Genocide Olympics

Jennings Dixon

I love the Olympics. I look forward to seeing so many countries around the world come together and compete. The Olympics always projects an astounding message of unity while also displaying the world’s greatest feats of athleticism. And with the pandemic having postponed Tokyo’s summer Olympics back a year, we will get two Olympic games in a six-month period.

This summer, we get to watch swimming, diving, tennis, etc. in Tokyo. Then in January, figure skating, snowboarding, and curling in Beijing. I personally was surprised to hear that Beijing would be hosting the Winter Olympics. It feels like I was watching the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics just yesterday, so it’s strange to have the same city host again so soon. Some aren’t happy that China is hosting after a quick turnaround; others aren’t happy for more serious reasons.

China’s government is not the poster child for justice and equality. In recent years, Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) have committed serious atrocities to various groups and regions in and outside its borders. From silencing Tibet to squashing democracy in Hong Kong, Xi has been ruthless to those who create dissent or difference to the CCP and their views. One horrific example of this is in western China in Xinjiang with the Uyghur minority group.

Uyghurs are a Muslim ethnic group that lives in the autonomous region of Xinjiang. They make up nearly 50 percent of the population there. Uyghurs have been subjected to appalling abuses, including mass surveillance, indoctrination, and forced sterilization. There are Uyghur concentration camps. Uyghurs are victims of genocide. Xi and the CCP are leading these oppressive efforts, and have not received any serious consequences from anyone on the world stage.

As Xi and the CCP prepare to host the Winter Olympics, many human rights organizations are calling for boycotts. They believe that by allowing China to host the games, it sends China the message that the atrocities they are committing are acceptable. By boycotting and petitioning to have them moved elsewhere, it shows that the world does not condone such human rights violations. Some leaders of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) are downplaying the tragedies, and think that the Olympics should not be about politics or making a statement.

I personally disagree with the IOC. I think it’s dangerous to let a government actively committing genocide host a unity event like the Olympics. We saw it in 1936 when Berlin hosted. Hitler and the Nazis became the center of the world stage, which helped validate them as leaders, and ultimately warrant genocide of the Jewish population. It’s destructive and it’s alarming. I don’t think it’s ever a good idea to doubt what a leader like Xi can do.

This leaves me asking the question: what can we do? And I’m honestly not sure. I think the athletes have a bigger burden to bear. Do they go to the Olympics and compete? Fulfill what they have dreamed and worked for their entire lives? Or do they sit it out to protest an oppressive regime? Do such symbolic acts really affect change, or are they just merely for show? These are not easy questions to answer, and I’m glad my athleticism is not Olympic material, because this would tear me apart.