In-Class Blog-Writing Prompt #2 (Term 2)

In your opinion, has enough been done to combat racism?

I would a lot has been done to combat racism. From religious parties evangelising, to political parties strongly discouraging it, and even to the people themselves. I guess everyone in this world actually want to live in harmony, just that racism is always there, leeching on the back part of humanity's mind, waiting to strike at any moment. That's the irony of racism, it can never be stopped, because you can never legislate a person's feelings. Racism acts as a part of mankind, as long as there are two different races, there is bound to be conflict. So I think that the fact that Barack Obama, a black, can become the president of united states, was beyond anyone would ever think would happen. This also shows another side, in which that although racism cannot be completely eradicated, it can be reduced to as minimal as possible, with mutual tolerance between races and understanding each other's culture. Although it eventually boils down to the people themselves, the government also has a role to play, holding events and holidays such as racial harmony day, in the case of Singapore, would really, allow people to remember that racial harmony is hard-earned, and should not be taken for granted.

How do you think racism can be dealt with in Singapore?

Truth be told, I think racism in Singapore is already at its minimal. Although there are the usual conflicts now and then, I would say judging from the amount of races residing in Singapore, we have already done quite a good job! So what I think, is that the government should maintain this at its optimal level as long as possible, and by doing this, it would ensure that the future years of Singapore would also have as least amount of racism as possible. How I think we can do this is to start from birth, start with the children and students, as if from young they have already been mixed and exposed to other races, there will not be culture shocks in the future, and which they will become more tolerant and to other races.