Of halal pork, minions and toilet meals

 

Every single issue in this country today is somehow associated with a persons race or religion. When did we become this shallow? Why is a capable individual by law, blessed with the ability to act and understand the nature and consequence of his act now the sole representative of his background? 

The Nuanced Philosopher 

There you go Malaysia, your weekly dose of social media sensation to quench the thirst of all the closet racists, pseudo-neutrals and “holier than thou army” is here. I know many of you will be jumping on the whole freedom of speech argument but woe betide us all for the day this right was inherited, we’ve had to put up with more garbage than commentaries of actual importance. In fact, feel free to discard this article as one of the many others that will come pouring in light of the recent issue involving the non-muslim students of SK Sri Pistana having to eat their meals in the toilet because its significance remains firmly in the sensationalism of the news.

Now, I am not going to go into details for much remains unclear, however, what remains clear is that every single issue in this country today is somehow associated with a persons race or religion. When did we become this shallow? Why is a capable individual by law, blessed with the ability to act and understand the nature and consequence of his act now the sole representative of his background? At every instance, one reads “kafir tiada hak”, “melayu/islam -insert foul word-”, cina this, melayu that, India…, well we don’t really matter till elections but hey, free bag of rice for everybody!

I honestly no longer remember growing up in this country, my country, for the people were different then. They were more forgiving and less judgmental. They were more loving and less hateful. I stand proud knowing that I have genuine friends from all walks of life and varying races and that the bond we cherish goes beyond that of colour and religion. I wonder then if our children and leaders of the future will be as lucky, to simply be able to play a game of football without looking at the other as Cina or Melayu but as a friend and a fellow Malaysian.

The fundamental problem with this generation or rather my generation is the fact that we often look to our forefathers and predecessors in identifying where it went wrong and what they should have done better. However, the truth is, our parents raised us pretty much alright and our forefathers were the ones who agreed to a consensus of racial harmony thus achieving independence. Then, who is to be blamed? The answer is simple really, look in the mirror. Yes, you, you who claim to be a Malaysian first but fail to look out or care for another race and especially you, who leads the cry for justice and equality for all but refuse to shoulder the burden and effort required to see it through.

In the past month alone, we’ve seen two idiotic Malaysians post a Ramadan greeting with pork and a halal logo, another exceptionally rude Malaysian customer having a go at an employee for shortage of a toy minion and now we find ourselves getting all worked up because a Malaysian headmaster void of common sense decided to put the non-muslim students in the toilet for mealtime for hitherto reasons unknown. Now, re-read the paragraph again and note that the perpetrators were MALAYSIANS. Why should it matter that it was a Chinese customer and Malay employee? What if the situation were as such where both the customer and employee were of the same race? Do we blame China for making the minion toys? Think!

Renungkanlah

The dichotomy of right and wrong should have no grey areas. Instead, queue the defensive zealots who fail to see the actual problem but chose to focus only someones race. What is morally and ethically wrong does not transcend a person’s race! It matters not if a severely unqualified headmaster void of an ounce of brain would have children eating in the bathroom because lets face it, who cares about the children when we want blood for being another race?

The saddest part of this whole fiasco is that we are genuinely peaceful and loving people who have allowed the views of others to blind us. The problem isn’t just institutionalized racism [http://thenuancedphilosopher.wordpress.com/2013/07/18/race-the-ordinary-malaysian/ ] but a lack of understanding, respect and common sense inherent in all of us. Yes, the Federal Constitution states that Malaysia is a secular country but does that give you the right to disrespect another religion? Yes, the Malays are the majority of this country but would it kill you to protect your minority countrymen, be it the Indians or Chinese from being abused and oppressed from fanatics and fear-mongers?

The path that we are treading is a dangerous one indeed and if we cannot look past our differences and embrace each other as brothers and sisters of one country, then a repeat of May 13 should be the least of our worries for Malaysia will crumble. So the next time you see someone insulting another persons action on account of their race, slap them, no seriously, slap some common sense into them and tell them that insensitivity and stupidity knows not of race or religion, for morons will always exist.

The author would like to state on record that he does not condone any act of violence but should you slap someone for being a racist in front of him, he may or may not assist you in the act.