Immigrants

Chinese people migrating overseas is a phenomenon that has occurred throughout the ages, but in history these migrants were treated with disdain and even faced execution. US academic Fei-Ling Wang looks at why one decides to leave their native land and even to become a citizen of a foreign country, and how they navigate between their chosen country and that of their ancestors.

Issues such as gender diversity and environmental protection seem to be too abstract for first-generation Chinese immigrants in the US, who see these problems as having no impact on day-to-day life. US academic Wu Guo mulls over the reasons why this group of new immigrants, for all their desires to be part of the American education system, is a staunch detractor of progressive ideals that are part and parcel of the system itself.

Given its pluralistic nature, the Chinese language has taken many shapes over the course of history, with its written form and the associated dialects dictated by time and place. Meanwhile, the rise of China and its growing national power have led to the emergence of Chinese as an international language that transcends national borders. Eddie Kuo, Emeritus Professor at NTU, delves into the evolution of the language in the different Chinese-speaking regions.

If languages and cultural practices are disappearing fast in the indigenous communities of Borneo to the Chinese community in Penang and elsewhere, can digital technology and AI play a bigger role to document pieces of our identity that can be preserved beyond time and space?

Wu Guo notes that local governments in the US are rarely intrusive in the lives of residents, often getting involved only in matters of taxation, public environment and public health. But corruption and dereliction of duty does exist too, and Chinese immigrants may miss that if they do not cast off their utopian blinkers.

Asians are generally known to be humble, tend to keep a low profile, and not strive for leadership positions. However, US academic Wu Guo argues that perhaps it is time for ethnic Chinese to take a leaf from white Americans’ book and learn to be confident enough to step up.

Singapore has become a top choice for high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) to live in because of its pro-business environment, transparent system, as well as a stable and harmonious society. With increasing numbers of HNWIs immigrating here, many people are curious and concerned about who they are and how HNWIs are contributing to local society and communities. Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Wang Hwee Wen interviews HNWIs from China and Bangladesh to find out about their new lives in Singapore.

In the 200 years of Singapore’s history from 1819, the ethnic Chinese in Singapore have lived with diversity, both among themselves and within the larger Singapore community. Eddie Kuo, Emeritus Professor at NTU, traces the evolution of the Chinese Singaporean identity. This is a concept that has seen many iterations, from “guests in a foreign land” to the “overseas Chinese”, "ethnic Chinese" and “Chinese Singaporeans”.

Political rising star and possible candidate for future US president Ron DeSantis has set off a public debate on racism and its place in the American education system. But beneath the public backlash lies the perennial tussle between the conservative right and progressive left. While the US’s polarised state is a given, is the US society shifting further towards the right?