[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/the-hoo-ha-over-racism-cultural-insensitivity-and-cultural-appropriation\/#NewsArticle","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/the-hoo-ha-over-racism-cultural-insensitivity-and-cultural-appropriation\/","headline":"What is the hoo-ha over racism, cultural insensitivity and cultural appropriation?","name":"What is the hoo-ha over racism, cultural insensitivity and cultural appropriation?","description":"Racism \u2013 the ugly monster that has been dividing Singapore. There seems to be an urgency to dissect this beast. According to an article published by Harvard University, at its root, \u201cracism is \u2018an ideology of racial domination\u2019 in which the presumed biological or cultural superiority of one or more racial groups is used to […]","datePublished":"2021-07-22","dateModified":"2022-04-16","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/Atalia%20Chua\/#Person","name":"Atalia Chua","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/Atalia%20Chua\/","identifier":339,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a83f1814f9ae936340d5c9530df0dcd78295c85ee63b72b84945716f843d62d2?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a83f1814f9ae936340d5c9530df0dcd78295c85ee63b72b84945716f843d62d2?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"TheHomeGround Asia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","width":640,"height":640}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/1626933552828_feature_image_racism_part_3_edit.jpg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/1626933552828_feature_image_racism_part_3_edit.jpg","height":626,"width":1280},"url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/the-hoo-ha-over-racism-cultural-insensitivity-and-cultural-appropriation\/","commentCount":"4","comment":[{"@type":"Comment","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/the-hoo-ha-over-racism-cultural-insensitivity-and-cultural-appropriation\/#Comment1","dateCreated":"2026-06-14 19:12:23","description":"Can you be more specific about the content of your article? 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There seems to be an urgency to dissect this beast. According to an article published by Harvard University, at its root, \u201cracism is \u2018an ideology of racial domination\u2019 in which the presumed biological or cultural superiority of one or more racial groups is used to justify, or prescribe the inferior treatment or social position(s) of other racial groups.\u201d At its core, racism is \u201cthe differential treatment enacted by an individual, group, or organisation on individuals, based on assumptions of a group\u2019s phenotypic, linguistic, or cultural differences\u201d.Gigi Hadid donning fake dreadlocks at a Marc Jacobs Fashion Show in 2016. (Photo source: The Daily Beast)When it comes to milder forms of racism, the hot button issue of cultural insensitivity and cultural appropriation is all the rage too.\u00a0Referencing working definitions by the City of New York, the former is \u201cbeing [unaware] that cultural differences and similarities between people exist without assigning them a value \u2013 positive or negative, better or worse, right or wrong \u2013 and [these cultural differences] have an effect on values, learning and behaviour.\u201dAs for cultural appropriation, while some may assert that it is an expression of admiration for a particular culture, critics say it minimises or trivialises a culture\u2019s tradition or history.\u00a0American historian and cultural theorist George Lipsitz describes cultural appropriation as \u201cwhen an element of culture is adopted from a marginalised group without respect for its cultural meaning or significance, or with the purpose of exploiting the culture for economic or social gain.\u201dThe grey area is whether the three issues are the same in all contexts, and the expressions necessarily offend or degrade in every instance?The core difference between racism and cultural insensitivityWhat started out as an infringement of privacy and intellectual property rights when a standee of a Malay couple\u2019s wedding photo was used as Hari Raya Aidilfitri decorations at a Housing Board estate in Radin Mas constituency, evolved into an uproar over racism and cultural insensitivity. Sarah Bagharib, 30, was offended that her wedding photo was \u201ccaricatured for entertainment and amusement\u201d, she says, when the People\u2019s Association (PA) \u201cblew it up and cut out our faces.\u201d\u00a0A standee of a Malay couple\u2019s wedding photo used for Hari Raya Aidilfitri decorations became an uproar over racism and cultural insensitivity. (Photo source: sarahbagharib \/ Instagram)On top of viewing the action as a “culturally insensitive” depiction of Hari Raya, Ms Sarah had called the incident “racist\u201d as it “perpetuates the racist culture”. Hari Raya Aidilfitri, also known as Eid, is a celebration by Muslims to mark the end of fasting during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. Since the incident erupted, the PA has apologised. PA and Tanjong Pagar Town Council\u2019s Chief Executive Director, Lim Hock Yu, also apologised to Ms Bagharib by e-mail.\u00a0But the hardlined debate came down to not whether it was culturally insensitive or not, but whether it was considered racist. Tan Ern Ser, Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at the National University of Singapore, says that while they are \u201cobviously interrelated, racism is the broader concept characterised by its consequences for oppression and exploitation, while cultural insensitivity could be experienced as hurtful, mocking, and insulting to the cultural practices of others\u201d.\u00a0Jo Potter, a singer-songwriter based in Singapore who often has to be watchful that her music does not cross over into racism, shares these assertions: \u201cRacism is prejudice and discrimination against a person or people on the basis of their ethnicity or religion, which is done with malice, intent, and utmost ignorance.\u201d\u00a0A letter by Hanafi Ahmad to the Straits Times on 19 June also opined that the incident was not racism. He qualifies the difference between \u201cracism\u201d and \u201ccultural ignorance\u201d as whether it haboured \u201cmalicious intent\u201d, or was out of \u201csheer ignorance\u201d.\u00a0Labelling everything as racism can fan hatred and lead to a divisive culture. (Photo source: Vulture)Mr Hanafi further warns that being quick to classify everything as being discriminatory towards a race or culture is \u201cdivisive, and stokes emotions and sentiments which could hurt our [Singapore\u2019s] social fabric.\u201d He also writes that such accusations will \u201ctrivialise real examples of racism that exist in our society.\u201dAssoc Prof Tan agrees with this point and believes \u201cit is a case of invasion of privacy, using proprietary material without permission, and a culturally insensitive, but not [a] racist act.\u201dMs Potter echoes these thoughts because to her, \u201ccultural insensitivity is mostly due to ignorance. The difference is that insensitivity is usually done without intention.\u201dThe use of the standee was hurtful, mocking, and insulting to the cultural practices of others, as noted by Assoc Prof Tan. But, some have argued that since it was not oppressing or exploiting the Malay culture or race, it cannot be deemed as racist. The danger in lumping different issues together, according to Finance Minister Lawrence Wong, is instead of \u201c[expanding] the space for agreement that [deepens] cross-cultural understanding, Singaporeans narrow it and \u201ccause defensiveness and suspicion [and] instigate a \u2018them vs us\u2019 dynamic”.\u00a0Cultural appropriation vs cultural appreciationThe tradition of wearing different racial costumes on Racial Harmony Day may come across as cultural appropriation instead of cultural appreciation. (Photo source: PCF Sparkletots Preschool)There is another social issue related to racism \u2013 cultural appropriation. Whenever Racial Harmony Day rolls around in Singapore on 21 July, students in schools and even employees at work don traditional outfits that are not from their own ethnicity. This practice is meant to celebrate diversity and racial integration.\u00a0The tradition, however, might come across as cultural appropriation instead of cultural appreciation, since wearing another cultural costume does not equate to understanding or appreciating a culture. According to Greenheart International, a non-profit organisation, cultural appreciation is when \u201csomeone seeks to understand and learn about another culture in an effort to broaden their perspective, and connect with others cross-culturally.\u201dAdele was swiftly cancelled for appropriating the Jamaican culture when she was not of that ethnicity. (Photo source: ADELE\/INSTAGRAM)The fine line lies in whether the society has multicultural integration and composition. Take for example in the case of Adele who posted a picture of herself in August 2020 wearing bantu knots and a Jamaican flag bikini top at the annual Notting Hill Carnival. She was swiftly cancelled for appropriating Jamaican culture when she was not of that ethnicity. Supporters and Caribbean netizens defended her as they acknowledged that UK is multicultural. Some of the comments included: \u2018You are a product of multicultural Britain\u2019 and \u2018Thanks for honouring us and highlighting the powerful influence Jamaican culture has in the UK, and around the world!\u2019\u00a0The argument for Adele was that she was born and raised in London, hence she would have interacted with people of Jamaican descent and grown up surrounded by their culture. In turn, she might have a greater understanding of the culture as she has integrated it into her life. Saurav Dutt, an Indian-born British novelist, declassified Adele\u2019s outfit as cultural appropriation because that action \u201carises when people, anyone, takes aspects of another culture specifically to mock or disrespect them\u201d.\u00a0Ms Potter has the same understanding: \u201cThere is a copious amount of cultural appropriation in music for the sake of profit,\u201d she says. For example, \u201cif a White, middle class kid raps about a hard life, then it is extremely inauthentic.\u201d If \u201cI write about what I know, this preserves my integrity,\u201d and my experience authenticates my lyrics, Ms Potter elaborates.If someone like Adele was \u201cenjoying something and being fascinated by it\u201d then it \u201cdoesn’t mean you are appropriating it,\u201d Mr Dutt tells Insider.Similarly in Singapore. The nation has always been multiracial and multicultural even before its independence in 1965. Singaporeans understand the significance of other races\u2019 holidays; traditional goodies and treats are sold at all supermarkets during racial or religious festivals; a diverse range of cuisines representing the make-up of Singapore\u2019s citizens are ubiquitous at hawker centres. Thus, it has been argued that the wearing of costumes during Racial Harmony Day is an expression of the integration and appreciation, and not one of cultural appropriation associated with mockery or ignorance.Why blurred lines and conflation of issues existThe term cultural appropriation peaked in interest to 65 points in June 2021, more than double of that in June 2016 which only raked in 31 points. (Photo source: Google Trends)According to a Google trend search on the term \u2018cultural appropriation\u2019, the interest peaked to 65 points in June 2021, more than double that in June 2016. 100 points represent the peak popularity for the term.\u00a0While woke culture and social media have been praised for raising awareness of global crises and mobilising communities to band together, it has also been censured for the perpetuation of ignorance and opportunism in clickbait content.\u00a0Nicolas Vanhove, 33 and founder of Tutoroo, argues that this is not caused by social media users, but by the media instead. Tutoroo, which is a Singapore-based language tutoring agency, was at the centre of a controversy involving an ad promoting the English language. First released in January 2019 on Facebook, it shows a man speaking in a British accent asking a woman of Chinese ethnicity for her number at a bar. As she proceeded to narrate her number, it sounded like she was saying \u2018sex sex sex, free sex tonight\u2019 when she meant \u20186663629\u2019, which sounds similar when spoken in a thick accent.Tutoroo\u2019s ad depicts a Chinese woman mispronouncing \u2018666 3629\u2019 as \u2018sex, sex, sex, free sex tonight\u2019 and drew backlash for being racist and sexist. (Photo source: Tutoroo)When it was released, Mr Vanhove says \u201cwe received [many] views and likes [and] there was not a single negative comment.\u201d But when it was re-released on Twitter in January 2020, a journalist named Yuen Chan caught wind of it on the social media platform, and she said it was racist and sexist towards Asians and women.\u00a0Media can be clickbait and may sensationalise hot social issues. (Photo source: Medium)\u201cTo me, the media had a lot to do with the uproar of racism and discrimination over the ad. I felt the media caused public confusion and that is the problem \u2013 [the media] does not represent the people,\u201d Mr Vanhove opines. He continues saying that because the \u201cmedia is biased\u201d, it can sway public opinion in perceiving \u201ca fine line [had been] crossed\u201d even if it was not.\u00a0In this regard, Assoc Prof Tan warns that while \u201cbeing \u2018woke\u2019 is a good thing, it can be taken to [the] extreme\u201d when people \u201cbecome too quick, almost hateful, in \u2018cancelling\u2019 others, and labelling them guilty of cultural insensitivity, cultural appropriation, or worse, racist.\u201dRead the first and second parts of this series on racism.Join the conversations on TheHomeGround Asia’s Facebook and Instagram, and get the latest updates via Telegram.\u00a0"},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Destinations","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Singapore","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/\/singapore\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"What is the hoo-ha over racism, cultural insensitivity and cultural appropriation?","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/the-hoo-ha-over-racism-cultural-insensitivity-and-cultural-appropriation\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]