“Racism still exists in Singapore and is ‘among us’” — Lawrence Wong’s video on racism resurfaces in lead-up to next GE

SINGAPORE: As Singapore approaches the next General Election—sure to be a test for newly-minted Prime Minister Lawrence Wong— a video of a speech on racism Mr Wong delivered in 2021 is being shared again.

The then-Finance Minister spoke on Multiracialism and Fault Lines at The IPS-RSIS Forum on Race and Racism in Singapore on June 25, 2021.

A short video of a portion of Mr Wong’s speech was subsequently published on the YouTube channel TODAYonline (now CNA), and it was titled “Racism still exists in Singapore and is ‘among us’.”

Mr Wong had underlined how present racism is in Singapore’s “streets, neighbourhoods, and workplaces.”

While incidents had a chance of being resolved quietly and privately in the past, social media today guarantees a broader audience.

It was in 2021, after all, that a series of racist incidents were widely publicized due to social media, such as when a 55-year-old Singaporean Indian woman was attacked and when a former lecturer made racist remarks against an interracial couple.

In the TODAYonline clip, Mr Wong can be heard appealing to his listeners to recognize the difficulties that minorities face all over the world.

“So, it is important for the majority community in Singapore to do its part and be sensitive to and conscious of the needs of minorities,” he said.

Mr Wong also named the areas of daily life where minorities face discrimination, such as job searching, being left out when everyone else speaks a certain language, learning as a potential tenant that a landlord does not prefer people from your race, hearing intensive stereotyped remarks from neighbours, co-workers and friends, and so on.

He added that even if this does not happen often, they cause real hurt when they do. Mr Wong then urged Singaporeans to “continue with our approach of mutual accommodation, trust and compromise”.

He also clarified that “we should be upfront and honest about the racialized experiences various groups feel and deal squarely with them.”

“We must continue to speak up and even be prepared to have uncomfortable discussions – not to start arguments, but to begin civilized discussions, listen to each other, and understand all points of view,” he explained.

His speech was received positively at the time, even by Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh, who called it “well worth a read, no matter what your political leanings” in a social media post, although he also brought up some PAP policies Mr Wong had also touched on.

This is hardly the only time Mr Wong has spoken on race-related issues.

He also cautioned that Singapore must not be perceived to be unwelcoming to foreigners, as this would discourage foreign investments from coming in. /TISG

Read also: Lawrence Wong on racism & foreign workforce in Singapore