What is Political
When I grew up in China, being "political" was dangerous. Once you complain about policies made by the government, you become "political" by challenging the propaganda system. The authority will punish you, your family, and your friends. We all carefully stayed within the line to protect ourselves. Getting used to the freedom of speech in the U.S. took me quite a few years. Then I noticed a similar fear of being political. For example, sports are apolitical. People cannot wear a T-shirt asking "Where is Peng Shuai" at sports games because it is a political slogan. But it is apolitical for Eileen Gu to say that Peng Shuai is "freely doing what she wants to do." to whitewash the sexual assault that the female tennis player suffered from a former Chinese prime minister. In the same logic, some of my colleagues believe that science is apolitical, so scientists can collaborate with any country without worrying about how the government will use their ...