Busting the myth of the monolithic community
Such criticism against the protesters only justifies and strengthens the flawed notion of monolithic community because it attacks other Malays and Muslims who are innocent of the appalling act done on Friday in Shah Alam.
Hafiz Noor Shams, The Malaysian Insider
What happened last Friday in Shah Alam – when a group of people protesting against construction of a Hindu temple chose to do it by parading a severed cow’s head knowing full well that the Hindus hold the cow sacred – is disgusting.
There are ways to protest but the method employed by these individuals is so despicable that it should be unthinkable and, hence, unspeakable.
Malaysians who believe in a more inclusive future have every right to be angry at the protesters, whatever their political inclinationsmay be.
So reckless was the action that it left far too many thinking individuals with a revolting aftertaste that lingers on the tongue, even days after.
It reminds too many Malaysians of one of the worst facets, if not the worst, that Malaysia can offer. It invokes all kinds of negative emotion: fear, sadness, disgust, anger. Pessimism reigns.
Regardless of debate regarding the ideals of Malaysia, this is no way to enter August 31, or September 16.
On the other side of the coin is the romantic Malaysia at play.
If one concentrates just barely, one would realise an oft-overlooked but yet obvious and crucial fact in the whole episode. It is a fact that is capable of becoming the symbol of a better Malaysia that everybody dreams.
It is a fact that the one who is standing up for a minority group against the majority is Khalid Samad, a Muslim Malay. It is a hopelessly clichéd romantic narration in which a Malaysian of a different background stands up for another Malaysian of different background.
This important fact deserves greater attention because it provides a concrete example in combating generalisation that leads to the perception that a community is homogeneous in its opinion.
It is especially useful in undoing views that the majority population – the Malays – are bent on pushing the minority aside with impunity.
For the action of a very limited number of individuals, there are those outside the community who condemn the whole Malay population as they condemned the outrageous protesters. This generalisation is unfair and unbecoming of anybody that dreams of an inclusive Malaysia.
That generalisation is absurd. More than absurd, it is dangerous because that itself leads to a greater downward spiral into bigotry. While they themselves claim to abhor bigotry, they themselves are falling into the same trap that is the basis of such bigotry.
