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| Video Blogger Who Tested Singapore’s Limits Seeks U.S. Asylum | |
| (about 9 hours later) | |
| Americans who identify with President-elect Donald J. Trump’s message of anti-political correctness may have a new, unlikely ally: a Singaporean teenager who is seeking asylum in the United States and calls himself a “poster boy for free speech.” | Americans who identify with President-elect Donald J. Trump’s message of anti-political correctness may have a new, unlikely ally: a Singaporean teenager who is seeking asylum in the United States and calls himself a “poster boy for free speech.” |
| The Singaporean, Amos Yee, 18, is a former child actor turned prominent online dissident who fled to the United States last week after being convicted in his own country of “wounding the religious feelings” of Christians and Muslims. Mr. Yee was apprehended by American immigration officials at O’Hare Airport in Chicago and is in custody. | The Singaporean, Amos Yee, 18, is a former child actor turned prominent online dissident who fled to the United States last week after being convicted in his own country of “wounding the religious feelings” of Christians and Muslims. Mr. Yee was apprehended by American immigration officials at O’Hare Airport in Chicago and is in custody. |
| The plea he plans to make to American authorities, that he was punished for insensitive speech, echoes an argument that Mr. Trump made repeatedly throughout his campaign — that political correctness was damaging to the country, and that it had prevented government officials from adequately addressing issues of national security, race and religion. | The plea he plans to make to American authorities, that he was punished for insensitive speech, echoes an argument that Mr. Trump made repeatedly throughout his campaign — that political correctness was damaging to the country, and that it had prevented government officials from adequately addressing issues of national security, race and religion. |
| “We’re all dealing with these issues of, ‘What are the lines, what are the boundaries, what’s permissible?’” said Sandra Grossman, an immigration lawyer in Bethesda, Md., who is representing Mr. Yee in his asylum case. She said she believed the outcome “may say a lot about how we treat our own freedom of expression cases.” | “We’re all dealing with these issues of, ‘What are the lines, what are the boundaries, what’s permissible?’” said Sandra Grossman, an immigration lawyer in Bethesda, Md., who is representing Mr. Yee in his asylum case. She said she believed the outcome “may say a lot about how we treat our own freedom of expression cases.” |
| Mr. Yee drew the attention of the Singaporean authorities in 2015, at a sensitive time for the country. Lee Kuan Yew, the former prime minister who had served from 1959, when Singapore gained self-government from the British, until 1990, had recently died. His death prompted more than a quarter of the nation’s 5.5 million residents to pay their respects at public mourning centers, and more than 2,000 attended his funeral. | Mr. Yee drew the attention of the Singaporean authorities in 2015, at a sensitive time for the country. Lee Kuan Yew, the former prime minister who had served from 1959, when Singapore gained self-government from the British, until 1990, had recently died. His death prompted more than a quarter of the nation’s 5.5 million residents to pay their respects at public mourning centers, and more than 2,000 attended his funeral. |
| Mr. Yee absorbed the news differently, posting a video on YouTube titled “Lee Kuan Yew Is Finally Dead!” In it, he called the prime minister “undoubtedly totalitarian,” and likened him to Jesus, calling them both “power hungry and malicious” figures who “deceive people into thinking they are compassionate and kind.” Mr. Yee was convicted of speaking out against Christians, and served one month in jail. | Mr. Yee absorbed the news differently, posting a video on YouTube titled “Lee Kuan Yew Is Finally Dead!” In it, he called the prime minister “undoubtedly totalitarian,” and likened him to Jesus, calling them both “power hungry and malicious” figures who “deceive people into thinking they are compassionate and kind.” Mr. Yee was convicted of speaking out against Christians, and served one month in jail. |
| Then, this year, Mr. Yee took to YouTube again, to criticize Islam and Christianity for scripture that he said supported murder and belittled women. He was arrested again and sentenced to six weeks in confinement. In both court cases he was tried as an adult, prompting criticism from human rights groups. | Then, this year, Mr. Yee took to YouTube again, to criticize Islam and Christianity for scripture that he said supported murder and belittled women. He was arrested again and sentenced to six weeks in confinement. In both court cases he was tried as an adult, prompting criticism from human rights groups. |
| Mr. Yee’s videos garnered hundreds of thousands of views before they were taken down as part of his punishment. His large following stems in part from his past as a film prodigy of sorts — he won prestigious awards at age 13 for a short film that he wrote, starred in and shot himself — and in part from the lewd and outlandish nature of his more recent content. In videos that criticized organized religion, for example, Mr. Yee tore pages from the Bible and Quran, and simulated sex with religious symbols. | Mr. Yee’s videos garnered hundreds of thousands of views before they were taken down as part of his punishment. His large following stems in part from his past as a film prodigy of sorts — he won prestigious awards at age 13 for a short film that he wrote, starred in and shot himself — and in part from the lewd and outlandish nature of his more recent content. In videos that criticized organized religion, for example, Mr. Yee tore pages from the Bible and Quran, and simulated sex with religious symbols. |
| Despite the crassness of his manifestoes, Mr. Yee has drawn the attention of the United Nations special rapporteur on freedom of expression, David Kaye, who has repeatedly criticized the Singaporean government for its treatment of Mr. Yee. | Despite the crassness of his manifestoes, Mr. Yee has drawn the attention of the United Nations special rapporteur on freedom of expression, David Kaye, who has repeatedly criticized the Singaporean government for its treatment of Mr. Yee. |
| “The criminalization of a broad range of legitimate, even if offensive forms of expression is not the right tool for any state to pursue legitimate aims such as tolerance and the rights of others,” Mr. Kaye said in September, after Mr. Yee’s most recent conviction. | “The criminalization of a broad range of legitimate, even if offensive forms of expression is not the right tool for any state to pursue legitimate aims such as tolerance and the rights of others,” Mr. Kaye said in September, after Mr. Yee’s most recent conviction. |
| In Singapore, “people are extremely sensitive,” said Melissa Chen, a Singaporean human rights activist who is now a legal permanent resident of the United States. | In Singapore, “people are extremely sensitive,” said Melissa Chen, a Singaporean human rights activist who is now a legal permanent resident of the United States. |
| While Ms. Chen, who helped Mr. Yee flee Singapore, said she was “not entertained” by his videos, she said the dozens of Singaporeans who had filed police reports against him reflected a culture that had overcorrected in seeking to protect marginalized populations. “I call it the tyranny of the offended,” she said. | While Ms. Chen, who helped Mr. Yee flee Singapore, said she was “not entertained” by his videos, she said the dozens of Singaporeans who had filed police reports against him reflected a culture that had overcorrected in seeking to protect marginalized populations. “I call it the tyranny of the offended,” she said. |
| Singapore is a young country made up of groups seen as tenuously linked — ethnic Chinese, Indians and Malays. Legal protections there apply to all races and religions, according to academics, because of a fear that public criticism of one group could lead to retaliation by another, causing a domino effect that has led to race riots in the past. | Singapore is a young country made up of groups seen as tenuously linked — ethnic Chinese, Indians and Malays. Legal protections there apply to all races and religions, according to academics, because of a fear that public criticism of one group could lead to retaliation by another, causing a domino effect that has led to race riots in the past. |
| “The official ideology of Singapore is that the country is diverse and fragile, and the country cannot risk tensions between religious and ethnic groups,” said Michael J. Montesano, an American academic based at ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, a think tank in Singapore. | “The official ideology of Singapore is that the country is diverse and fragile, and the country cannot risk tensions between religious and ethnic groups,” said Michael J. Montesano, an American academic based at ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, a think tank in Singapore. |
| Mr. Montesano added that while contrarianism is anathema to Singaporean culture, the laws in Singapore are rooted not in protecting individuals, but rather in society as a whole. “It’s about the fact that if groups are offended, there could be unrest and the national project could be unwound,” he said. | Mr. Montesano added that while contrarianism is anathema to Singaporean culture, the laws in Singapore are rooted not in protecting individuals, but rather in society as a whole. “It’s about the fact that if groups are offended, there could be unrest and the national project could be unwound,” he said. |
| Despite being one of the richest societies in the world, Singapore is one of the most closed. The advocacy group Reporters Without Borders ranked it 154th out of 180 countries on its 2016 Press Freedom Index, and concluded that media outlets that are run independently of the Singaporean government are often censored. | Despite being one of the richest societies in the world, Singapore is one of the most closed. The advocacy group Reporters Without Borders ranked it 154th out of 180 countries on its 2016 Press Freedom Index, and concluded that media outlets that are run independently of the Singaporean government are often censored. |
| Mr. Yee, who is being held at an immigration detention center in Illinois as he awaits the next steps in his asylum case, said in a phone interview that he believed free speech should be “unbridled” worldwide, and that he hoped to continue criticizing religion “without the fear of being sent to jail.” | Mr. Yee, who is being held at an immigration detention center in Illinois as he awaits the next steps in his asylum case, said in a phone interview that he believed free speech should be “unbridled” worldwide, and that he hoped to continue criticizing religion “without the fear of being sent to jail.” |
| He also attributed some of his most offensive videos to “a phase,” and said that he planned to spread a more palatable message moving forward in order to appeal to a wider audience. | He also attributed some of his most offensive videos to “a phase,” and said that he planned to spread a more palatable message moving forward in order to appeal to a wider audience. |
| Of his past work, Mr. Yee said, “I think that the entertainment value of my content actually pushed activism a few steps back.” | Of his past work, Mr. Yee said, “I think that the entertainment value of my content actually pushed activism a few steps back.” |