When I landed here, I usually go in a pub which is behind Montgaloy. And every time when people come in, they would say things like ‘what are you doing here?’ ‘Why don’t you go home?’, ‘who brought you here?’. It’s not too bad when it is for me because I am a woman. But my children experience this same thing, it affects me the most because my son used to be called Qing in school because of his Asian looks and my daughter looks more mixed red. So, she usually is the one who stands up for her brother. So, it is really upsetting to see your kids disturbed by those.
However, I have to back up the Caernarfon people. 80% of them are really nice and I fit in really well. But the rest of the 20% we may have to fight and educate the new generation. I was running the pub; you get drunk people when you work in the pub. I accept that. But when my kid has to explain it in school, I can’t accept that because those are new generation we are trying to educate.
Black Lives Matter means to bring out the voice that I never had before. I am sure that a lot of people who stand for Black Lives Matter may have never gone to protest before.
Racism happens everywhere. That includes my own country where I was born. It happened in Thailand to the Indian and to different colour skinned people or different background. It happened to my friend who is gay. So, I think it’s not just Black Lives Matter alone. Black Lives Matter organisers bring out diversity and equality, which brings us all together.
The death of George Floyd was really upsetting because we don’t need to be that violent, instead we can communicate a bit better. We can maybe start to understand another human struggle and understand why people act the way they do.
I never done this before, but I studied clinical psychology which helps me to understand human beings; who they are. But what brought me here was education, it makes your voice become more stronger and to want to understand more. If I educate people, we can eliminate all these uneducated ideas.
Tin Bangor started; I went to that one. Myself and Joe, who was part of organisers, talked about doing it here so people can recognise how it is hard for us to have experience it. Me and Joe came out and put the tape to two-meter distance, which were measured on the square and then we got the shower of abuse. But to us it means if you’re going to have to stand, you stand. Whatever it is, you combine by the law because it was in the middle of pandemic, you could be spreading the virus. We followed the guideline and people kept a healthy amount of distance. We followed everything so we did not break any rules. I wanted people to hear my voice. I want people to know that it happens. And I want people to know as well that my children go through it. And we want to make this to be heard by everyone, so we can educate our young generation not to do it and start accepting other human beings.
I would like to say look at the history and just making sure that it does not happen in the future. We are all human and it doesn’t matter what colour. I am Asian and a lot of people call it yellow skin. They are white people and they are Welsh. They get experience of racism through the English and all work both ways. As long as we can be nice to each other and just live our own life, that is the best way to live.
No justice, no peace.