LAST week, a Malaysian primary school came under fire for separating the drinking cups between Muslim and non-Muslim students and labelling them as such.

This follows a string of “isolated” incidents where school authorities, teachers, lecturers and students have been caught implementing, doing, saying, or practising racism or bigotry in schools. We have seen the banning of religious articles, taking down of crosses and statues of saints in missionary schools and kids asked to eat in a separate, distant part of school during fasting month; the laundry list is non-exhaustive, some unjust, others more benign, but all equally wrong.

The chronology of events is quite standard. An incident happens, an outrage follows, an investigation is carried out, a minister assures the public that it is not standard government policy, the perpetrator is apologetic and acknowledges he or she acted out of line. If the rage is widespread enough, it is discussed in Cabinet, and either the Prime Minister or Deputy makes a passing, half-hearted comment on it, the aforementioned minister uses that comment to close the issue, the rage subsides, Malaysians go back to their teh tariks.

But are these really isolated incidents and are these public servants really acting inconsistently against their training?

Often when this happens, we hear, “this is not Malaysia” – part nostalgia of a less suspicious, more united Malaysia, part self-reassurance that we could not have possibly come to this.

Is it really that surprising though?

We’ve spent so much money, time and effort to remind ourselves how we are different.

We build statistics based on race and religion, we tackle national issues based on race and religion, and we formulate policies and rules centred on race and religion, and we claim glory from the successes of these policies, also by race and religion.

This discrimination happens every day, all around us – not only in government, but also in the private sector, in society, in television, in the newspapers, in day-to-day transactions and exchanges in our everyday lives, at least for the past three generations.

All the teacher in the latest cup incident did, was in fact, put into physical form, what probably was on many students’ and teachers’ minds already.

Casual preferential treatment of people of same race is hardly exclusive to schools or government institutions. It is there, all around you – from queuing up for wantan mee, to race-based hiring to bias in who you rent out your properties to or buy them from. Many who do it may not even realise that they are.

It may seem benign and casual but it’s often the little things that make people aware that they are different, inadequate. This feelings of inadequacy ferment into insecurity, bias and hate and people in this state of mind would, in turn, be more susceptible to buy into conspiracy theories and the belief that they are being victimised, even when that isn’t remotely true.

And then counter-racism happens and the cycle continues, worsening with each generation.

That’s why instead of that heart-warming, if idealistic, picture of harmony we read about in school with Ali, Muthu and Ah Chong skipping happily across the river to visit their sick friend Rajinder, we have Ali’s mother telling him  not to mix too much with Ah Chong and Muthu because their fathers drink, Ah Chong’s mother telling him not to mix too much with Muthu and Ali because they are lazy and Muthu’s mother telling him don’t mix too much with Ah Chong and Ali, because all Chinese and Malays treat Indians bad, and Rajinder in hospital wondering why nobody came to visit.

The teacher in question has been reprimanded, the stickers have been removed from the cups.

But the labels will remain until we acknowledge we have a problem and do something about it. – August 15, 2017.

* Emmanuel Joseph firmly believes that Klang is the best place on Earth, and that motivated people can do far more good than any leader with motive.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.