Most of the bars I stopped by were closed due to the heavy rain, but I was fortunate to stumble into this place. The bartender had a super interesting history. He was originally from Shanghai but had worked in various hospitality roles across the country. Also, although he only graduated from junior high, he was proficient in English. I preferred to speak in Mandarin, but his English came in handy when I needed him to explain some complex topics. 

The discussion I found most interesting was our conversation about forms of discrimination in China. In America, due to our ethnic diversity, the most common form of discrimination is racial discrimination. However, in China, primarily due to its ethnic homogeneity, geographic discrimination is more common. 

For example, he grew up in Shanghai. Shanghai, along with Beijing and Hong Kong, were considered the most developed cities in China and had the wealthiest residents. Given that history, he would often look down on folks from other provinces. For instance, if he met a man from Hunan, he would stereotype him as a thief. A man from Anhui was stereotyped as a mobster, while a woman from Sichuan was labeled as a prostitute. Due to the wide wealth disparities across regions and cities, as well as strict laws governing and restricting internal migration within China, these stereotypes festered throughout the country.

Fortunately, with advancements in technology and the economy, many of these stereotypes have subsided. In fact, after living in places such as Inner Mongolia and Tibet, he now prefers smaller cities to his hometown of Shanghai. I found him to be very interesting.