Worker’s Party MP He Ting Ru Calls Out Systemic Racism in Singapore

WP Sengkang MP He Ting Ru said that she was dismayed that many Singaporeans are living with racism.

“There is no place in our society for racism, sexism or xenophobia,” she wrote on her Facebook last Saturday.

This is her full facebook post:

“A resident of Buangkok got in touch with me recently to share her dismay at the number of racist incidents that have made the news recently. For many of us Singaporeans, having to live with overtly racist comments is the reality.

Having previously lived overseas for almost a decade, I am grateful to have had a mostly positive experience there, where differences in background, culture, nationality and ethnicity were not barriers to lifelong friendships being formed. Our differences were not just tolerated but celebrated.

I am dismayed to keep hearing that many of our residents here in Singapore feel that this is not the case, and that there are societal and systemic barriers that lead to discrimination on the basis of their ethnicity, gender, background or whether they are naturalised citizens.

There is no place in our society for racism, sexism or xenophobia. I really believe that as a society, we need frank, respectful and robust conversations (some of which may be uncomfortable) about what needs to be done to address these problems at their very root.”

Thank you He Ting Ru for calling out systemic racism! There is no doubt it exists in Singapore. However, not everyone acknowledges it – not the PA, and certainly not the PAP.

Minorities and the marginalised need to be heard. The last thing they need is to be silenced.

We need to have real, open conversations, not get shut out when we want to give feedback, not get called a snowflake when we try to speak up.

Otherwise, how can racism stop?