Singapore has come a long way since those terrible times of racial warfare and the republic had taken early measures as a newly independent nation to renounce colonial-era race-based laws, and vowed not to allow racial fault lines split society.
Yet, racial slurs for exploiting a National Day photo of an Indian family to express racist views have brought the issue of racism back to the fore. With racial tensions on the rise in many countries today, Singaporean athlete Thiruben Thana Rajan expressed his displeasure towards his fellow Singaporeans.
In response to the outcry, the national athlete has taken to social media and stated that his family in the Tanjong Pagar GRC’s National Day banner, are all Singaporean citizens.
No race is superior or inferior to another. We’re all the same.
His parents moved to Singapore from Malaysia over 30 years ago, and he and his siblings were all born and raised in the city-state.
Unfortunately, when some netizens came across Thiruben and his family on the banner, they were skeptical. The image was shared on a few Facebook groups, where it received a lot of backlash.
The sprinter earned the SINDA Excellence Award in the Singapore Schools Sports Council Special National Colours category during his time at the National Junior College in 2017. While competing for Singapore in the Under-18 World Championships in Kenya, he set a new national 400m record.
Wow, don’t you think he deserves a spot on the National Day banner? For his notable achievements, it’s a YES!
From my point of view, for a more harmonious society, people should stop being racists and be vocal in calling others out on racism, to dragging people along on that journey of hating another of a different race or ethnicity.
The Black Lives Matter movement in the United States is the most evident proof that racism is still a major issue even in the 21st century. Racism is really ingrained from childhood. Racial slurs are hurled when one race is of the opinion that others different from them are not to be treated equally and don’t deserve the same privileges. This form of entitlement of the so-called superior race has become more of a ‘habit’ and sadly, ‘way of life’.
Until or unless we recognise that we all belong to the human race and deserve equality and human rights, racism will be here to stay.
Info Source: Must Share News
