Sunday, July 10, 2011

Oh Dear Malaysia

I'm not sure how I missed the big ugly Malaysian protest in all my news hunts yesterady. Apparently dear sweet Malaysia's capitol city had a fit of furor Saturday morning (Friday night for us).

I read somewhere the other day that Mormon Missionaries become a sort of unofficial ambassador for the countries' they serve in. So as an unofficial ambassador for Malaysia I just wanted to bring THE CONFLICT  to your attention. I obviously understand very little about Malaysia's political situation.  Though I couldn't (and actually didn't really want to) talk to citizens about their country's political turmoil, it was impossible to ignore the deeply rooted class struggles and the racial and religious divides that structured neighborhoods. After studying colonial and post colonial English Literature for three years at USU, living in Malaysia was like finally understanding everything I'd been learning.  

Even though I don't like the artificial emotions the Avatar sound bites add, I do think the below YouTube creator used the best images and timeline of the day's events.  I'm startled by how evil the police look in some of the early, anticipatory snapshots.  I love that Malaysians gathered in cities all across the world (and wish I could have joined those in DC) to unite against unfair democracy.  And as much as I hate the violence, I'm so pleased to see all of Malaysia's racial groups present. If prejudice was Malaysia's weakness, diversity was her strength.

I don't really have anything else to say, other than a gentle reminder you may want to tune out the "voices" in this clip (though the parallel makes me want to finally watch Avatar).

No comments:

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...