Malaysia cannot afford the 'Trump Effect'

THE idea of a “Trump Effect” first appeared in research by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). In their nationwide survey of some 10,000 teachers, the SPLC revealed an avalanche of ethnic and religion–linked intolerance among school children, as reported by teachers, that followed immediately after Trump’s election campaign back in 2016. Those were only the early signs of widening crack in American society.

Four years down into Trump’s administration the data shows alarming evidence of a growing “Trump Effect” rippling through the nation and across the globe. Although racism has been an insidious part of American society since its foundation, it has found powerful new expression during the Trump era.