Liu Ling Ling wants a more loving society for son
Getai singer Liu Ling Ling aims to educate fans on LGBT issues through Pink Dot ambassadorship
Local veteran getai singer Liu Ling Ling had never heard of Pink Dot before she was named one of its ambassadors this year.
But being the mother of a three-year-old boy spurred the 53-year-old on to accept the role.
Launched in 2009, Pink Dot is an annual non-profit event in support of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community here. This year's edition will be held on June 4 at Hong Lim Park at 3pm.
Liu, who made headlines for giving birth at 50 after undergoing artificial insemination, told The New Paper in Mandarin at Pink Dot 2016's media session on Thursday: "Given my age, I don't know how many years I have left to be with my child.
"But I want (him) to grow up in a society with love, because only then can he be happy."
Pink Dot 2016's other celebrity ambassadors are TV host-writer Anita Kapoor and rapper Shigga Shay. (See report below.)
Previous years' ambassadors included actors Kumar, Lim Yu Beng and Sebastian Tan, actresses Sharon Au, Michelle Chia and Patricia Mok, and YouTube stars Munah and Hirzi.
REUNION
This year's ambassadorship marked a reunion of sorts for Liu and Shigga Shay, 23. They co-starred in Royston Tan's musical-comedy movie 3688 as mother and son last year.
Liu said excitedly: "We didn't know that we would meet each other again as ambassadors.
"I immediately asked Shigga if he was straight and he said that he liked girls to death!"
While this year will be her first time attending Pink Dot, Liu said of her friends and family in the LGBT community: "We have many people in this industry who are LGBT.
"I've seen conflicts arise simply because they are LGBT. They have been stared at and provoked for no reason and I'll have to console them."
Liu sees the ambassadorship as a chance to educate her fans, who are mostly made up of the elderly.
She said: "Most of them are not afraid of their child being LGBT, but rather, fearful of having to answer to their relatives. Precisely because the elderly don't understand LGBT, the onus is on me to explain to them how we can become a more tolerant society."
"But I want (him) to grow up in a society with love, because only then can he be happy."
- Getai singer Liu Ling Ling on her three-year-son being the reason for her taking up the Pink Dot ambassadorship
Using hip-hop to make a stand
Shigga Shay is hoping his brand of hip-hop can fight homophobia.
The 23-year-old told The New Paper: "Being in the (music and entertainment) industry, I hang out with a lot of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) friends and they actually do face a lot of discrimination.
"I hear about their struggles and feel a certain way that makes me want to contribute in any way I can."
Shigga Shay, who broke into the rapping scene in 2013 with his English-Chinese-Hokkien single Limpeh and has previously stood for causes such as HIV, hopes his background in hip-hop can help promote his handcrafted message that "discrimination is the past, love is here to last".
He said: "Hip-hop is probably the most homophobic (music) genre of all time - it's very masculine.
"So if I can make a stand, it can make a big impact for the younger generation."
For Pink Dot 2016, he will be staging a performance with getai singer Liu Ling Ling.
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