Connection: ... Marriah Raphael Star
An update ... summer 2018

Marriah Raphael Star ... some lessons from life ... getting educated ... reaching out to education in China, and now in Tucson

Burgess COMMENTARY
Peter Burgess Thanks for sharing this very interesting story and the very insightful perspective you have painted. Your experience is very illuminating and food for thought as one thinks about the increasing influence of China in world affairs. Best wishes ... PeterB http://truevaluemetrics.org
Peter Burgess

Marriah Raphael Star

I’m back in Tucson, for good. I’m teaching at Toltecalli High School as an English teacher for 11th and 12th grade students. The school is part of Chicanos Por La Causa and is one of two alternative high schools for students who need to make up credits. Most of the students at the high school are seniors who have suffered incarceration, domestic violence, homelessness, physical illness, and mental illness. I started August 3 as a long-term substitute teacher through Express Employment Professionals. This past Thursday I was offered the job full-time with excellent benefits for me and my partner.

Why did I leave China?

1) I was promised the job of Associate Professor of International Relations at China Foreign Affairs University. In the United States, Associate means tenured (one cannot be fired), an office, graduate students who serve as research assistants, traveling to conferences to make presentations, and being part of the university community. When an associate professor is hired, universities in the US usually introduce the professor to the faculty and the student body through formal and informal processes. None of this happened at China Foreign Affairs University.

Instead, I didn’t get an office, or research assistants. I was not introduced to the community. I was labeled a foreign teacher, and foreign empoyees in China are second-class citizens.

2) I was earning below American minimum wage at China Foreign Affairs University, but I hoped to supplement my income by teaching classes through Everwood learning and using my huge collection of movies and TV shows to provide cultural education about America to Chinese citizens. I learned in June that this is impossible. Chinese citizens have no interest in movies and TV shows made before 1994 – 80 years of American movies and culture are irrelevant to the Chinese. Instead, Chinese citizens want to watch whatever movies Marvel and DC produce. My knowledge of copyright protection in China was based on research I did in 2003. 15 years later, copyright protection is much stronger because the Chinese economy has developed and Chinese companies want copyright protection for their digital products. No one in China wants to watch old TV shows to understand American culture. Instead, they watch Games of Thrones and The Big Bang Theory. It is impossible for me to be a cultural ambassador in China.

3) I was hired to teach Diplomacy students in the Department of Diplomacy. Instead, like other foreign teachers, I was placed in the English department where I taught students majoring in law and economics. Another foreign teacher who taught economics ended up teaching international relations to diplomacy students. I thought this was an administrative error at first, but I was told that I would once again teach in the English department if I stayed another year.

4) I went to China believing that the people in China were not as attached to their mobile devices as people in the United States. I learned that in China, Japan, and South Korea people are more attached to their phones than people in the United States. There are no antitrust laws in China, so one company – WeChat - can do everything the Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, and Google do, and more. I met lots of people in person, but once we replaced the physical presence with a virtual presence, the virtual presence took over. I learned that I cannot escape people being attached to their mobile devices.

5) In April, 2 heavyweights in International relations declared at China Foreign Affairs University that International Relations as a field is now obsolete. The International Relations I learned in college is based on two key principles: (1) that phenomena around the world can be modeled so that events can be predicted with reasonable accuracy and policy makers can be persuaded with these models; (2) that wars and conflicts can be prevented by the prudent creation of international institutions. These two scholars told us that models can no longer predict anything. So, basically, 'shit happens.' They also said international institutions no longer reflect the Post-World War II framework, so international relations is no longer aiming to create a more peaceful world as the sole superpower - the United States - is trying to destroy globalism. With these two scholars declaring the end to international relations, I decided it is time to leave the field. Now that I am back in Tucson, AZ, I am finally doing what I wanted to do 26 years ago. I am providing an example to students who need the example that it is possible to come from the bottom of society, but go to a top university and get a Ph.D. In 1992, I had not yet gone to Harvard University, earned a Ph.D., got married, had kids, or taught college classes. No one in my family had ever done this. The most people in my family had done was get married and have kids. Not one person I knew had graduated from a top university or earned a Ph.D. So, I wanted to prove that it was possible coming from an economically disadvantaged environment. However, in the past 26 years everything has flipped. The distractions that exist today – mobile phones, social media, the Internet – did not exist then. I was able to focus for long periods of time, always at night, to complete hours of homework. Today, teachers don’t give homework because all work is done in class. Distractions are everywhere. Students no longer receive the message that education is the most important thing in life. Instead, students receive the messages that money, sex, and drugs are the most important things in life. The “gangsta” culture that was followed by 10% of the student population in 1992, and condemned by the mainstream then, is now accepted by 90% of the student population and is mainstream.

If anyone reading this is wondering why I make reference to the year 1992, there is a huge back story. To simplify it in this space, I live and think 4th-dimensionally. Unlike most people, I remember every year from August 1991 to the present day equally well. Every year, month, week, and day is equally fresh in my mind. This cognitive skill – probably because of a larger than normal Hippocampus in my brain – gives me instant recall for anything that happened 5 minutes ago, a week ago, a month ago, a year ago, 10 years ago, or 26 years ago. This is the functional equivalent of time traveling. This skill makes me a good historian and a good political scientist because I can instantly detect historical patterns and see cause and effect after analysis. 17 Comments

43You and 42 others Like Show more reactions Comment Share Comments Sadie Ashraf Sadie Ashraf Congrats on your new position! Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 22h Adora Trostle Adora Trostle then you are working with visionaries? Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 22h Jen Goldman Jen Goldman So is Brecken Chinn moving back to AZ? Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 22h Jen Goldman replied · 2 Replies Pratik H Shah Pratik H Shah Keep shining like the Marriah Raphael Star you were meant to be! Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 21h Shobha Dandeker Duncan Shobha Dandeker Duncan Thank you for sharing your story with us. Welcome back, and all the best to you in your new position as you make a difference in the lives of your students. 1 Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 21h Deborah Maher Deborah Maher You make some very good points. Glad you are back, students here need inspiration. Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 21h Elizabeth Rose Elizabeth Rose Congratulations Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 21h Jean Ann Eisenhower Jean Ann Eisenhower Welcome back to southern Arizona, Marriah! I'm also concerned about everyone's reliance on the Internet for connection. Today's a big FB day, but I can stay away for weeks at a time. Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 21h Rosann Muller Rosann Muller Do you still think a constitutional convention is a good idea? Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 21h Marriah Raphael Star replied · 1 Reply Daniel Bobek Daniel Bobek Very interesting! Thanks for sharing this, Marriah. Love and light to Brecken and you ✨✨ Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 20h · Edited Paul W. Gerzon Paul W. Gerzon Welcome back! Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 19h Jen Kelly Jen Kelly Best of luck in your new position! Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 18h Barbara Crammer Barbara Crammer Welcome back to the USA! I am so sorry you were treated so shabbily in China, though frankly I am not surprised. I feel China has somehow become more dangerous since 2012. I am so happy you are home and doing what you have been hoping to do for decades! So many people will benefit from our hard work and being in the years ahead!…See More Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 18h Gilda Parada Gilda Parada Congratulations!! Keep making a difference 😁 Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 17h Thommy Ji Dodds Thommy Ji Dodds You put things very well, and your explanation really makes good sence. Best wishes in AZ Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 14h Moe Plastow Moe Plastow Good luck in your new position! Manage LikeShow more reactions · Reply · 7h

Peter Burgess Peter Burgess Thanks for sharing this very interesting story and the very insightful perspective you have painted. Your experience is very illuminating and food for thought as one thinks about the increasing influence of China in world affairs. Best wishes ... PeterB http://truevaluemetrics.org Manage

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