“有朋自遠方來， 不亦樂乎。 ”
對於歪果仁， 咱們素來還是挺友好的。 只要你為人正直， 願意在中國好好工作學習生活， 咱就不會特意把你當外人。
最近， 一枚印度裔的英國姑娘給我們投稿， 感慨了中國和英國對於“外國人”的迥異態度。
身為一枚印裔妹子， 她在英國算不上土生土長的“當地人”。 然而， 妹子在中國住過一段時間後， 發現中國對待外來者的態度比英美等西方國家真是要好太多啦！
來聽聽她的感慨吧——
Sabrina Samra, Indian-British
It wasn't until I left Shanghai and arrived back in my native England that I realized just how different foreigners are treated in different parts of the world.
不同地方的人， 對待“老外”會有不同的態度。 但這種差異究竟有多大？直到我離開上海， 回到英國老家，
In Shanghai - home to China's largest foreign population at around 170,000 by the end of 2016, along with over 10 million Chinese migrant workers - you will encounter people from South Korea and Africa to Russia and Spain.
上海有著中國人數最多的老外群體——2016年， 這個數字達到了17萬。 此外， 還有1000多萬的外來務工者聚集於此。 在魔都， 什麼韓國人非洲人俄羅斯人西班牙人……你通通能遇到。
As a former expat, I feel as if the term "expatriate" has positive connotations, which is in contrast to the negative connotations of words like "immigrant" that foreigners in the West are referred to as.
作為一個曾經的“老外”， 我覺得“外來者”這個詞的含義還是挺積極的， 和“移民”這類在西方世界帶點兒貶義的詞不盡相同。
The definition of expat is "a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country other than that of the person's upbringing." So, I can't help but wonder why Western immigrants in China are "expats," but non-Western expatriates here in England are "immigrants?"
畢竟， “外來者”的意思是， 一個人暫時/長期居住於遠離故鄉的國度。 那麼問題來了：為什麼在中國的西方移民們被稱為“外來者”， 而在我們英國的一些從非西方國家來的老外們， 卻要被稱作“移民”？
In Shanghai, foreigners earn much higher salaries than locals, and have an abundance of jobs to cherry-pick from, such as modeling gigs, props at night clubs (which includes free drinks), pretending to be executives at Chinese companies (in order to trick clients into thinking it's a foreign firm) and teaching.
在上海， 老外通常掙得比當地人要多， 而且在某些工作中還更吃香：模特、臨時演員、夜店（人家還包了你的酒水）、裝作中國公司的高管（有些中國公司會請老外來撐一會兒“門面”，
The Guardian newspaper recently posed a similar question: "Why are white people 'expats' when the rest of us are 'immigrants'?" The writer claimed that, "in the lexicon of human migration, there are still hierarchical words, created with the purpose of putting white people above everyone else."
《衛報》最近就問過一個類似的問題：“為什麼白人可以被稱為‘外來者’， 而剩下的人卻被叫做‘移民’？”文章的作者稱， “在人類移民的辭典裡， 依然有這樣一些帶著等級標籤的詞語， 把白人置於其他人種之上。 ”
Is the privilege that Caucasian foreigners in China enjoy a form of racism? Having lived in Shanghai for a spell, I must say that the city, unlike anywhere in the West, does not differentiate between expats in regards to color or race.
這算是在中國的白人老外們所享受的特權麼？這種特權是否算是種族偏見的產物？然而， 在上海待過一段時間之後， 我得說這裡和西方任何一個城市都不一樣：它並不會根據膚色或種族而對歪果仁有區別對待。
For example, even though I am a brown-skinned British Indian female, in Shanghai I fell into the "expat" group alongside all others like Japanese, American, Canadian and French. This contrasts with England and even America, where anyone who is not a native Caucasian is an "immigrant" or "refugee" and, thus, out to steal jobs, wallets and even entire economies from white locals.
比方說我自己， 一枚棕色皮膚的印度裔英國妹子， 在上海也愉快地融入了“老外”這個大團體， 和其他的日本美國加拿大法國人等等並無差別。
Nevertheless, China does occasionally show some negativity toward foreigners. Anyone who is not Chinese is automatically called a "laowai" or "waiguoren," meaning "outsider." It is a form of verbal segregation that suggests that all non-Chinese are completely alien.
而中國呢？雖然中國偶爾也會有一些比較負面的詞來形容我們， 比如“老外”“外國人”——似乎只要你不是中國人， 你就自動成了一個“外人”。 這種語言上的區分， 把非中國人完全劃進了“外人”的範疇。
In fact, most foreigners resent being called "laowai," but it is so common in Chinese workplaces and social settings that we have come to accept it. Which is ironic because, if you met a Chinese immigrant in England and called them an "outsider" to their face, it would probably erupt into accusations of racism.
事實上， 大多數外國人都不願意被叫做“老外”， 但因為這個詞在中國太普遍了， 我們只能學著去接受。 這是個挺諷刺的事兒， 畢竟， 如果你在英國當面叫一個華人移民“外人”， 那就得小心人家有可能控告你種族歧視了。
I can understand why the more traditional Chinese population may sometimes resent foreigners in China. When entering China, we also bring our cultures, ideals and traditions with us. There has been a statistical rise of mixed-race marriages and births in China over the past decade. Western ideals have also permeated Chinese pop-culture. This has caused some resentment, especially among Chinese elders.
一些更傳統的中國人會對老外有厭惡情緒，
Nonetheless, China's government should be applauded for actively embracing the rising tide of expats into China. Perhaps the future of Shanghai will someday look like England, where there are just as many brown faces as white ones.
然而即便如此， 越來越多的歪果仁來到這裡， 中國政府應該接納我們， 並為此感到高興才是。 或許在未來的某天， 上海會和英國一樣， 棕色面孔會和白人面孔一樣多呢。
Ultimately, while living in Shanghai, I felt much happier. There was less ethnic hatred, racism and negativity there. Since returning to England, that is pretty much all I have felt, what with the anti-immigrant undercurrent that led to the Brexit deal. No, England certainly is not the most pleasant place for a brown-skinned person to be right now.
總之， 在上海生活時， 我會覺得開心很多。 這裡沒有什麼民族仇恨、種族歧視之類的負面情緒， 和英國不太一樣。 回英國之後， 我能感受到這裡洶湧波動的反移民暗流，
I genuinely believe that we as a global population should work more toward integrating, not segregating, our respective countries and societies, which starts with opening up work and student visas to more immigrants/expats. By doing this, we can share cultures, skills, experiences, values, principles and, someday, become one beautiful whole.
我真摯地相信， 同樣作為地球村的成員， 我們應該努力讓自己的國家與社會相互聯繫更為緊密， 而不是各自越走越遠。 道路漫長， 要做的還有很多， 可以從開放更多工作與學生簽證開始。 讓我們一起努力， 共用豐富多元的文化、技術、經驗、觀念、原則……終有一天， 這個世界會變為更加美好的一個整體。
原文：Sabrina Samra
翻譯：lanlan
圖：Lu Ting、網路
原文：Sabrina Samra
翻譯：lanlan
圖：Lu Ting、網路