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such as the installation of police cameras in public places citywide and the ban on protests, may be construed as tight security. Others, however, appear to have no relation to the prevention of terrorist attacks and riots. Several foreign journalists have alleged the Chinese government deported them when they covered issues it found distasteful. They were not a direct threat themselves, nor were they making any calls to action. The Olympic Committee requires freedom of press in Olympic host-countries but they have issued no comment about these restrictions on journalists in China.

Controversy at the Olympics

Controversy is not a new game to the Olympic Committee. From turmoil within the committee itself in relation to unfair scoring practices, to doping allegations among athletes, to politically sparked boycotts, it seems like every Olympic games come with their share of disruption. The United States participated in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, which Hitler used as a platform for his ideology of Aryan supremacy. The U.S. chose to boycott the 1980 Olympics in Moscow, however, in protest of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Sixty-four other countries followed the U.S. lead. The concept of the Olympics as an athletic arena separate from politics is simply not a reality. Events as highly public as the Olympics always attract lots of attention, and are thus used to promote certain beliefs and ideologies.

Proceeding with Pride

The Olympic games provide grounds for patriotic, and even nationalistic, displays by their host country and China has taken this opportunity to prove itself as a formidable player in the international arena. With the construction of a flashy new sports stadium and the strong Chinese flavor of the Olympic mascots, torch and overall dcor, China is not shy about asserting its own identity among the multicultural crowd of athletes and spectators. Many see this as a giant public relations campaign, one that shows the world only the most attractive side of China. What's so new about that?

China's use of the Olympics to boost its own image is twofold. On the one hand, China is flaunting its technological, athletic and economic prowess. On the other, it is using the Olympics as an excuse to initiate more oppressive tactics and to cover up its unsightly behavior. There are certainly different degrees of human rights violations and comparing the Chinese government to the Nazi regime in Germany may not be fair. But the Chinese government certainly has a history of racial oppression and limitations on freedom, as well as the utilization of violence against its own people.

As an economic ally of the U.S., it is unlikely that any direct action will be taken on China by any major world power as of yet. But political pressure can sometimes have a non-violent impact on the way international leaders operate. The Olympic Committee is part of international culture, relations and, yes, even politics whether or not they like it. Their silence about China's human rights record, which is one of the bases in selection of Olympic host-cities, is slightly perplexing and seems to beg the question of what the Olympics are really about, if not human unity and fair play.

Learn more about this author, Sophia Carvlin-Miller.
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