Violence against foreigners in Beijing?

[WestTexas]

IMO when people tell a story about getting attacked at a bar, it's kind of like when people talk about their traffic accidents: Everyone acts like it was a freak occurrence, but half the time it was their own fault.

If people are worried about this still, here are some tips for not running into problems at bars/clubs:

1)Don't hit on girls who are with a big group of guys. Even if none is her boyfriend, if she is hot they probably all want to sleep with her and will feel like you are moving in on their turf.

2)Don't go to nightclubs that are 99% Chinese. If you do, stay with your group. Many Chinese who frequent clubs are either shady or new-rich types who think they can get away with anything. There is a reason many Chinese say only bad people go to clubs.

3)Chinese barhoppers are allergic to bars where the the lights are on. If you want to find a bar with few Chinese, just go to one that is well-lit. Of course, you could get attacked by another foreigner, so be careful wherever you are.

4)Don't go out alone or with just one friend. Unless you and your friend are both really big. Try to go out with several people.

5)Better idea than meeting chicks at a club - meet chicks somewhere else, then take them to the club.

6)Learn to recognize the body language of someone who is looking to start a fight. I can't describe this, but anyone with a modicum of street smarts knows what it looks like. If someone adopts a threatening posture or tone, apologize and leave as quickly as possible.

7)Do not argue or try to reason with someone if they are trying to start a fight. Just act like you agree with whatever points they are making, apologize, and leave.

[jbradfor]

Don't hit on girls who are with a big group of guys. Even if none is her boyfriend, if she is hot they probably all want to sleep with her and will feel like you are moving in on their turf.

Especially when you are a foreigner, hot girl is Chinese, and big group of guys have a big chip on their shoulder about how the foreigners get all the hot Chinese girls.

Especially especially when the flames of xenophobia have recently been fanned over a "bad" foreigner sexually assaulting a "pure" Chinese girl.

[rebor]

I went to Sanlitun yesterday and didn't die. Sorry to disappoint I didn't notice anything being different from before and I didn't see any violence, but that doesn't prove anything of course. What I will say is that a lot of my acquaintances are frequent flyers in Sanlitun but none of them have been assaulted or the like. There might of course be an increase in violence, but it's probably not that big, otherwise the news would be all over campus already.

[knickherboots]

Although Chinese still tend to both romanticize and demonize a variety of Western institutions and individuals when considering them from afar, the general trend has been to treat foreigners as, well, normal people when dealing with them face-to-face. I.e., less entitled to special treatment.

As a result, if random violence is on the rise, and inhibitions that had previously insulated and isolated foreigners have declined, then this combination will naturally lead to more foreigners being involved in these scrapes. Making the occurence of such events more likely is also the growing number of foreigners in China.

Alcohol consumption and heavy drinking seem to be on the rise in China, which is yet another factor that will lead to more fights.

So, when foreigners get beat up, it doesn't necessarily indicate anti-foreign sentiment. It can reflect these other factors.

[frankwall]

I doubt that foreigners are being singled out. Has there been an increase in crime against Chinese people as well as foreigners? That may explain an increase in drinking or drug dealing.