Introduction
Every culture has influences, cultural norms, expectations, and expressions that are
demonstrated by that group of people. In Hong Kong a 17-year-old named Joshua Wong, began
to protest and speak up about politics. This was a shock to the community in Hong Kong.
Local Youth Culture in Hong Kong
The people in Hong Kong tend to be followers and not leaders when it comes to political issues.
When looking specifically at the youth, it is out of the cultural norm for them to speak out in an
“adult-like” situation, let alone talk about politics. Therefore, it was a culture shock when Joshua
Wong got involved. “His goal is to pressure China into giving Hong Kong full universal
suffrage” (Macleod Pg. 1). The article tells that “Wong’s movement builds on years of pent-up
frustration in Hong Kong” (Macleod Pg. 1). Based on this we can assume that this pent-up
frustration influenced the youth. An example would be parents talking about these situations at
home and expressing their frustration aloud to their kids, or community members discussing it
with other community members. This could be one of the reasons that there is the upbringing of
a new generation that is willing to stand up and make a change.
The Youth’s Response and Impact on The Community
A way that students responded to this particular situation is that Wong started a protest
group at his school called “Scholarism”. “Scholarism successfully rallied 120,000 protesters –
including 13 young hunger strikers – to occupy the Hong Kong government headquarters,
forcing the city’s beleaguered leaders to withdraw the proposed curriculum.” (Macleod Pg. 2).
This is a significant part of the awakening of the youth in Hong Kong. Normally, as explained in
the first paragraph, it is out of the ordinary for youth to speak up and share their thoughts on
these types of matters. When this rally occurred, it stirred up the citizens of Hong Kong to also
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begin to realize that they too had a voice. The community began to listen to the youth and come
alongside them to support them. Another way that the youth responded was “Wong led 30 fellow
activists to a government flag-raising ceremony as part of National Day, where they turned their
backs and crossed their arms in the air in a show of defiance. They acted ‘to show our
disagreement towards the CCP (Chinese Communist Party), especially for the decision made on
political reform in Hong Kong,’ and to demand Leung’s resignation...” (Chan Pg. 2).
Things learned from the article
A big thing that you would have to learn as a youth worker is the differences between the culture
in Hong Kong and your own culture. There may be different cultural norms. Because of this you
will need to learn more about the culture so you can be respectful. By doing this you will be able
to have a greater influence and impact on others. In the specific context of youth work it would
be wise to know the context of their environment. Such as, their type of government, how their
community works, and the type of family they have and live in. This will be helpful when trying
to build relationships with the youth to be able to reach out to them. Based on the article the
youth in Hong Kong have recently found that they have a voice. Even in places where they
normally wouldn’t. By knowing this you can use this to help nurture their thoughts and help
them develop this newly found voice. Those are some ways that you can learn from the article to
help when reaching out to youth in Hong Kong.
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