Ramasamy: Too much generalisation, personal experience in Teo Kok Seong’s claim of Chinese being racists
By Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy
RECENTLY, former Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) professor of ethnic studies and member of council of professors Prof Datuk Teo Kok Seong was interviewed by the HarakahDaily about the Chinese community in the country.
Teo’s recent view on the Chinese vernacular schools was something controversial. I don’t agree with his view that Chinese vernacular schools are breeding grounds for racism leading to disunity in the country.
There are others who hold similar views of vernacular schools in the country. Some even went to the extent of challenging the constitutionality of the vernacular schools. They lost the case in the court.
There were calls for police action against Teo but I thought this was not necessary as we need to intellectually engage with him.
All of sudden, Teo has dropped another bombshell by claiming that the Chinese are racists stemming from the socialisation process.
Personal experience
Teo said the Chinese have the tendency to look down upon other races even against the much socialised and acclimatised Peranakan Chinese community who share a lot of similarity with the Malays.
Teo might have personally experienced racism from the Chinese. But as a former academic who is well-versed in theories of race relations, he should be careful in generalising about Chinese being by racists.
Like other ethnic communities in the country, there are racists and non-racists among the Chinese. The same thing can be said of Malays and Indians in the country.
Racism is not a particular trait common only to the Chinese community. It is perfectly acceptable for the Chinese, Malays and Indians to be proud of their civilisation, history, culture and others.
Pride in their culture and tradition doesn’t automatically make these races as racists and antagonistic towards others. I really don’t understand why a former academic can go the extent of labelling the Chinese as racists.
Racism is not the unique characteristic of the Chinese. There are racist elements among the Chinese, Malays, Indians and even among the Kelantan Peranakan Community.
It is not that racism is the sole preserve of the Chinese alone. I am sure as a former academic, Teo should have been exposed to the theories of race relations.
Given this, I really wonder how he could jump to the conclusion that Chinese are racists. If racism arises out of socialisation, then it cannot be said that the Chinese are by definition racists.
Institutional racism
There are so many factors that give rise to racism among different races throughout the world. While Teo focused on the Chinese, he conveniently forgot to mention about institutional racism in the country.
RECENTLY, former Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) professor of ethnic studies and member of council of professors Prof Datuk Teo Kok Seong was interviewed by the HarakahDaily about the Chinese community in the country.
Teo’s recent view on the Chinese vernacular schools was something controversial. I don’t agree with his view that Chinese vernacular schools are breeding grounds for racism leading to disunity in the country.
There are others who hold similar views of vernacular schools in the country. Some even went to the extent of challenging the constitutionality of the vernacular schools. They lost the case in the court.
There were calls for police action against Teo but I thought this was not necessary as we need to intellectually engage with him.
All of sudden, Teo has dropped another bombshell by claiming that the Chinese are racists stemming from the socialisation process.
Personal experience
Teo said the Chinese have the tendency to look down upon other races even against the much socialised and acclimatised Peranakan Chinese community who share a lot of similarity with the Malays.
Teo might have personally experienced racism from the Chinese. But as a former academic who is well-versed in theories of race relations, he should be careful in generalising about Chinese being by racists.
Like other ethnic communities in the country, there are racists and non-racists among the Chinese. The same thing can be said of Malays and Indians in the country.
Racism is not a particular trait common only to the Chinese community. It is perfectly acceptable for the Chinese, Malays and Indians to be proud of their civilisation, history, culture and others.
Pride in their culture and tradition doesn’t automatically make these races as racists and antagonistic towards others. I really don’t understand why a former academic can go the extent of labelling the Chinese as racists.
Racism is not the unique characteristic of the Chinese. There are racist elements among the Chinese, Malays, Indians and even among the Kelantan Peranakan Community.
It is not that racism is the sole preserve of the Chinese alone. I am sure as a former academic, Teo should have been exposed to the theories of race relations.
Given this, I really wonder how he could jump to the conclusion that Chinese are racists. If racism arises out of socialisation, then it cannot be said that the Chinese are by definition racists.
Institutional racism
There are so many factors that give rise to racism among different races throughout the world. While Teo focused on the Chinese, he conveniently forgot to mention about institutional racism in the country.
Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy
Perhaps he should have explored the notion of institutional racism and how it manifests in the country. If Chinese and Indians are passionate about preserving their vernacular schools, it might not be racism per se but a reaction to their discrimination in the country.
It is the presence of this nefarious institutional racism that the preservation of vernacular schools assumes a reactive phenomenon. Throughout the interview, Teo throws the word “socialisation” to demonstrate racism among the Chinese.
However, unwittingly Teo weakens his racist argument by saying that the Chinese become racists through the process of socialisation. In other words, Chinese are not born racists but become racists as a result of their upbringing and interaction with others.
The question is are all Chinese racists because of their proud history and civilisation? Can we say the same thing about Malays and Indians in the country?
If only Teo had differentiated the various kinds of reactions to the phenomenon of institutional racism in the country. There is a difference between institutional racism or otherwise and related reactionary forms.
In my view as a former academician and once a colleague of Teo in UKM, his thesis about Chinese being racists is based on an unsound empirical verification.
It resembles a gut feeling on the part of Teo due to his particular personal experience and not to forget to become popular among the racists and bigots. Shame on you Teo! – March 21, 2024
Former DAP stalwart and Penang chief minister II Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy is chairman of the Urimai (United Rights of Malaysian Party) Interim Council.
Perhaps he should have explored the notion of institutional racism and how it manifests in the country. If Chinese and Indians are passionate about preserving their vernacular schools, it might not be racism per se but a reaction to their discrimination in the country.
It is the presence of this nefarious institutional racism that the preservation of vernacular schools assumes a reactive phenomenon. Throughout the interview, Teo throws the word “socialisation” to demonstrate racism among the Chinese.
However, unwittingly Teo weakens his racist argument by saying that the Chinese become racists through the process of socialisation. In other words, Chinese are not born racists but become racists as a result of their upbringing and interaction with others.
The question is are all Chinese racists because of their proud history and civilisation? Can we say the same thing about Malays and Indians in the country?
If only Teo had differentiated the various kinds of reactions to the phenomenon of institutional racism in the country. There is a difference between institutional racism or otherwise and related reactionary forms.
In my view as a former academician and once a colleague of Teo in UKM, his thesis about Chinese being racists is based on an unsound empirical verification.
It resembles a gut feeling on the part of Teo due to his particular personal experience and not to forget to become popular among the racists and bigots. Shame on you Teo! – March 21, 2024
Former DAP stalwart and Penang chief minister II Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy is chairman of the Urimai (United Rights of Malaysian Party) Interim Council.
Chinese have the tendency to look down upon Indians too.
ReplyDeleteRamasamy should know that, if he is honest with himself....wakaka..
he was like a round peg in a heavily Chinese DAP Square hole.
阿三哥 too look down on Chinese & all!
DeleteSo, what's yr fart?