The white supremacist rally on Saturday in Charlottesville, Virginia against the planned removal of the statue of Confederate General Robert E Lee should not just be seen as another story about America to us here in Thailand.
We should view this shameless incident as an alarm bell to confront our very own issues -- a culture of cherishing and striving for the established social, racial, religious and power-based superiority in Thai society. This culture has rotted our social values, especially as we keep refusing to take a closer look at it.
The clashes between white nationalists and counter protesters in Charlottesville were caused by vengeful acts of people with the misguided belief they are better than others of different races.
Paritta Wangkiat is a reporter, Bangkok Post.
The white supremacists at the rally seemed to take history only partly into account. They overlooked the fact than beyond portraying General Lee as a great hero, the statue acts a reminder of slave-holding and casualties in the American Civil War more than 150 years ago.
Ironically, despite many civil wars driven by racial and religious differences, which should have provided lessons, racial supremacy ideas survive everywhere, erupting from time to time.
In Thailand, perceived superiority by many groups of people remains a chronic problem when it comes to national administration and inequality between the rich and the poor.
The resurgent trend of handing state power to a handful of people and the elites after coups has become the norm over the past decade. The same groups of powers-that-be and opportunists -- who have privilege access to resources and economic opportunities -- often benefit from state policies and regulations. Civil servants remain supreme versus ordinary people who have to bow their heads when asking for help.
Supremacism has been demonstrated across our social spectrum -- nationalists who perceive themselves as above ethnic people and migrants, Buddhism above other less-dominant religions, men above woman and conservatives above progressives.
Our falsely depicted and twisted history may have made Thais fight for losing causes -- from various political beliefs, power abuses, human rights violations to "unfair" justice processes.
At the heart of many conflicts, the state and the elites have re-invented the depiction of rural Thais as poor and uneducated who need governments and the powerful to make decisions for them. In fact, rural people have seen improvements in their livelihoods and education.
Supporters of non-elected governments usually believe in their superiority when deciding the future for others. In return, they are given privileges to manage natural resources and devise policies that help increase their wealth.
Some people admire supremacy because they can extract benefits from it. That's why authoritarian rule suits them well because it offers systems that protect and sustain their benefits.
Take ongoing developments in the Northeast. Many gold and potash mining and petroleum projects in the region have faced local resistance. Companies owning these businesses have filed lawsuits against local protesters to try to shut their mouths, while the government has shown little interest in listening to the plight of locals.
In the deep South, the state has spent almost 300 billion baht to bring peace to the region since the conflict flared up again in 2004, after decades of Thai supremacism over ethnic Thai-Malays.
But peace is not easily established. Early this month, police arrested a ranger who fired shots at a student in Pattani. Fortunately, no one was hurt. The ranger claimed he was drunk while some witnesses said he was not. It shows someone can easily threaten another just because he has the supreme power to carry and use a gun.
The worst thing about Thai supremacists is the way they agree with threatening and punishing people who challenge the status quo.
Take the case of jailed anti-coup activist Jatupat "Pai Dao Din" Boonpattararaksa from the Northeast who challenged the military. On Tuesday, he was sentenced to two years and six months in jail for lese majeste and computer crime offences. The case against him was filed by a senior military figure in Khon Kaen who earlier was known for possibly using his "superior" power to close half a lane of a road to be used for his wedding guests' car park.
It's important for us to start asking why we think established values or beliefs of the majority should reign supreme over others. It's pretty clear we must urgently examine our society and its structural problems.