Chingay Reflection

The Chingay Experience
The Chingay performance can easily be summed up in one word: spectacular. From what I saw, there could easily be a few thousands of volunteers committed to this event, from being performers to helping out backstage, or being ushers and guides for this event. Every aspect of Chingay was fully taken care of to the last detail: The ushers were certain of what to do, the crew ensured that the audio, lighting, and pyrotechnics were functioning properly, and the props were meaningful. I believe the performers, while still unsure about some moves, will be able to master their actions by the time of their official performance, and perform with coordination even with their large numbers.. This can be seen in the opening act. In just the opening act, the audience was exposed to 600 performers. They were dressed in beautiful blue outfits, each one standing on a movable crescent-shaped platform with the five stars - representing the five core values (Democracy, Justice, Peace, Prosperity, and Equality) - attached at the right corner. With it being only the opening act, we were all amazed by the scale of this event, because we did not expect so much to be invested in just one, and the first performance.We did have an idea that Chingay would be one of the largest events in Singapore, but truly watching it unfold in front of our eyes was unbelievable. 

Photo of the opening act

The Chingay experience was also heartwarming. Unfortunately, while the audience was taking their place and the performers were preparing, it started raining all the way until mid-event. Honestly, this did spoil the mood of the audience while they were waiting for the performance to start, and it is not surprising as it was inconvenient for every one to hold their belongings and eat their snacks with the rain. However, when the performances started, the audience tried to respond enthusiastically for the performers who were giving it their all in the rain. Nevertheless, there was a portion of the audience - largely school children, who were not enthusiastic about the event, which left me wondering: Do young people appreciate Chingay? However, as someone who did not respond actively, I did in fact appreciate the performances and sing along, but the mood was not such that every one would stand up and cheer. We do in fact appreciate Chingay, but we may just not feel excited enough by it that we would stand up and cheer. 

Children performers smiling brightly to the camera even in the rain. Picture taken from the Facebook page of Chingay 2017.

The purpose of Chingay
Before watching the performances, I learned a little about the history of Chingay. What I understood from my readings was that Chingay was a kind of compensation for the ban of firecrackers in Singapore. Firecrackers were set off during Chinese New Year celebrations last time, but were banned after they caused many injuries and even deaths. However, the ban caused unhappiness among people and reduced public enthusiasm, and thus Chingay, originally featuring aspects of Chinese culture by the Chinese only, came about as a kind of compensation. However, with the inclusion of the other races in Singapore like the Malays, Indians, and international performers, the purpose of Chingay has evolved into becoming an event that showcases and celebrates multiculturalism and racial harmony, and inclusiveness in Singapore.

Has Chingay fulfilled its purpose?
In Singapore, people often confuse racial harmony with racial tolerance. In my opinion, harmony should not only be about being able to coexist without conflict. Such would be tolerance, where we only bottle up our feelings about another race's culture, and sweep the need to truly understand another race's culture under the rug, when we lack understanding of the reasons behind another race's culture. In the case of tolerance, there will come a day where someone who does not understand and misunderstands another race's culture, decides to spark conflict between races after his or her "tolerance" runs out. However, harmony is also about being able to understand another race's culture, accept and include people of different races. It is just like an acapella group , where each member has to understand their group member's role to harmonise with one another. Simply, a harmonious society in Singapore should be about us understanding and accepting all the different races in Singapore, and not just tolerating another race to avoid conflicts. 
This has been displayed in the Chingay performances, and I think Chingay has fulfilled its purpose in demonstrating racial harmony and inclusiveness. Each act in Chingay displayed the culture of a particular race in Singapore, and there were many acts in Chingay. However, I did see people performing in acts not of their race's culture, which would require understanding, inclusiveness and acceptance. I think this shows that even if you are not part of a particular race, it does not stop you from personally learning about another race's culture. Additionally, the majority race in the act will have to accept the performer of another race to be able to work well together. 

For example, there were a few Malays performing, even though Wushu is part of the Chinese culture.

Our role
As students and the young generation of Singapore, we should also be accepting and understanding towards our peers of different races. This will ensure that in the future, Singapore will be able to achieve a harmonious society, where there is truly "harmony" rather than just "tolerance".

Reference: https://chingay.org.sg/welcome