The more we are around it the more we see it as a modern day form of slavery. Let me warn you {if you are not opposed to the mistreatment of other human beings} that before you continue reading this post, you might not want to continue so that your feelings are not hurt. This is a cause I feel very strongly about, and find it hard when so many people do not have an issue with the mistreatment of their maids.

My husband and I are vehemently opposed to the mistreatment of animals. So much so, that we became vegans for awhile so as to not support the mass production and mistreatment of animals for humans to consume. {We are no longer vegan, but we are more aware of what goes into our mouths and we try to be more intentional about the food choices we make.} I stopped going to zoos that I knew were not taking care of their animals {back in Myrtle Beach I did not allow my daughter to attend her class field trip to the sad zoo in the city}. I don't go to horse races or dog races. 

And since I feel so strongly about the well being of animals, how much more so the well being of human beings? I've touched on it before and I will reiterate the fact that maids in Hong Kong get paid $500.00 USD a month and work over 12 hour days for six days out of the week. 

I was at a ladies night with some of my husband's coworkers, and as we were sitting around drinking wine and talking, the topic of their maids came up. I admire one family in particular's relationship with their maid. They seem to have a good relationship between employer and employee. A fellow coworker who is a local to Hong Kong made the comment to the effect that the maids should be grateful for having a job here or that they as the boss employing them are doing the maids a huge favor.  I exchanged a look with another friend of mine and bit my tongue. I was boiling inside, but knew it wasn't the time to say something because it would not have come out loving. 

Recently there was a court case here in Hong Kong involving a maid by her Chinese employer. The Chinese employer ended up with six years of jail time. Not that much time to pay. Abuse goes on for maids on a daily basis.

For all of you who do employ a maid here in Hong Kong, please see them as a human being. They are not your servant who needs to be at your beck and call. Please take into consideration the amount of hours you ask her to work for you in the day. Remember she gets tired and hungry too.  Respect her the way you want to be respected.

Racism Is Alive And Well Here In Hong Kong.

Call me naive, but when we moved here half a year ago, I never thought we would encounter racism on such an extreme level as we do here in Hong Kong. We moved from the south of the United States, from a small southern town. It's not politically correct to be racist today in the south, but there is still that stereotype that holds some truth. I've heard my husband's maternal relatives saying some pretty racist things {they do live in Alabama, after all}. We've always tried to shield our children from such horrific prejudices and avoid them thinking such negative judgmental thoughts.

Then we moved here to Hong Kong where my daughter had another child in her class tell her that white skin was best. It opened my five year old daughter's eyes up to a whole new level of judging people based on their outward appearances. Subsequently, we've had to have many serious conversations with her that we do not judge people based on their skin color, religious beliefs, or sexual orientation.  {Thankfully this little girl is no longer at the school thus removing her negative influence on my daughter's life.}

I'm writing this post because as a woman that looks like a Filipino, I have noticed I get treated completely different if I'm dressed up or if I go to the grocery store wearing no make-up and in shorts and a t-shirt. 

Today I did a quick run to our local grocery store. I was in shorts and a t-shirt wearing running shoes. My hair was pulled up in a bun since I had just had a shower and did not feel like straightening it. No make-up was on my face because... well... sometimes I just can't be bothered to put any on. 

Wow did I get treated differently. I had other ladies rudely bumping into me with their shopping carts. I had ladies refusing to move their cart for me when I politely said "excuse me". I had more ladies bumping into me and refusing to move. This went on for every grocery aisle that I walked down. It was unbelievable. 

Then I got back to my apartment building. Same thing happened to me from a lady living on floor 18. As I struggled to open the door of the apartment building, she just swooped inside without offering to help or even acknowledging my existence. As we both walked into the elevator, she stood firmly planted in the center of the lift, so that I ended up not having room. 

I got home and as my husband was helping me unload my groceries, we talked about the difference in treatment I receive. 

Why am I treated this way when I have no make-up on and I'm not dressed up? Because people think I'm a maid. And if I get this kind of treatment, I know the women who really are maids experience this all the time. There is so much discrimination and racism here, it's saddening. I know I fail many times, but my desire is to always show love.

"Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves" {Romans 12:9-10)

A Subtle Reminder.

We were standing on Haiphong Road getting ready to watch the Chinese New Year parade, when I looked behind me and saw this small yellow umbrella sticker on the brick wall. A little reminder of Occupy Central and the Umbrella Revolution that is still going on today. If we hadn't been stopped and standing directly in front of the brick wall, I probably would not have seen it.

The Life Of A Maid In Hong Kong.

This is a post near and dear to my heart because I feel strongly about it. I actually learned about this human rights issue before I moved to Hong Kong but after I knew we were moving to this country. 

My husband and I were doing as much research as we could on the new country we were relocating our whole family to, and after I watched a YouTube documentary on the mistreatment of domestic workers in Hong Kong, I was greatly disturbed.
 

Then I joined a Hong Kong Mom's group on Facebook {also before we moved here} and I was appalled that I could see the mistreatment regarding employers to their maids written all over the forum. The behavior and ignorance shown by the responses of other members on this Facebook group confirmed the documentary. I read a Facebook thread where an employer was asking where she could purchase a crate to put on top of the roof of their apartment building for their maid to sleep in at night. A man responded that if they didn't have room for their maid in their own home, perhaps they shouldn't have one living with them or to consider sleeping in the crate themselves. He was blasted with abrasive comments in support of the lady who wanted to let her maid sleep in a cage. It made me nauseous. This was real stuff. No one was standing up and supporting the man for his take on human rights.
 

I'm not opposed to having maids. I grew up with maids living and working for our family when my family lived in the Philippines. I'm not standing in judgement of people that hire other people to help them live a bit easier. We had a gardener. We had a hired guard to protect our house or to at least act as an intimidation factor to those that might be tempted to burglarize our home. In fact we're still friends with several of the maids we had over the years today - thirty years later. One of them currently works here in Hong Kong and we consider her part of our family. She worked in my family's home for ten years and watched me grow during my awkward teen years. I look at her like a big sister and refer to her accordingly. We spend time with her every Sunday {her one day off of the week} and on public holidays. She confirmed what I had heard in the documentary.

Our family friend works from 7:00 in the morning until sometimes 11:00 at night. There are no siesta's or breaks given during the day. She must always be on call for when her boss might need her.

Domestic helpers are paid a minimum of $500.00 USD a month, working sixteen hour days, six days a week. Every domestic helper has one day off a week. Sundays. And a lot of them congregate on Hong Kong island in Central. The city of Hong Kong closes certain streets off to allow the domestic helpers a place to sit on Sundays. You'll see cardboard or sheets of plastic, that the maids have purchased, lining the streets  providing somewhat of a barrier between them and the dirty pavement.  

I took these particular photographs in Central at the HSBC building. Because of the shade that the building provides, it is a favorite spot for maids to congregate on a Sunday.

You will see the maids eating together, playing card games with each other, giving each other pedicures, and even making crafts to sell to supplement their meager income. Some arrive very early in the morning and stay out late into the evening because they have nowhere to go, and at the home of their employers do not have a bedroom to sleep in. Because space is so limited here in Hong Kong, it is not uncommon for domestic helpers to sleep in the kitchen or in the same room as the children they are taking care of.
 

Sadly, the caste system lives on here in Hong Kong. Domestic helpers are mainly from the Philippines and Indonesia and are not looked highly on. They are often abused {verbally, physically, and even sometimes sexually} by their employer.

I'm not sure what the solution to this epidemic will be, or even when it will take place. I can only do my part, that if we ever do end up hiring a maid, to treat her with respect and see her as the human being she actually is.

The Umbrella Revolution.

As our holiday for Golden Week is about to begin, after the kids got out of school, our family made its way down to the Admiralty Center to watch history being made. Pro-democracy activists are taking a stand and making a statement in the streets of Hong Kong.
 

We were warned by my husband's coworkers and some of our family friends that it wouldn't be wise for us to go down there, much less take our two children with us. Friday night there was an incident of the police spraying tear gas among the crowd. But alas, we are living in Hong Kong without a nanny, and had no one to leave our kids with. Truthfully, we wanted our kids to be part of the experience.
 

We asked the kids if they had talked about what was happening in Hong Kong in their school classrooms at all. Neither of the kids were aware of why we were going to see what we were going to see, so after a brief explanation and my husband using Star Wars as an analogy, the kids were excited to see the protest rally... so excited that my daughter fell asleep {she woke up after a bit}.

When we walked out of the Admiralty MTR station and joined the massive crowd that was protesting, my husband and I were both struck with the peaceful and calm environment. You could feel the love and the sense of community among all the protestors. 

The crowd was huge and yet they were so organized. Individuals were sacrificially giving to the greater good of the cause. There were stations set up to recycle garbage. This particular gentleman was walking around cleaning up the street from any rubbish that might be laying around. Everyone was taking such good care of the environment and being respectful of their surroundings.

People were passing out free bread, prepackaged snacks, and bottles of water. They were really taking care of each other as a large community with a common goal. There was compassion and a politeness in each individual that we encountered. Yellow ribbons were being passed out that could be worn as a sign of support.  

Tomorrow is a government holiday. I'm not sure what tomorrow will bring, but we pray for protection on the ones protesting and for favorable results for their noble goal.

Occupy Central.

There were demonstrators in Central today, and like every Sunday, we spent it in Central as well. But instead of experiencing any physical violence, today was a day where our two kids got along exceptionally well and were especially loving towards each other.

We were warned to be cautious about where we went, but that didn't stop my adventurous husband from suggesting we go check it out. We didn't end up with the demonstrators, but opted to eat lunch at L16 Cafe and Bar with friends instead.

The public buses stopped running in Central which left us with basically just the MTR to get home. Fortunately, we were already on the train headed home when our friend called to tell us the buses were no longer running.