45-Second Video Clip for Teaching: Paddington and Cross-Cultural Competence

The children’s book character Paddington, along with the movie’s release last summer, has given rise to several pieces of immigration law commentary.  Some have pointed out that Paddington – who left his home in darkest Peru following a natural disaster by traveling via ship as a stowaway to England– was a classic undocumented migrant.  Similarly, one immigration lawyer in the UK has used Paddington’s travels – and his hypothetical detection by law enforcement authorities – to illustrate deficiencies in his country’s immigration laws.

In addition, this 45-second video clip – taking place shortly after Mr. Brown meets the friendly bear at Paddington Station – can be used to quickly introduce students to the concept of cross-cultural competence.  Culturally competent lawyering is an essential skill for attorneys, but is arguably particularly critical for immigration attorneys, who often work with clients who reflect cultural contexts that are prone to misunderstanding by attorneys as well as immigration adjudicators.  While some of the cross-cultural competence literature focuses on the cultural difference presented by clients, one of the underlying lessons in teaching cross-cultural competence is that we all have bias and reflect specific cultures of our own.  (Stop at 0:45).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBku6tXLDo4

-JKoh