Chinese privilege in Singapore : does it exist?

Abstract

Discussions surrounding the concept of Chinese Privilege in Singapore have been gaining traction prevalently on online and social media platforms. This research paper seeks to develop a better understanding of how local Singaporeans negotiate the concept of Chinese Privilege vis-à-vis the concept of ‘race’. A total of 30 semi-structured interviews and 1 focus group discussion were conducted to explore the sentiments of Singaporean locals from varying ‘racial’ backgrounds to understand their perceptions on whether such a phenomena exists. The responses collated align with the 3 discourses found online - a. Chinese privilege exists and there is a need to alleviate significant disparities it may cause within society, b. Chinese privilege exists but it need not be addressed, c. Chinese privilege does not exist. This research will also be supplemented with analysis of existing academic literature on the multicultural policies in Singapore to determine if Chinese Privilege is perpetuated through such policies.