Singapore man mistaken for Bangladeshi faces unprovoked racism on the road

“F!@#$% Bangla!”

This is what a young Chinese man allegedly yelled at local magazine writer, Terence Ruis. All Ruis was doing was cycling home when a van slowed down and a man stuck his head out to yell at him, unprovoked.

Recounting the incident which occurred last night on his Facebook page, Ruis wrote that he was fuming but continued cycling when he realised he was outnumbered as there were 3 men in the van. Even then, the Chinese man shouted, “”Stare, what stare” before Ruis cycled away.

The incident left Ruis shaken. He wrote overt racism still occurs in Singapore and that he didn’t feel safe. Read his account in his own words here:

“Tonight, as I cycled home from my girlfriend’s place, a van slowed down ahead of me, and a young Chinese man stuck his head out of the van to yell “Fucking Bangla” at me. Of course it immediately made me mad so I stopped to look at them, and as the van approached I saw that there were at least 3 men in the vehicle. I was fuming, but I knew I was outnumbered, and this could turn south quickly, so I continued cycling. As I cycled away, the same young man shouted, “Stare, what stare”. This rant won’t do much, but as I sit at my desk, shell shocked at what transpired tonight, I want you to know that shit like this still happens. If you think racism doesn’t occur anymore think again. Shouldn’t anyone in Singapore have a right to feel safe? Tonight, I certainly didn’t.
Edit: In the heat of the moment, I forgot to get the plate number.”