Words

A Ticket Stub - June 2012

The words were so small I barely caught them.

A couple of weeks ago I was at a Charity Concert for one of the organizations we support. I saw it there, written in 4 or 6 point font on the extreme bottom left corner of the ticket stub in my hand - the phrase 'For Non-Muslim Only'.

These words are so common that at first I barely registered them.

On posters and tickets and pamphlets and books by or for 'Non-Muslims,' the phrase appears again and again - required by law.

It is a regular, normalized part of life - not much different than the signs outside of restaurants on Gaya Street marking those that "serve no pork" from those that do or the bins for halal and non-halal silverware in the food court at the Suria Sabah Shopping Center. They are indicative of the (not-so) subtle divisions that are "just part of how things are."

Focusing on the words, I'm not sure what to make of them.

I see them hospitably, demonstrating respect for the traditions, beliefs, and practices of the different people who call this place home - serving as a guide and protecting those might take offense or be misled.

I eye them with suspicion, wondering about the lines of division and the power(s) that create them. Who was being kept from whom, and why?

The words remind me of the complexity of this place, of religious diversity and of what it means to be in the minority. They remind me of the words used to divide and bring discord in my own country, both historically and at present.

The words are words that will linger.