I’m not a rich white expat” : negotiating identities as a white expatriate in Singapore

• Main Author: Ng, Teng Yi
• Other Authors: Ye Junjia
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2019
• Subjects: DRNTU::Social sciences::Sociology
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/76461
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Discourse on dependency of migrant labor and has become commonplace in the political arena of Singapore for decades. Recognizing the myriad of foreign worker identities in Singapore, this study seeks to gain a greater understanding of everyday experiences of White expatriates in Singapore. This paper will (a) dissect the multiple overlapping identities constituting that of a White expatriate in Singapore, (b) examine the discourse that they use to differentiate themselves from the idealized exclusive White-expatriates, (c) examine the negotiation of privilege identities using the concept of intersectionality in Singapore by selective distancing and participating in identity discourse. By deconstructing the everyday experiences and identity discourses of white expatriates, this paper concludes by identifying the various strategies white expatriates use to navigate the difficulties of working in a foreign country.