Intercultural Behavior
Hi all,
Sorry for the lack of explanation of some areas and not really writing about an intercultural situation (Task 2.4). There was not so much of a cultural conflict that I saw or experienced in china but it was rather the differences in culture that I felt was rather nteresting and thought of sharing some of the photos I took while I was there.
This incident happened when I was in JC. My friends and I were at the canteen during our break time and we were just eating and chatting about the different races in Singapore, injecting some jokes about the different races in our conversations. There was one particular “joke” my friend robin said that left an impression on me and had him regret what he said for awhile. He shared one of his satirical observations that he made. He asked, “Do you know why it is very easy and fast for Malays to order and get their fast-food orders?” We answered no and he replied, “Because most of their friends and relatives like uncles and cousins are working as delivery man, just call them can already (very fast one).” We all laugh in that instance but we realized that Ali was there with us. All of us thought that he will not mind because we had one of such sessions before. And then we realized, he had relatives who were working as delivery man.
After this incident, things between them were sour, as if it was a cold war like North and South Korea. Thankfully, Robin went to apologized to Ali and he accepted the apology.
This incident took place because of our lack of awareness and sensitivity for the different races and ethnic groups we have in Singapore. We all knew that Ali was Muslim and he was around us when we were chatting. But we failed to be sensitive to such racial issues and we definitely did not think before we speak.
We were disrespectful towards other racial groups, poking fun and laugh about the jokes at the expense of racial harmony. Living in a multi-racial country like Singapore, we should be attentive and conscious of our actions and words when we are around people of different race and ethnic groups. By understanding that we were threading on thin lines, we should all be mindful and be aware of what we say as it may compromise the racial harmony that we have in Singapore.
I am glad that through this experience my friends and I learnt to be more sensitive and think before we say something. We also realized that we have to be aware of the different individuals around us so as to prevent any possible conflict that might arise through our words or actions. And don’t worry, the friendship with Ali is all good now.
Hi,
It is true that we need to be mindful of other cultures, and most of us probably need to be more aware of it. But at the same time, I do not like having a too politically correct culture, where we cannot disagree with anyone or have to pay attention to every little detail. Part of racial harmony is to accept differences as well, not hide them away in public. In my opinion, these light-hearted jibes at other races are fine as long as the teller is not being malicious. After all, there are blonde jokes, lawyer jokes, etc..so why not jokes about races.
Hi alvin,
True, i agree that we should not have a too politically correct culture in Singapore (we have the theatres and all though =p) . Otherwise, it will be dull and “unexciting”. But this incident serves to remind us that we have different cultures in Singapore and we ought to respect them and be aware. However, we still tell jokes but within a specific group for example within a group of chinese friends. =)
Thanks for the comment!
Andrew