Turning purple to support the special needs community

SINGAPORE — Hong Lim Park was awash in purple on Saturday (Nov 15) as thousands gathered at The Purple Parade to show their support for Singapore’s special needs community.

The carnival and concert, which is a ground-up initiative by various community and corporate volunteer groups, aims to focus on what people with disabilities can do, rather than what they can’t.

Such a perspective can help potential employers tailor jobs to suit them.

“That is really one of the more challenging parts,” said Nominated Member of Parliament Chia Yong Yong. “A change in mindset, to know that a particular piece of work can be done, but it can be done in many different ways and perhaps over a different period of time.”

Ms Chia is also the President of SPD - formerly known as the Society for the Physically Disabled. She said if employers understand the constraints, they will then be better able to make the necessary accommodations.

“But people with disabilities must not think that society owes them a living, but that each of us has got to do our part,” she added.

“The special needs community is not just an addendum or footnote to the Singapore story, but it’s really in the main chapter,” said Denise Phua, MP for Moulmein-Kallang GRC. “And many things have happened in the last 10 years, in schools, in early years, and so we are really pushing ahead to develop more quality, sustainable, affordable services - even into the adult years.”

This year’s parade was bigger than its predecessor, with more carnival booths, and twice as many participating organisations. It wasn’t just the 5,000-strong crowd that came decked out in purple. Inside the big tent at Hong Lim Park were purple decorations and even purple food. This year, there were 85 participating organisations, up from 38 last year.

“An event like this, especially at this scale, is heartwarming for me to see because it shows a lot more awareness,” said Paralympic swimmer Theresa Goh. “It’s not saying we need to be treated specially, it’s more to say we need to be treated fairly and equally because by making everything in Singapore more accessible, it will make life a lot easier for us to go through and make us feel more independent.”

A new mark was even set in the Singapore Book of Records - for the largest gathering of people with purple hair. This means having at least one-third of one’s hair sprayed purple, or wearing purple hair extensions and wigs.

A booth at the carnival which offered temporary hair colour saw a steady stream of people heading there to get their hair sprayed purple. CHANNEL NEWSASIA