Breaking the race barrier

On Tuesday, Barack Obama’s election victory sent a potent message about breaking the race barrier in the United States of America. However, as much as Obama is a symbol of progressiveness, the reality is that much still has to be done to improve race relations in the country.  

Coming from the ultra-modern, slumless, multicultural city-state known as Singapore and being in the racial majority, I had never experienced being stereotyped and discriminated based on my skin color.

While in Singapore, I am perceived positively due to my understanding of the proper social mannerisms and my English fluency; in the United States, I am seen through the lens of minority ethnic and racial stereotypes.

Many Americans had preconceived notions of me and reacted to me in a way that implied that I was this restrained, conservative, hardworking kid who was good with math and concepts and had a tame social life. I’ve been asked to solve math questions, share homework solutions and explain concepts or thought to be easily offended by explicit language.

On other levels, I’ve also been shown condescension, indifference and impatience, simply because of the way I behaved and talked – and that inflames me, frankly.

Many of my friends, both American and foreign, have had their personal brushes with racism. Some have experienced being mocked, or insulted with racist slurs. Other times, conflicts born of cultural differences occur because people from other cultures play by a different code of conduct.

For instance, America, being an individualistic society, can be daunting for others who might be more comfortable with a collectivistic culture of life.

Race is an issue openly discussed in the United States, thus people understand that racism is detestable. Yet the general public still clings onto racial stereotypes and caricatures perpetuated in the media. Being an Asian male in America means being portrayed in Hollywood as the decent, socially inept, math-and-science nerd; the bitter, angry Bruce Lee-esque hooligan; or gay.

Therein lies the lack of reciprocity: In Asia, most modern societies are exposed to positive representations of whites. However in America, people see mostly negative representations of Asians. Taken at face value, being a member of a racial and ethnic minority means that I struggle to deal with prejudices on a daily basis.

As I try to integrate into American culture, Obama’s success story as a minority member of American society means a lot to me. His ascent to the highest office speaks volumes about the values this country is based on.

To play a part in this election has given me a sense of ownership to the land that I was born in, viewed from afar and am now trying to embrace. But race relations are still far from perfect. And I can only hope that the symbol of progressiveness Obama is doesn’t cause race relations in the United States to stagnate, but inspires more people of minority groups to challenge the status quo.