“Go back to China”– this is a phrase that has been occasionally hurled at Asian faces in the United States in the past few years, especially during the rampant spread of Covid-19. Behind it lies a complex backdrop: US-China tensions, rising populism and the economic fallout of the pandemic. Xenophobia often festers when people face adversity.
Last week, a friend from China shared in a WeChat group that this phrase was recently uttered in Singapore, where she has lived for 10 years. A few days ago, her parents came from China to visit their grandchild. One evening, as they were about to take the child downstairs to play, a delivery man handed them a takeaway meal. The elderly parents thought it was ordered by their daughter, who was working overtime, and without looking closely, brought it inside.
Shortly after, the delivery man rushed back over, but the couple didn’t understand English. Upon realising their mistake, they hurried back upstairs – it turned out that the meal was meant for their daughter’s neighbours. By then, the neighbours were already furious.
One of them accused my friend’s parents of theft and another was ready to throw punches. Amid the elderly couple’s repeated apologies, the grandchild cried in fear. Yet the neighbours wouldn’t back down. Their son, in his 20s, yelled, “Singapore is an English-speaking country. If you don’t understand, go back to China!”
After my friend recounted this “minor incident”, the WeChat group of new immigrants to Singapore was shocked. Some members shared similar experiences, while others mentioned an increase in negative incidents, perhaps due to the recent surge in tourists following a bilateral visa-free policy. However, many in the group emphasised that Singapore is generally a harmonious and friendly society.
This made me think of an incident weeks ago, on September 18, the anniversary of the start of Japan’s invasion of China. In Shenzhen, a Japanese boy was fatally stabbed on his way to school, a tragedy that sparked international outrage.