Are we all inherently racist?

 

Phew! We have all survived yet another eventful week in Malaysia.

We’ve had an exposé, which has linked a number of prominent Malaysians to offshore dealings; the fall of a state government; the crashing of social media platforms; and the rise of bigotry.

All this while our daily infection rates for the pandemic hovers between 8,000 to 10,000 cases.

Of all the above, I was most disturbed by the continued incidences of explicit racism in our country. I suppose being a member of a minority community, racism unsettles me.

In my heart and in my ways, I am more Malaysian than anything else. But, the overtness of the bigotry and xenophobia in the current climate is awfully alarming.

First, we had a political leader making disgusting comments in public about our national badminton player, S Kisona. After being pulverised by the public, he retracted it and apologised. And, he quit his leadership role in his political party.

Under huge pressure, he realised that his remarks were nonsensical and inflammatory, so he pulled down the offending post from his social media, said sorry and resigned.

But the very fact that a community leader would make such a derogatory public posting in the first place, signals a systemic problem in our country.

Then, we had a preacher seen in a viral video making disparaging racial comments about non-Muslim religions and the Dayak community. It was reported that about 3,000 police reports were lodged nationwide, accusing him of inciting fear and bringing disrepute to non-Muslim faiths.

In his defence, the preacher is reported to have said that he was misunderstood by the other races, and in any case, he was only speaking to people who belonged to his faith.

Again, this baffling retort to the accusations hurled in his direction just show the disconnect that exists in the very fabric of Malaysia’s plural society.

Perhaps the subtle and institutional prejudices our country propagates, with quotas systems, preferential rates, exclusive rights and the like, continue to give the courage to narrow-minded people like this to stoke the fires of racial intolerance.

And, the reality is that many leaders don’t focus on strengthening the ties that bind and unite us. Instead, they use our inherent predispositions to enhance interracial differences, in order to win power.

But why do we have these prejudices in us?

Let’s start with acknowledging the white elephant in the room. Racism has been alive in Malaysia, for as long as I can remember.

For those who like reminiscing about former times and regaling us with stories about happily eating in each other’s homes, it is naïve to think that in the current, highly charged racial environment, simply dining together will fix decades of inequality and discrimination.

While “breaking-bread” is beneficial to foster a simple understanding in people about each other’s cultures and values, the fundamental disparities that persist must be addressed.

James Jones, a professor emeritus of psychology at the University of Delaware in the US, who has studied the mindset that underlies prejudice and racism, argues that the key to creating a fairer society starts with understanding where our biases come from, and how to counteract them.

Social psychologists reveal that part of our human tendency is to separate things into groups.

We often create an “in-group” or “out-group” paradigm within us. This naturally triggers the “us versus them” mentality where we perceive a threat. These threats might be real or just imagined, but they lead us to make biased decisions.

If we are fed narratives that say people are “coming and taking things from us”, it becomes a realistic threat. If we are told stories that people are overstepping and encroaching on to our way of life and our values, it is a perceived threat that is being made bigger.

Studies have found that the “in-group” tendencies can lead to employment discrimination, as well as racial bias in many things, like police investigations and judicial decisions.

But the problem is that even if we are cognisant of all the biases and how they affect us, overcoming them is an arduous personal battle.

Many erudite and secure people from a particular race may know about the inherent prejudices they possess. But even with this realisation, if they go right back into an environment that reinforces the very same prejudices, they will find it hard to fight against them.

The practical problem that thwarts transformation from happening is that it is problematic to call out people’s biases, especially in Malaysia. And when you do, people get really defensive.

So, it seems that all of us have inherent biases. But, how do we counter them?

Education is the only way forward. Parents must start teaching their kids how to be non-racist.

Experimental research by Steven Roberts, a psychology professor at Stanford University, indicates that if you teach children not to see race, they essentially don’t see racism. If you teach children anti-racist norms, they are actually friendlier to “out-group” people, and they engage with them more.

But here’s the thing. In Malaysia, our education system seems to perpetuate these racial biases.

Recently, in a Merdeka Day forum, Malaysia’s pre-eminent constitutional law expert, Professor Shad Saleem Faruqi argued that our country’s education system has divided the population by race and religion.

He says that our education curricula at all levels have been infused with so much religious and ethnic dogma, and asked, how can we now expect our children to live together in a multi-ethnic society?

So, unless there is a concerted effort to present an education system that is free from religiosity and entrenched racial doctrines, as a nation, we will continue to be plagued by racism and racist people.

Will we ever break this cycle? - FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.

✍ Credit given to the original owner of this post : ☕ Malaysians Must Know the TRUTH

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