British | Mauritian
My Mum is from Mauritius (a mix of African, French and Indian), whilst my Dad is from England. Growing up in Australia as a mixed-race person was hard. Prejudice towards me was there from as long as I can remember. I spent a lot of my upbringing feeling like an outsider and wishing I was someone different. It even affected me in terms of the ‘normal’ rite of passage into womanhood. For all of my teenage years I couldn’t find make-up for my skin tone. I remember writing a letter at 14 to a magazine (never published) asking why there was no representation of people with darker skin tones in Australian society. I actually could not be prouder to be mixed-race now, particularly when I travel. In so many places I travel to, the people think I am from the country I’m in. I’ve had Arabic spoken to me in France, Spanish spoken to me in New York, Tamil spoken to me in Sri Lanka and Cambodians asking if one of my parents was from there. I always joke I could be a spy as I blend in everywhere, but really it just enhances my love of travel and other cultures – as I can feel connected and at home anywhere. I’ve tried not to let being mixed-race affect the way I blend into society anymore – but I think it massively helps that I live in London. When I travel to some of the small towns or villages in the UK, I do sometimes feel like I stick out. Workwise I’ve never let it affect me – I think any discrimination I feel is more to do with being a woman than it does to do with being mixed-race. The main place it really affects me is in terms of politics. I am a strong advocate for equal representation of people’s voices and stories and I do feel personally attacked when people make backhanded comments about race and immigration. I’d love to do more to help ensure different voices are heard and represented - hence finding this project such a powerful thing – and continue to seek out the best way to do so in my own life. If I had the opportunity to be reborn I would return the same – everything happens for a reason they say, and I genuinely love the fact that I am different and all that means in this world.
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