As a community of students concerned with political literacy and civic engagement, CAPE is disappointed with the comments made by the Vice Principal (VP) of Saint Joseph’s Institution (SJI) Mr Leonard Tan on the role and relevance of activism. Mr Tan had made those comments to explain SJI’s rescindment of its invitation to Ms Rachel Yeo, Director of Research & Advocacy at the Inter-University LGBT Network, to speak at TEDxYouth@SJI.
In his address to SJI students, Mr Tan made three key points:
1. Ms Yeo was disinvited because she was “an advocate for the LGBT issue”. He explained: “[A]ny form of activism is socially divisive. It divides society, it divides a community and.. it goes against the very grain of what we stand for. We are community builders.”
2. On community-building, Mr Tan gave the example of how St John Baptist De Laselle “impacted change from within by directly affecting the person beside him”, and contrasted this with activism. He elaborated: “If I want to make a change, I’ll get into a position where I can make change peacefully, cohesively, coherently.”
3. Despite disavowing activism, Mr Tan then called on his students to “stand for what we believe in”. Specifically, he explained that “as a Catholic school… we have our own beliefs and values that are centred on the teachings of Christ and the gospel. We have our own set of values. We also advocate our own set of values.”
1. Activism is not socially divisive – it exposes social divisions
Firstly, Mr Tan’s characterisation of activism as “socially divisive” is unfortunate and misinformed. Activism is not in and of itself divisive; instead, it exposes and reveals the inequalities and injustices that lurk beneath the facade of stability and harmony. For instance, it would seem ridiculous to accuse civil rights activists such as Baptist minister Martin Luther King Jr. in the United States and Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu in South Africa of causing social division for advocating racial equality and anti-discrimination. Short of being the cause of social division, a lack of activism merely masks such fissures, leaving marginalised groups to suffer in silence.
Similarly, in the local context, female activists such as Mdm Chan Choy Siong of the the People’s Action Party and Mdm Khatijun Nissa Siraj of the Young Women's Muslim Association (PPIS) were responsible for the enactment of the Women’s Charter in 1961, which promoted gender equality and ended polygamy in Singapore. Without the commitment and contributions of such activists, women in Singapore may not enjoy the gender equality that we celebrate today.
More at https://www.domainofexperts.com/2018/07/statement-by-cape-on-sji-vice.html
In his address to SJI students, Mr Tan made three key points:
1. Ms Yeo was disinvited because she was “an advocate for the LGBT issue”. He explained: “[A]ny form of activism is socially divisive. It divides society, it divides a community and.. it goes against the very grain of what we stand for. We are community builders.”
2. On community-building, Mr Tan gave the example of how St John Baptist De Laselle “impacted change from within by directly affecting the person beside him”, and contrasted this with activism. He elaborated: “If I want to make a change, I’ll get into a position where I can make change peacefully, cohesively, coherently.”
3. Despite disavowing activism, Mr Tan then called on his students to “stand for what we believe in”. Specifically, he explained that “as a Catholic school… we have our own beliefs and values that are centred on the teachings of Christ and the gospel. We have our own set of values. We also advocate our own set of values.”
1. Activism is not socially divisive – it exposes social divisions
Firstly, Mr Tan’s characterisation of activism as “socially divisive” is unfortunate and misinformed. Activism is not in and of itself divisive; instead, it exposes and reveals the inequalities and injustices that lurk beneath the facade of stability and harmony. For instance, it would seem ridiculous to accuse civil rights activists such as Baptist minister Martin Luther King Jr. in the United States and Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu in South Africa of causing social division for advocating racial equality and anti-discrimination. Short of being the cause of social division, a lack of activism merely masks such fissures, leaving marginalised groups to suffer in silence.
Similarly, in the local context, female activists such as Mdm Chan Choy Siong of the the People’s Action Party and Mdm Khatijun Nissa Siraj of the Young Women's Muslim Association (PPIS) were responsible for the enactment of the Women’s Charter in 1961, which promoted gender equality and ended polygamy in Singapore. Without the commitment and contributions of such activists, women in Singapore may not enjoy the gender equality that we celebrate today.
More at https://www.domainofexperts.com/2018/07/statement-by-cape-on-sji-vice.html
