MigrantXMe:
THE PREJUDICE TRAIL
Bridging divides between Migrant workers and the Singaporean community
In collaboration with Migrant X Me (MxMe), the ‘prejudice’ trail was developed - a learning journey aimed at educating the public on the roots of prejudice within the migrant worker community in Singapore.
As seen from the number of covid-19 cases in the dormitories that migrant workers reside in, it is apparent that there exists a large socioeconomic inequality between Singaporeans and the workers who build our city.
While they remained largely hidden, the recent pandemic revealed that 95% of Singapore’s covid-19 cases came from migrant dormitories, due to their inadequate living conditions.
The founders of MxMe, Isabel Phua and Chew Chen Hao, are young adults who learnt about the issues that migrant workers in SG face on a daily basis.
Impassioned by the injustice they face, they spent the last 5 years working with migrant workers on their own account; regular dinners, social and emotional support, as well as looking for partners and NGOs to support them. This eventually led them to discover a knowledge gap between locals and migrant workers in Singapore, a key proponent to unspoken prejudice against these foreigners. Migrant X Me is therefore their response today.
In order to stand in solidarity with the migrant workers and allow them to feel at home in this country, Singaporeans need to be educated and exposed to the harsh realities of the inequalities they face on a daily basis.
After several rounds of consultation with Solve n+1, MxMe proudly launched the Farrer Park ‘Prejudice’ trail. This seven-station educational walk takes participants on an experiential journey into the life of a migrant worker in Singapore. Participants begin to understand the complexity of the issues and surface the prejudices that one may hold towards the migrant worker community.
“I really appreciate the expertise and gifts that Solve n+1 has provided. It has supported MigrantxMe to think about the bigger picture, with a long term, and more strategic approach. That has helped a lot in knowing what we need specifically when dealing with schools! The heart and the capacity to always maintain the right perspectives are what sets you apart!! You have a heart to develop us and also to always remember the bigger picture in the whole situation, and not being afraid of failure but pushing through and persevering till something happens. That has encouraged and embolden us to take that risk, which enabled MigrantxMe to have achieve our impact for 2019.”
- Isabel Phua, Co-Founder of MigrantxMe