Exhibiting the ‘Other’ then and Now: ‘Human Zoos’ in Southern China and Thailand

Abstract

From the eighteenth to the early-twentieth century, a form of public exhibition in which the objects of display were ‘real people’ gained worldwide popularity. These colonial expositions, taking place all around the world, from New York to London, Vienna, Moscow, or Tokyo, were exhibiting ‘otherness’ by emphasizing physical and later politico-economic and socio-cultural differences of the displayed persons who were often ‘imported’ from overseas colonies. These forms of unequal representation are commonly referred to as ‘human zoos’ and are “exceptional in combining the functions of exhibition, performance, education and domination”. Even though the era of colonial human zoos ended in the 1940s, one can still observe similar developments and power relations in the context of modern ‘ethnic tourism’. In South-East Asia and China, several ‘ethnic villages’ and ‘ethnic theme parks’ exist that put on show exotic appearing ethnic minorities to paying domestic and international tourists. While some observers deplore these tourist attractions as modern human zoos, others argue that they may help preserving a rare culture and provide a source of income for the displayed ethnic groups. This article gives a short overview of the development of these questionable attractions that were transformed from cabinets of curiosities to colonial exhibitions and ethnic theme parks/villages, and discusses present examples from Thailand and Southern China.