Thread by @ShibaniMahtani

"I’m beginning to realise that, to the racist Chinese gaze, being Indian is the punchline." Cannot agree more with this @RubyThiagarajan piece and am grateful for publications like @NewNaratif which would have helped a teenage me in SG feel less isolated
newnaratif.com/journalism/bro…

@RubyThiagarajan @NewNaratif The only silver lining amid this whole thing is having voices who can help amplify how commonplace and state-driven/state-linked racism in Singapore is, which didn't exist in my 2000s Mediacorp-only version of my home

@RubyThiagarajan @NewNaratif Years of racial jokes and comments ("you are pretty for an Indian" "my mother won't let me date you because you are Indian" "you only won the scholarship because you are Indian" and my favorite "you don't smell Indian") happened for me in a context where I had nowhere to turn to

@RubyThiagarajan @NewNaratif There was no enlightened ST commentary, there were no insightful blogs, there was just the state/schools/friends telling me and other minorities there was no way we were experiencing was racism, because Singapore has no race issues (and we even have a day to celebrate diversity!)

@RubyThiagarajan @NewNaratif I am grateful for much about my upbringing in Singapore - but I cannot defend Mediacorp/state media, which has completely failed in its role as a platform for thoughtful discussion on race, and is instead complicit in creating a populace that is at times unaware and insensitive

@RubyThiagarajan @NewNaratif Cliff notes: support @NewNaratif and every other voice, including rappers like @plspreeti that helps minority Singaporeans feel less alone, and like their sadness, hurt and sometimes deep trauma related to racial "jokes" is not a product of over-sensitivity or humorlessness

@RubyThiagarajan @NewNaratif @plspreeti I can't speak for them, but I suspect all of us and indeed many "dissenting" Singaporeans are bound by our fierce dedication to creating a place for ourselves - our opinions, our skin color, our convictions - amid a very monolithic society and are working to better our country