Mind your Cleavage!
Times have
changed. Tsunami’s have come and gone. Waves of generations have crashed out of
our shores seeking greener pastures in far off lands. The slip is showing. Por
Favor!
Tolerance,
rather than a virtue that pulsates common sense debate and understandings of
differences, has unfortunately become a norm that chooses to enforce rather
than respect. It is seen as a gesture that groups of people have to ‘put up
with,’ within certain limits, towards people different from themselves – the
poor, the elderly, the disabled, refugees, ethnic groups, indigenous people, theists,
beggars, and even migrants. A thousand apologies!
There used to
be an era where homes were fenced by half walls or hedges, over which neighbors
and people passing by would stand across and chat. Security, privacy, and the
threat of intrusion hardly crossed people’s minds. We used to play cricket on
the streets and the neighborhood mums used to support us so gladly with cookies
and lemonade. Xmas, Deevali, Vesak, Eid, and Aluth Avurudhu were all celebrated
with great pomp, pageantry, and passion, filled with fun and frolic by one and
all. Mum was saddled with making Watalappam to whet the palettes of the boys and
girls in the neighborhood. Other Mums had to make Cake, Kavum, and Kesari on
other festive events. Jolly Good!
Racial
insecurity, ethnic disharmony, and the massive influx of high rise
condominiums, within an environment of fear and security, have built Chinese
walls between peoples. It is time to reassess the development process beyond
the second hand approach of handouts to the excluded. Sadly, the cleavage is widening.
Oh Blimey!
If teamwork
means strength, then, keeping the bodice tightly clasped across our shoulders has
to be the right way. Aso!
Fazli Sameer
Sep 2019
