What Leaving America Taught Me About Racism

And other perspectives of “American Exceptionalism”

One year ago, I was living in NYC and had never spent more than a few days at a time outside of the US. I hardly knew anything about Southeast Asia and had never even visited before.

So what did I do?

I decided to leave my happy life behind in New York City, pack up all my possessions into two check-in luggages, say bye to all my friends and family, and change jobs. I decided to move to Singapore. All because I wanted to experience something new.

Now, one year later, I can’t believe that I didn’t make this move sooner. The amount of perspective that I have gained is beyond anything I could have imagined.

On racism

In America, almost all conversation around race relations focuses on blacks vs. whites. This is despite America being an incredibly diverse country full of immigrants who have come from everywhere in the world. Why does America ignore all of this other diversity?

Most other places in the world have a much more homogenous population, yet still…