A reader writes:
I’m sorry to be awkward but my question is about race.
I’m planning to embark on a cross-Europe cycle tour this spring. I’ve read a lot of people’s blogs on similar journeys but I’ve noticed that they tend to be white travellers. As a North Indian looking guy with a very Southern English accent, I wondered if Islamophobia / anti immigrant sentiment was something I should worry about in Eastern Europe?
I’d love some pointers to blogs I might have missed, as well — I understand if this might not be a topic you feel totally comfortable explaining.
Thanks for raising an important question, awkward or otherwise. I understand your concerns given the currently divisive political climate, and I imagine you are not alone.
The first thing to acknowledge is that as a white European I cannot really speak from personal experience about racial prejudice when cycling in Eastern Europe. I do not actually know if this is something you should worry about, and for a better-informed answer I would recommend seeking out riders whose experiences are more representative.
However, I have been racially stereotyped many times while riding in predominantly non-white parts of the world, as well as on a regular basis in my current country of residence where I am generally perceived as an outsider (despite the locals being essentially Caucasian).
So, rather than back out of an uncomfortable question, I’ll share some thoughts based on those experiences, in the hope that some relevant themes may emerge.
Although the nature of my being stereotyped as a cycle traveller has likely been different to what you imagine, what I have discovered over time is that when you meet strangers face-to-face on the road, it helps to communicate universal aspects of humanity as soon as possible. This can be as simple as making it clear that you’re hungry, thirsty, lost, or tired. Showing vulnerability is okay if that’s your truth at that moment, and can in fact work in your favour. Even if someone starts an encounter by acting on their prejudices, the way you respond can help them see through those preconceptions.
It takes time to get used to behaving like this, and it doesn’t always work. Developing empathy towards people who have preconceived and possibly negative ideas about what you represent is certainly challenging, but I’ve found to be the best way to work through such encounters, even if they don’t play out as you’d like them to. Responding with defensiveness and mistrust, on the other hand, tends to give people an excuse to see what they want to see.
It’s worth saying that sometimes the best option is to politely disengage and move on. That’s when it helps to be riding a bicycle!
I understand that all of this kind of puts the onus on you to give strangers the opportunity to express their better nature. Yet this is a real and undeniable part of any journey in which you, in fact, are the one playing the role of the stranger, whether or not your appearance blatantly marks you out as such.
Hope this helps, for what it’s worth as someone fortunate enough for negative experiences with strangers – in Eastern Europe, at least – to have been the exception rather than the rule.
This is part of my “No Stupid Questions” series, in which readers write in with questions about cycle touring or bikepacking and I attempt to answer them. Check out more recent posts in the series or ask one of your own.
Something to add?