No one understands Chinese privilege in Singapore

Somewhere in Singapore, a fresh graduate named Nurul is applying for jobs she is more than qualified for. Customer service executive: “Must be effectively bilingual in English and Mandarin.” Receptionist at a dental clinic in Bedok: “Mandarin-speaking, to liaise with Mandarin-speaking patients.” Admin assistant, marketing coordinator, pharmacy cashier, preschool cook: Mandarin required, Mandarin preferred, to serve clients who in every one of these cases live not within walking distance of China. The Ministry of Manpower does periodically remind employers that language requirements must be justified, but the ads continue appearing. Still, Nurul does not think of herself as a casualty of colonial history. The clinic manager does not think of herself as racist. If the two of them ever met, they would get along; the manager would find Nurul lovely and hire someone called Wei Ling anyway. This sincerity has christened the most radioactive two-word phrase in the country: Chinese privilege, a term coined in 2015 by an Indian Singaporean and denounced as an American import.