Conquering Lion
Posted Mar 27 2010
How about some more personal questions? I imagine it's interesting being a Jamaican in Taiwan. Are there a lot here?
Right now, three. Another guy and a gal who's teaching English. There are some Jamaican-Canadians, but just the three of us from yard. There are more people from places like St. Vincent, St. Kitts and Haiti.
Where did you live before Taipei? I know you also did some teaching. How long did you do that for?
Before Taipei, Miami and Korea. In Miami I was coaching 
football(soccer) and working with at risk youth mostly, and struggling. In Korea was working at a university teaching Business English for 3 years. Now I am still coaching football and doing music and trying to make our company run most of the time. Music and Football, not rich but blessed.
How have people treated you here versus other places?
Koreans were polite, but it was hard to have a good friend. You're always a foreigner. They keep up that barrier. In Taiwan people have to keep face. They may be interested, but they're interested like they're interested in a glass of wine. But most people don't want to go past what they think you should be. When I say Jamaica, one or two say reggae, maybe one or two say fast runners. Most don't know. I ask where's Jamaica and they say Africa because we're all Black. Then all the connotations that go with Africa come, like we live in huts.
In the U.S. there are still places where if you're not White, poeple might have problems you know where to go.In Taiwan, you do your thing, I'll do mine. We might even eat together, but there are boundaries. It could be hard to marry.
Things have changed though. I used to live in Shengjin and the bus wouldn't stop for me. There have been times we've gone to scooter shops and before we even say anything they'll say "get out, we don't want your business." The kids are interested, and genuinely intersted. It's slowly opening up, but there's a long way to go.
To help with living here, those from Ghana have associations, as well as some other countries. Sometimes my friend and I get asked to settle things and solve problems becasue we've been here longer. We help people get paid and with disputes. The other guy's been here 27 years. He was one of the first black guys here. He married a Taiwanese woman, but Taiwan said if he gets married he can only stay for two weeks so he kept leaving. Finally, he got sick of it and stayed. He kept working, got caught, and was thrown in jail. An American guy was here, fighting for civil rights, wrote to the U.S. State Department and the US. government freed him. His kids go to school and the other kids wouldn't sit with them or play with them. There was one situation and kids threw stones at them. He went to school and said the kid threw stones and cut my son's face. The other parents were called in. The other mom said "sorry, but what do you want me to do?" He said "at least apologize and I have to take him to the hospital so you should cover the expenses." The school administrator said "it's OK, just forget about it." He said if this was a 100% Chinese kid you'd pay for it and everyone would apologize and they had nothing to say. His name is Oliver Ghana. He is a legend here and one of the first people I met. A man of many stories. You have to do a whole interview just for him.
I had another friend from Toronto. He came a year to teach and went back. He got all documents and he wanted to come back to Taiwan and set up a life. Showed up, and someone said "are you sure? You're so Black. Do you really expect to get a job?" He came to us and we asked him, "what do you expect? Welcome to Taiwan!" I used to manage a school here and taught. I sat in a school one day teaching and checking papers. I put my arm on the desk and the kid flinched. He said he didn't want to touch me, "you're so dirty." I said touch my arm, it's smooth. See, Black is beautiful."
Man, I could spend a good five hours giving examples of how life is here.
So why stay?
I've carved out a niche, doing something I love. sometimes I have my days, but because I love what I do, I can put up with the B.S. I 
study kung fu, I have my music, I work with my friends, I'm not going to up and leave them. I have my girlfriend here. I have a life. Racism is everywhere. It's different, but there are problems everywhere. In London they might think I'm a ganja dealer and break me down. In the U.S. a cop might stop me for I.D. and pull a gun on me. Here, for the most part, people let us do our thing and keep to ourselves. In the larger scheme I'm OK.
The West is based on logic, the East is based on tradition. You can't approach it with a western mindset. You'll go crazy trying to figure it out. Don't ask why, that's the way it is. Try to figure a way around. I've lived in X amount of countries--I'm a rasta, i'm coloured, I've been to the Whitest of the White, the Blackest of the Black, the richest of the rich, the ghetto--I can survive it all. I can always find my way. No one can stop me. Not one Chinese, not five million. I'm Jamaican! I can adapt. There's nothing you can do to me that's not been done, except kill me and I'll die anyway. Anyone can do it. You have to be open to it. My first year here I didn't talk a lot. I just watched and studied. There were not many foreigners in Shengjin. My roomate was from Belize. He was a White Belizean who'd been here for five years and spoke Chinese. The best advice he gave to me was to watch.
The beauty of travel is you see other people and it makes you understand your own people better. Going home is hard. I've been gone for so long. Jamaica changes so quickly. You can be gone three months and have to readjust. Patois changes everyday. There are new words all the time.
How about dating?
It's wickedly impossible.
Even as a superstar DJ?
Ha, ha, ha! The stereotype is that we have all the girls. Man, I'm working! I'm responsible for the music, running a sound system, checking the EQ, speakers, I don't have a lot of time.
They're opening up, but the language, I'm coloured, I'm a rasta, they see my hair...
My girl was into Jamaican culture, as is the wife of another Jamaican guy. His wife is the top reggae dancer in Taiwan and she's done seminars in Japan. She introduced me to my girl, who's not like the others. She's from the country. She didn't have the regular Taiwanse upbringing. Honestly, I'm not attracted to most Taiwanese girls. Most guys get off the plane and are like "dam, dem girls wicked. I need 10 of those!" For me, I was like "damn, a lot of them don't have no *ss."
I was like, you can come over and I'll cook for you, but that's it. But I've definitely gotten more attracted to more of them. For a foreigner, it's tough. There are two types--one's just into sex, the others want marriage. It's like there's nothing in between. Every thing's fast--let's get married right now, or let's have sex, then bam, she's gone. I love women, but I'm not a killer. I'm a hunter! I can dance with 20 women, but if I'm not feeling you, I don't care if you look like Beyonce. Plus, marriage isn't my thing. I'm not interested in marriage now and I don't need sex like that. I actually already have two wives--football and music. You can be my girlfriend, but I'm already married!
