'Please don't cross the line': Junior college student under fire for performing mock execution in Arab-style garb
[UPDATE July 23] In response to AsiaOne's queries, a Ministry of Education spokesperson said on Friday (July 22) that the misbehaving student who appeared in the video is now cooperating with police investigations.
"Yishun-Innova Junior College has spoken to the student to help him understand that his actions were inappropriate, and that care and sensitivity must be exercised in Singapore's multiracial and multireligious context," they added.
Schools in Singapore mark Racial Harmony Day every July 21 by holding activities to educate students on the importance of maintaining racial and religious harmony here.
Yesterday was no different but one video clip to seemingly celebrate that occasion at what looks like Yishun Innova Junior College (YIJC) went viral for all the wrong reasons, attracting plenty of vitriol online.
On Thursday (July 21) a video was uploaded on several social media platforms showing a male student dressed in a Kaffiyeh, the Arab headdress, and a white Jubah for Racial Harmony Day.
Ordinarily, that wouldn't be an issue except that in the video this student was seen re-enacting what looks like a mock execution of two other students with black plastic bags over their heads.
In two other separate clips, this male student was seen throwing a black bag into two different classrooms and running away, seemingly to reference terrorist-type bombings.
The video was titled "YIJC student being racist during racial harmony day" on both platforms.
Naturally, several netizens expressed their outrage over the video clips.
One asked on Reddit why that student is portraying Arabs and Muslims as terrorists.
"I don't care of [if] this is a joke or not. There's always a limit and please don't cross the line", added that netizen.
Another netizen pointed out that it is the "implied act of terrorism that is more concerning".
One Reddit user brought up the issue of stereotyping, that perhaps the younger generation does not know of a world before the September 11 attacks and the Al Qaeda and ISIS threats in the Middle East.
Another user said that while the video is in poor taste, "he's not hurting anybody".
AsiaOne has reached out to YIJC and the Ministry of Education for comment.
The issue of racism and racial stereotypes was discussed in some schools yesterday to mark Racial Harmony Day.
Kranji Secondary School teacher Benjamin Fwah remarked that there are now more opportunities for students to discuss such issues in school, reported the Straits Times yesterday.
He said that educators must be aware that students are increasingly exposed to social media and the view points of their friends.
"There are many preconceived ideas among such sources. We want students to understand where these ideas come from and if they are baseless, and what are the next steps they have to take?" he added.
Education Minister Chan Chun Sing also took part in the dialogue at that school.
Similarly, both Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and President Halimah Yacob posted on Facebook yesterday regarding Racial Harmony Day.
On his post, PM Lee said that today's youth are more concerned about issues like casual racism and micro-aggressions.
"There is a gap that we as a society have to bridge and resolve, not through argument but empathy and understanding," he said.
President Halimah remarked on her post that racial harmony will always be a work in progress.
"But we are in a better place than before because of our commitment to building an inclusive society regardless of race, language, or religion. Singapore benefits when we make room for difference," she said.
Back in 2020, a former Raffles Institution student was called out for a blackface photo in 2016.
He has since apologised for the incident.
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shanmugap@asiaone.com
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