Just in the United States this urban legend has been traced back to the 1850s and even further back to the British Empire. Nearly every city has some variation of this legend and often it starts to spread because of a racist joke. This is an urban legend for the polish of the narrative, how the contents are relatable to many, and many believe it is true. Chinese restaurateurs have to face the stigma of the idea that they serve of rats, cats, and dogs. In certain Asian cultures, namely Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese, the people do eat dogs or cats, but it is normal to their culture and not something that is looked down on. As this legend spread, the restaurants lost business, with some shutting down. The legend does not have many variations
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Xenophobia stems from people’s fear of the “other,” or things that are different from what they perceive as normal. It is acceptable in a few countries to eat dogs and cats, but it is looked down upon by other countries that elevate dogs and cats to something akin to children. Those countries that elevate the animals find that eating dogs or cats is a taboo that should not be crossed and those who do are treated with hostility and hatred. During the Olympic games held in South Korea and China, both governments had temporarily outlawed the selling of food that contained dog (Snopes, Mew Goo Guy Ding). The governments did this to appease the sensibilities of the incoming tourists, because they knew that the practice is looked down on in disgust and that it was not accepted. People start to believe in this legend because of their fear of the “other.” Since there are many preconceived notions of what these other cultures are—stereotypes that are still talked about as if they are true—it is hard for someone to break away from a belief they have that has been ingrained in them since birth. If a child grows up hearing an older relative or family friend joke about how the Chinese eat dogs, the child is more likely to believe that the Chinese do regularly eat dog and are inclined to stay away from this cultural other. From the Snopes article, Mew Goo Guy Ding, they researched that the restaurants that closed down for their own reasons, but
Xenophobia stems from people’s fear of the “other,” or things that are different from what they perceive as normal. It is acceptable in a few countries to eat dogs and cats, but it is looked down upon by other countries that elevate dogs and cats to something akin to children. Those countries that elevate the animals find that eating dogs or cats is a taboo that should not be crossed and those who do are treated with hostility and hatred. During the Olympic games held in South Korea and China, both governments had temporarily outlawed the selling of food that contained dog (Snopes, Mew Goo Guy Ding). The governments did this to appease the sensibilities of the incoming tourists, because they knew that the practice is looked down on in disgust and that it was not accepted. People start to believe in this legend because of their fear of the “other.” Since there are many preconceived notions of what these other cultures are—stereotypes that are still talked about as if they are true—it is hard for someone to break away from a belief they have that has been ingrained in them since birth. If a child grows up hearing an older relative or family friend joke about how the Chinese eat dogs, the child is more likely to believe that the Chinese do regularly eat dog and are inclined to stay away from this cultural other. From the Snopes article, Mew Goo Guy Ding, they researched that the restaurants that closed down for their own reasons, but