Life as a British Asian

[KrishX]

Hi All,

I'm 28/F born and raised in London of Indian descent, I will shortly be moving to Singapore in November.

Reading through some of the forum topics I've noticed that there is some prejudice and stereotyping towards Indian people (from India) with regards to finding accommodation and general behaviour.

As a British Asian will there be some prejudice against me when it comes to finding accommodation and socialising/dating? Are there mixed-race relationships? White-Indian, Chinese-Indian. Is it a lot or few and far between. Or in general is it a bit of a taboo subject?

Some of the prejudice is justified don't get me wrong. I'm sure I'll be doing it when I arrive. I just want some guidance on what to expect when I arrive so I can 'prepare myself'. LOL.

Also, I see the word 'asian' a lot in throughout the whole forum. The term is quite loose. Could someone define for me what it means? Is it Asians from all over asia i.e. inc. India and Pakistan or specifically from the south- east. i.e. Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia etc.

Thanks in advance

[ksl]

As a British Asian will there be some prejudice against me when it comes to finding accommodation and socialising/dating? Are there mixed-race relationships? White-Indian, Chinese-Indian.

This place is quite tame compared to the UK and other places, trust me you will be just fine, the government laws certainly work here, compared to the rest of the world, though there are lots of prejudices the world over.

Defamation cases are well on the agenda so watch what you say, as the people saying it must prove it and one can expect a jail sentence for racial disharmony.

Lots of mixed relationships too, so you can date who you like without feeling too uncomfortable! Though there are also specific hang outs like Little India, Arab Street and so on, you will find a mixed crowd. Hair down and enjoy multi cultural living at its best! Asia includes India and Pakistan for me considering they have been here as long as Singapore and the Brits!

[JR8]

I find most Asian countries to be racist in one way or another, Singapore and India are by no means different.

There is prejudice and I think to some extent you're going to get pigeon-holed within what they think you are. Rich looking Indian guys is probably not the pigeon-hole of choice I'd wish to be in right now.

Maybe the Search button will bring up the result of a post I made a few months ago re: me calling a SGn landlord with an advert for 'No Indians', pretending to be British Indian and hence 'not really Indian'. Jeez he even asked me if I looked Indian.... lol!


Edit to add:
Oops... missed that you're a bird, sorry. That might make life slightly easier. It seems to be the guys who have the reputation for foot wide mouths.

[beppi]

People with racist thoughts exist in most places. Singapore has them too, but (in my opinion) less than elsewhere.
Since such people are generally not the smartest, they go by appearance instead of anything else - thus if you look Indian, they will treat you like any other Indian, no matter what your passport, accent, upbringing, etc. indicate.
But there are lots of others too, don't worry, you'll have enough chance to get what you want (e.g. decent landlords/friends/colleagues/etc.) and it's easy to ignore the few ignorants.
There are mixed couples, especially among the younger generation, but less than the intercultural society of Singapore suggests. I guess this is due to the high influence of (more conservative) parents on marriage decisions, at least compared to the Western world.

There is no clear definition of "Asian" and different people use it differently. In a purely geographical sense, most Turks, many Arabs and even some Russians are Asian, as well as Indians, Persians, Chinese and many others. In fact Asia is the most racially diverse continent on earth. But people's use of "Asian" most often refers to only East and Southeast Asians (the ones with slit eyes and yellow skin ...).

[sundaymorningstaple]

Hi All,

I'm 28/F born and raised in London of Indian descent, I will shortly be moving to Singapore in November.

Reading through some of the forum topics I've noticed that there is some prejudice and stereotyping towards Indian people (from India) with regards to finding accommodation and general behaviour.

I think you will find that exists world wide, when it comes to developed countries. It's just a matter of degree.....

As a British Asian will there be some prejudice against me when it comes to finding accommodation and socialising/dating? Are there mixed-race relationships? White-Indian, Chinese-Indian. Is it a lot or few and far between. Or in general is it a bit of a taboo subject?

Socializing, no, I don't think you will have any problems at all. Lots of mixed race relationships. Mine was very early here, when it WAS taboo. I am in a Caucasian/Indian relationship. (Wife is Indian Singaporean) Been married over 27 years now.

Some of the prejudice is justified don't get me wrong. I'm sure I'll be doing it when I arrive. I just want some guidance on what to expect when I arrive so I can 'prepare myself'. LOL.

The biggest problem that we notice here is the "uppity" ones who think that they are "better" than the local variety. This causes some of the unrest.

Also, I see the word 'asian' a lot in throughout the whole forum. The term is quite loose. Could someone define for me what it means? Is it Asians from all over asia i.e. inc. India and Pakistan or specifically from the south- east. i.e. Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia etc.

Anybody in the whole of S.E. Asia inclusive of the Subcontinent, generally speaking.

Thanks in advance