“I have a lot of problems, mostly with the police. When it comes to the police, it’s not brutality or anything, but it’s just that they will stop you and make you act as if you did something,” shared Maxime Hakizimana, who has been in Malaysia for five years.

Taylor’s African Society collaborated with Taylor’s Speaker’s Corner on its seventh open mic event titled “I Can’t Breathe” on June 12. This open mic event was held in conjunction with the current worldwide movement against anti-blackness centred around The Black Lives Matter movement, which is an international human rights movement that originated from the African-American community campaigning against violence and systemic racism towards black people.

This open mic served as a platform to bring awareness to the experiences of systemic and casual racism and discrimination faced by Black people in Malaysia, particularly that of African Taylorians who made up most of the speakers at the open mic. There was also a good discussion between the speakers, hosts and audience members on this topic.

“The murder of George Floyd as well as the viral video of the police killing him and being so cool and calm about it has sparked rage in a lot of people, myself included. I felt that it would be a great time to talk not just about what’s happening in the US, but also what’s happening here - the culture of racism in Malaysia that is often not discussed," said Dorian Wilde, organizer of the event and person in charge of Taylor's Speaker's Corner.

Dorian Wilde, organizer of the event and person in charge of Taylor's Speaker's Corner

The open mic was streamed live on Taylor’s Speaker’s Corner’s Facebook Page and has received 757 views to date. Black speakers were given priority to speak, and they spoke about their concerns over the racism they experienced in Malaysia which includes the countless encounters with the police, not being allowed to open bank accounts, and openly racist policies banning Africans tenants in many apartments and condos. They also shared how their ethnicity and skin colour affected their chances in landing a job and making friends. "It’s like being a criminal without actually committing a crime," described Chikondi Muloshi, co-host of the event and active member of Taylor’s African Society.

The speakers also shared disturbing accounts of racism they experienced from other Taylorians, including being called derogatory terms and being ostracised in classes and activities - often being isolated by their coursemates and chosen last to be in group projects.

One medical student, Susan M’chenga shared her experience about being assigned in groups to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on a training mannequin, and how everyone in her group asked to go before her despite being the first assigned to the mannequin, “…until I became the last person. That’s when it occurred to me that they were being racist. And then I heard one of the guys say, ‘I can’t do the resuscitation after her, she’s African.’ I looked at the other groups and none of them changed turns, because I was the only Black person there,” concluded Susan.

Susan M’chenga sharing her experiences of racism to a visibly disturbed audience

Audience members who attended the session via Zoom showed their immense support for the speakers as they listened and empathised with the speakers. “I think something that everybody should be doing is probably educating yourself and trying to evaluate where you stand in your degree of the spectrum of privileges that you’re born with and then seeing what you can do with your privilege to make a change," said Shivakaaminii Ponniah, a participant of the event.

When asked to convey a message to Black people from other countries, Florence Munalula, co-host of the event and president of Taylor's African Society answered, “Just be positive and don’t be hesitant to speak out. If someone has said something hateful to you, let them know.”

Chiko also shared, “If you do experience it, react calmly. Sometimes when you're in a situation where you can't react, be strong. You need to set a shield upon every other person that says anything negative to you and know your worth. A lot of times we feel offended because we don't know our worth. Once you know your worth, you won't let anything offend you that easily, and you're able to help other people."

Chikondi Muloshi, co-host of the event and active member of Taylor’s African Society

The stories shared during the event have truly exposed viewers to the intensity of racism faced by Black people in Malaysia and within the Taylor’s community, and inspired attendees and viewers to be brave and stand up for themselves and others when faced with discrimination. This event was a crucial first step in highlighting and understanding racism within Taylor’s and hopefully leads to the first steps in addressing these inequalities.