Flawed thinking of having to choose between ethnicity and nationality

Lately, there has been a recurrent question in Malaysia of whether one is an ethnic Malay first or Malaysian first.

This comes after Perikatan Nasional chairman Mahiaddin Yasin downplayed his previous stance of prioritising his Malay identity, saying it is no longer relevant in the current context.

As I was reflecting on this subject while switching channels looking for some interesting programmes that could offer some insights on this conundrum, I came across the decades-old drama The Waltons.

The Waltons, aired from 1972 to 1981, was an American historical drama TV series about a family in rural mountainous western Virginia.

The drama series was portrayed in the context of the economic hardships and mass unemployment of the Great Depression era of the 1930s and subsequent wartime home front of World War Two of the early 1940s during the rise of Adolf Hitler.

The Waltons family, who were poor but hard-working, generous and hospitable with Christian virtues at heart, offer an interesting insight about life and identity that transcends narrow tribalistic consciousness.

The episode that attracted my attention was about a Jewish family who migrated to the US from Berlin, Germany, after being persecuted by the Nazis and betrayed by close friends and neighbours. They came to live in the mountainous area where the Walton family lived.

The Jewish family were headed by a university professor who lost trust in humanity after experiencing extreme bigotry in Germany. He decided not to identify himself as Jewish, fearing similar backlash in America, and instructed his family to do the same. He also decided not to participate in Jewish festivals and rituals.

His son and wife were unhappy and confided their problem with the Waltons.

The Walton family tried to reach out to this family but were rejected by the professor on several occasions.

It took the grandfather of the Walton family to meet the Jewish professor and tell him that one need not hide one’s identity just because of bigotry. One should be proud of one’s culture and upbringing and express it in a positive manner, the elderly patriarch explained.

The Jewish professor came to his senses, and it was a touching moment to see the Waltons, who were Christians, joining the family of the Jewish professor in celebrating the Jewish festivals later.

The shared sense of humanity can be seen when both faiths encounter each other to solve a problem, and this creates a common national identity in a real sense. In essence, one can be Jewish and at the same time be a proud patriot of a particular country.

The binary approach of choosing nationality over identity or identity over nationality does not do justice to human beings whose very nature is complex.

One can be ethnic Malay, Chinese and Indian and at the same time project one’s national identity as Malaysian by engaging with each other.

The real problem starts when one resorts to choosing one against the other, and this certainly makes for great political capital for opportunistic politicians, especially in the context of Malaysian politics, where the focus on race and religion brings in votes.

So, let’s put the flawed argument of having to choose between race and nationality to rest. – Focus Malaysia

The views expressed in Aliran's media statements and the NGO statements we have endorsed reflect Aliran's official stand. Views and opinions expressed in other pieces published here do not necessarily reflect Aliran's official position.

AGENDA RAKYAT - Lima perkara utama

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