Monica Forson is a success story of multicultural Australia.
With an Australian mother and African father, the Footscray resident encapsulates the value of the cultural melting point.
But in searching for other voices telling a similar story, the 23-year-old came to realise there was near silence.
“I’m bi-racial, I have an Anglo-Australian mum and my father is from Ghana. For me personally, I feel there is really no voice for mixed-race kids, no voice for people like me.”
Speaking to Star Weekly for Cultural Diversity Week (March 14-22), the co-founder and president of the Afro-Australian Student Organisation says she has taken on the challenge of providing that voice by becoming involved in the Centre for Multicultural Youth’s ‘Shout Out’ initiative.
Ms Forson saw joining Shout Out as a great way to meet other young multicultural leaders and learn from accomplished public speakers.
She is also involved in a number of initiatives promoting and preserving African culture in Australia, and last year she won a Rotary Youth Leadership Award and the Africa Media Australia 2014 Youth Leadership Award.
“I’m really advocating for people like me, born in Australia but also acknowledging their culture,” she said.
Local Cultural Diversity Week events include performances at the cohealth Arts Generator, an interfaith bus tour, and a ‘multicultural day’ at the Footscray library.
For more details, visit www.maribyrnong.vic.gov.au/cdw.
