Racism in Thailand
I debated whether or not I should write this article, but ultimately I did... the stories of my experiences in Thailand would be incomplete if I didn't mention the realities and the frustrations of the discrimination there. It can really disturb the Westerner's sense of equality.
rac-ism [rey-siz-uhm] : Discrimination or prejudice based on race.
I first became aware of this while entering museums and temples -- the price for Thais was sometimes a tenth of what foreigners were charged. There are certain situations where this type of price distinction is legitimate. For example, if you go to a National Park and a local citizen presents an official ID card and thus receives a discount because he/she has paid tax money as a citizen. But I quickly realized that what goes on in Thailand goes beyond this... bars and hotels would sometimes secretly lower the listed price for Thais. The same beer, same beds, but a different price based on the color of your skin. And discrimination based on your skin color has a name: racism.
You may not think this is racism. But look more closely. If you are non-Asian (e.g. White, Black), and you are in Thailand, you will be charged higher rates for goods and services simply because of your skin color. The locals are not evaluating your financial situation or ID card. They are looking no further than your skin; and the common belief is that all foreigners are wealthy and therefore acceptable targets of extortion. The uneven treatment isn't one sided, however: foreigners get special courtesies and people go out of their way to make sure they are comfortable. The Thai hospitality is justifiably renown. It just has this quirk... maybe I sound ungrateful to even mention it, but it baffles me. I found another blogger who wrote about this topic at: Honest Holly
In my opinion, the Thais are painting themselves into a corner with this practice. If foreigners pay more than the locals, they will expect more. And because foreigners are paying more, they're much more likely to look at the Thais as servants instead of as equals. If the Thais are so eager to throw equality out the window for the sake of money, then this is essentially the mentality of a prostitute, and that mentality attracts a certain and predictable type of reaction; namely, the foreigners will expect special treatment and they will complain if they don't get it. If they pay more, they will expect more. Even dogs understand fairness; if two dogs perform the same trick, but you reward one more than the other, it doesn't take long for the one dog to get miffed. I won't excuse all of the awful behavior I saw acted out by foreigners in Thailand, and I'm sure a of the complaints lodged by locals about foreigners were justified, but some of the tantrums and frustrations on both sides must have been the predictable result of the unequal treatment, just like the dog who didn't get his fair shake.
Maybe it's impossible for me to divorce myself from my Western ideal of equality, but I can see consequences from neglecting it, both currently and in Thailand's past. It wasn't that long ago that slavery was legal in Thailand, and sex slavery is still big problem there. Ask a Burmese immigrant if he or she is treated equally by the Thais. Burma is a complex topic that deserves its own discussion, but the point is that for whatever reason, equal treatment isn't always first and foremost in Thailand, and it's something to be aware of if you travel there. I'd ask both the Thais and foreigners to be aware of instances of inequality and to think about its consequences.
