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“May I know your race? What race are you? You Malay? No wonder... I was from Hwa Chong, I’m not that stupid... I would never mix around with you guys because you’re so different.”
When the quiet parts are said out loud. https://twitter.com/mysweetserenade/status/1384797123695181829
When the quiet parts are said out loud. https://twitter.com/mysweetserenade/status/1384797123695181829
For racial minorities, this Chinese woman's racism is unsurprising.
But what's interesting is how she transparently channels official discourse—whereby meritocracy & elite status are deployed to justify the innate racial superiority (or inferiority) of certain populations.
But what's interesting is how she transparently channels official discourse—whereby meritocracy & elite status are deployed to justify the innate racial superiority (or inferiority) of certain populations.
The woman’s emphasis on her Hwa Chong education (real or not) also highlights one major concern about elite SAP schools.
These powerful institutions practice a racial segregation that breeds students with little meaningful cross-cultural interactions.
These powerful institutions practice a racial segregation that breeds students with little meaningful cross-cultural interactions.
“You the second Indian guy I met. On Monday. It’s this guy going to NUS. Future doctor.”
Although incoherent, this point of hers reflects how S'pore's ruling order has portrayed local South Asians as model minorities to downplay systemic racism (which targets South Asians too).
Although incoherent, this point of hers reflects how S'pore's ruling order has portrayed local South Asians as model minorities to downplay systemic racism (which targets South Asians too).
It says something about power in S'pore (eg. who wields it; who believes they have it; who ought to be at its receiving end) that this woman, ostensibly the aggressor, can so easily start filming & policing minority bodies in a public space. https://twitter.com/mysweetserenade/status/1385088128940052480
"I would never mix around with you guys..."
This remark also overlaps with S'pore's discomfort with minority bodies. Little India is extra-policed. Malay congregations (eg. housing, classrooms) are seen as risks or defects. And recently, panic ensued over hijab-wearing nurses.
This remark also overlaps with S'pore's discomfort with minority bodies. Little India is extra-policed. Malay congregations (eg. housing, classrooms) are seen as risks or defects. And recently, panic ensued over hijab-wearing nurses.
Consciously or not, this woman's arguments & actions are almost perfectly microcosmic of S'pore's wider racial order.
The range that she shows is strikingly comprehensive, and perhaps, only bested by the "Is it because I'm Chinese?" incident of 2019.
The range that she shows is strikingly comprehensive, and perhaps, only bested by the "Is it because I'm Chinese?" incident of 2019.
Too often, folks try to individualize racism, which obscures its systemic character. And like @wikanghimagsik writes, invoking mental illness is at best, unhelpful, and at worse, a betrayal of those who struggle with it without resorting to racism.
https://twitter.com/wikanghimagsik/status/1385075184252588033
https://twitter.com/wikanghimagsik/status/1385075184252588033
