Last week, there were quite a few "Hong Kong's Got Talent Challenges" online.
The first is the Hong Kong Geography Expert Challenge, with a total of 105 questions on level 10 difficulty. Many people will be tested even if they ask themselves to be familiar with Hong Kong Geography.
Later, there were challenges from experts in history, transportation, pop music, literature, etc., and some people made the version of their alma mater according to the gourd painting, and even the challenge of their own company.
These talent challenges were very popular for a while, and some people said that this was because netizens could share their achievements and compare and share.
Just like the popular English word guessing game, in addition to the game itself being simple and easy to play, sharing results is the way to maintain attractiveness.
But thinking about it a little deeper, when netizens share their achievements, they are actually sharing a collective memory and an identity.
collective memory and identity
Taking Hong Kong geography as an example, citizens may grow up in a certain community and are more familiar with topics related to nearby places, so it is natural to share them with friends.
Another example is pop music. When answering and sharing, netizens are actually very easy to feel empathy. They talk to their friends about songs they often listen to in a certain era, and even some common memories.
In fact, Hong Kong people have always attached importance to collective memory and the identity of Hong Kong people.
The conservation of Star Ferry Pier and Queen's Wharf more than ten years ago was a movement of Hong Kong people to defend cultural concepts, and even gave birth to a number of social activists.
After a round of "Korean Wave" hit Hong Kong, Cantonese songs have become popular again in recent years, and there is no lack of emphasis on the identity of Hong Kong people.
More recently, the incident of "seeing drinking water" being registered as a trademark caused a lot of people's anger two days ago. The reason is also because "seeing drinking water" has become a life culture for some people in the past two years. A phrase that resonates with each other.
Broadly speaking, it is also an identity.
The challenge of constructing social good
Identity is both abstract and real.
Since the "imagined community" proposed by American political scientists in the 1980s, the formation of identity and its impact on society have received more attention.
Identity can bring together a group, but at the same time it has a certain exclusivity.
In suboptimal situations, the exclusivity of identity can make society less open, for example by excluding or even discriminating against new immigrants.
When Trump and European populist leaders discriminate against immigrants and refugees, they are also manipulating identity.
In other cases, identities can become classed because of the operation of capital society. For example, a wealthy person who travels to and from the upper class of the middle ring is likely to think that he is the same group as the wealthy people in London and New York. Grassroots citizens living in Sham Shui Po or Tin Shui Wai share the same identity.
The experience of societies in various places in recent years has shown that sometimes identity is a factor that ruptures the social fabric and creates divisions, and loses its original function of cohesive society and community building.
As a result, many people are indifferent to the disadvantaged groups in society, and in difficult times such as the raging epidemic, they only care about themselves, rather than helping those in need.
Some people even know nothing about the lives of the poor and the plight of grassroots workers.
If there is a "Hong Kong Got Talent Challenge", how much do we have the confidence to know?
When we say "I really like Hong Kong", how much determination do we have for the society to pursue common good and build consensus?
This may not be a "talent challenge", but at a time of fragmentation, it is undoubtedly a challenge faced by Hong Kong people.
The new crown epidemic will eventually pass Hong Kong's future road Hong Kong is not a third world, but two worlds. Democracy is for the pursuit of common good
