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As a kid what did you want to be when you grew up? When I was 7 I wanted to be an art teacher and comedian lol don’t know where I got comedian from but I wanted to make people happy and the only two jobs I knew at that time were comedians or clowns, I hated clowns so comedian it was! 😂
I thought the xenophobia I experienced as a child was just a number out of a pool of random experiences. Surely, I would grow up to be in better company than the strangers who told me I was about the same as shit, or that I would always be of the lowest classes of citizens compared to local-born Singaporeans. I was wrong.
The hating on foreign nationals on my feed has reached a point where I am beginning to feel sick. To realize that some of these people are ones that I had once worked with makes it all the more painful.
Here are a few of my thoughts on the various threads of conversations that have come up, from the other side.
1. “The government should have spent more money on people like Schooling”
Joseph’s story is a golden and idealistic one. It's really incredible, no doubt. But in hindsight, it is of course easy to say all of these after he has already achieved what he has. But it doesn’t always start and end like this. I know of local-born Singaporeans on scholarships overseas who never came back. If, for example, Joseph was indeed sent to the US on Singapore’s dime and a) didn’t win, b) never came back, or c) quit. I bet a lot of people would change their tune, and blame the government for wasting money on a Singaporean who wasn’t trained on Singapore soil, by Singaporean coaches.
2. “We should just cultivate locals”
This is casual and easy to say. But it’s not so simple. There is a lot of prejudice against kids who want to pursue a career in sports or the arts. I’m certain that even someone who lives under a rock knows that, for we have long talked about how talents like Stephanie, Kit and JJ only managed to become super hits because they did not stay in Singapore.
If you had children, chances are that most of you would hesitate to believe and invest in your child to go into such careers, because it’s risky, unproven and with little chance of returns. You want them to have a stable, happy life, a secure job, that’s only natural.
As someone who tried to pursue what I loved since young, I have been called uneducated because I deferred my studies to prepare for the Commonwealth Championships and Games. I have been called stupid by a teacher in front of class in art school, for leaving RGS to pursue art. Most people don’t realize how difficult it is to actually cultivate locals, when the whole society scoff and look down upon them and tell them how stupid they are to think about it. The government is not the only problem—the people hold the key.
So what the government probably thought was that if the locals didn’t want to do it because they saw no hope for their children in pursuing these fields, then maybe, if we had some medal winners, these parents might change their minds. That once we set a precedent, perhaps slowly, some of these parents would allow their children to pursue their dreams, now that that we have set up an environment for them to learn, train, and could possibly excel in.
Certainly, it may not have become the outcome, and the government might have had other choices and had not picked the best one, but faced with this type of dilemma, you should not be surprised at the path taken.
3. “I’m a purist, I will never be proud of someone born elsewhere”
I sure hope your grandparents and theirs don’t hear you saying this. It’s heartbreaking.
The greatest thing about Singapore is that we tell people that this is their home, that we accept everyone regardless of race, language or religion. When my American friends ask me about Singapore, I used to tell them proudly that we are a multi-racial and accepting country. I am saddened that I might have been wrong, that my experiences as a child were not merely flukes, and that the xenophobia and discrimination has only proliferated through social media. We all came from somewhere, we all benefited from the immigrants that our parents, grandparents and forefathers were. So let’s stay civilized and not use racist and discriminatory words like ‘purist’.
4. Foreign Talents
People do things for a multitude of reasons—a better quality of life, a better career; family, love, fame, money, passion, excellence, whatever it may be, there is not much to achieve by hating on someone who is just trying to do their best.
Don’t look down on Jiawei just because she said she hated table tennis. How many of you knew what you wanted to do as a kid, are still doing it, and continue to have passion? I can assure you that the conversion rate is not 100%.
I know plenty of people who hate their jobs but continue to do it for a long time. Those of you who know me may be surprised, but I am also one of them. We are human and we change. Sometimes we start on a path early in our days, get good at it, and want to strive for the best. But along the way, we get tired or jaded. 18 years is a long time to be doing one thing, over and over again.
Sometimes, we also get hurt by the people we encounter, and eventually this passion becomes something we loathe and loathe ourselves for because we can no longer tolerate it. To overcome that is strength, but not all of us are strong enough to remain unbroken. So if we wanted to do something else? I don’t think that’s so wrong.
I was on the national team for close to 6 years. My mother, too, supported me and paid out of pocket so that I could train with top coaches and teams overseas during school holidays. I broke a record at the Commonwealth Shooting Championships and just wanted to focus on getting better. I wanted to go to the Olympics one day, too. But when things went bad, I was told to figure it out myself when I asked the sports council for help. I eventually quit the team.
I suffered from traumatic stress and was suicidal even years after. So whether it’s due to a sense of duty or to just keep surviving by having a job, Jiawei’s 18 years of commitment to table tennis is no easy feat. I admire her for that.
Joseph Schooling and his family did a great thing for our country and I am bloody proud that he won. But that is the achievement of Schooling and his family. Not the society who would have judged his family for spending over a million dollars as stupidity, or him for pursuing something that seemed like an impossible dream as poor choice and irresponsible parenting. However, he did draw Singapore in the place-of-birth lottery, and it makes me wonder how different the narrative would have been had he not been born here.
As a child I kept quiet because I thought the insensitive and hurtful words were what I deserved, for being born where I was despite being raised in Singapore. As an adult, I know now that these comments are not right.
Before you pass judgement the next time, please remember that people don’t get to choose where they were born or what skin color they were born with. At the end of the day, we are all the same on the inside—flesh and blood and bones, and a heart that's only trying to find our places in the world.
一個品格教育的故事
我是MC仁。這只是我在音樂上的名字，我的音樂風格在香港比較另類，在大眾流傳的其實只算我創作過的一小部份，而音樂創作，亦只屬於我從事的其中一項副業。其實我亦從事設計，藝術創作，教育工作和文化研究，等等。總之，都有一些共通點，就是非主流和另類。
我來自一個有很多人的大家庭，習慣了嘈、迫、趕，所以自小非常響往獨立、沒有人和寧靜的空間。記得在小學的時候，美術和勞作科的成續不俗，長期「A」，曾經跟隨老師學畫畫，但是不適合那種死板的教育方式，而沒有繼續。中學時期對學校所教的，無心學習，而當時理科學生不可以考美術科，後來自修會考，攞了一個「U」。會考後因為成績不好，唯有日間工作，晚上報讀大學的校外課程，遇到了啟蒙老師，他說：「若果你認真的想學藝術，第一件事，離開香港，到外面行一個圈吧！」儲了一年的生活費，所以後來我依然窮困，日間讀書，晚上工作，(其實個個都係咁！) 來支持學業。在法國留了七年時間，藝術學院畢業。
回香港後，不但沒有好好的在社會中尋找工作，更參與了搖滾樂隊，塗鴉，搞創作等等，不務正業。現在更搬到偏遠村落，獨自生活，為的，就是不進入象牙塔，不作打工仔，不看老細嘴臉！當然，代價便是如窮人般的自由度，更多私人時間，更專注創作。但是相反，賺到的是身邊經常見到窮人，呻窮的人，嫌窮的人，和欺負窮人的人。香港地，不適宜搞創作，搞藝術，搞文化，搞音樂，搞獨立，搞政治，搞理想，搞夢想。
在香港，我們經常被告知，我們不具備條件作這些，我們不具備條件作那些，一切一切，我們都不具備條件。
如此看來，我們也的確來自一個非常失敗的制度之中吧！而來自這個失敗的社會中的失敗者，應該是如何面對這一切的？
「失敗乃成功之母」本來我很有信心他們總會能夠教好兒女，有出色的下一代。
不幸的是，有一天，突然跑出了一個「阿爺」，來教大家認宗認祖、怎樣做父母、怎樣做子女、怎樣做子孫... 一下子，大家迷失了，該如何好？討好上面？怪罪下面？
非常抱歉，本人屬於社會中更失敗的一群，做不了人父母，難以感受到你們的壓力苦。
但是，我看到今天，二零一六年的年輕人，他們的創意，他們的勇敢，他們面對的逆境。我只希望香港家長們，支持他們吧！把未來交給他們吧！
至於那些仍然需要向上、向更上，向老爺們獻媚討好的人們，祝他們好運吧！很快「阿爺」便會帶同更多二奶三奶，來再教育他們的...
I am MC Yan. That is my name in the music industry. My music style is rather alternative in Hong Kong. What you hear in the mainstream is a small part of my creations. Making music is one of my jobs. I am actually involved in designing, artistic creations, education work and cultural studies et cetera. Nonetheless, they share one thing in common and that is they are all non-mainstream and alternative.
I come from a big family. I am used to noise, crowds and being in a hurry. That is why I have enjoyed being independent since I was young. I like space where there is no people and solitude. I remember during Primary school, I got fairly good grades for Art. I always got ‘A’ grade. I used to learn drawing from my teacher. But rote learning did not suit me. That was why I discontinued my learning. I did not pay attention to my studies while I was in Secondary school. I was a Science student and was not allowed to take the Art examinations. So I self-studied the subject and received a ‘U’ (‘undefined’) grade. As my public examination grades were not good, I could only work during the day and study university courses at night. I came across an influential teacher. He said: ‘If you seriously want to study Art, the first thing you must do is leave Hong Kong and take a look at the world outside.’ After saving up a year for my living expenses, I was still very poor. I studied during the day and worked at night to support my studies. Actually, everyone is like that! I lived in France for seven years and graduated from the art institute.
After returning to Hong Kong, not only did I not look for work, I even joined a Rock ‘n’ Roll band. I did graffiti, art and more. I had no job. As of now, I have moved to a remote village to live alone because I did not want to stay in an ivory tower. I did not want to be a wage earner and fear my boss. Of course, the outcome is similar to the freedom of poor people. I have a lot more time to myself and can further concentrate on my creative works. But on the flipside, I have earned an entourage of poor people around me. I am surrounded by those who complain about being poor, those who look down on others that are poor, and those who take advantage of the poor. It is not suitable to create, do art, embark on cultural activities, do music, be independent, go into politics, and have aspirations and dreams in Hong Kong. In Hong Kong, we often get told that we do not have the qualities to do this or that. All in all, we are simply incapable. By the same token, we really come from a system of failure! And among this failing society and among all the losers, how do we face everything?
We can learn from our mistakes. I used to be very confident that our children can be taught well. Our next generation can be successful. But unfortunately, one day, a ‘grandfather’ suddenly showed up. He came to teach us to how to recognize our ancestors, how to be parents, how to be children and how to be grandchildren. At once, everyone became lost. What can we do? Abide the above? Or punish those below?
I am extremely sorry. I am the greatest failure of all. I cannot be a parent. I cannot easily understand your struggles. But from my observation today, the youth of 2016 are very creative, courageous and strong during adversity. I can only hope that parents support them. You can hand your future to them.
To those who still need to climb up the ladder and embrace the ‘grandfather’, I wish them luck. Very soon this ‘grandfather’ will bring his concubines to teach them…
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