JE SUIS NOIRES, Milano
10.12.2024 H18:00
MUDEC, Museo delle Culture
10.12.2024 H18:00
MUDEC, Museo delle Culture
Istituto Svizzero is pleased to organize two screening evenings in Rome and Milan of the documentary JE SUIS NOIRES by Rachel M’Bon and Juliana Fanjul, followed by a talk. A work that gives voice to women fighting for the recognition of structural racism and claiming their dual identity as Swiss and black.
Free entry until full capacity. Register here.Â
On the occasion of World Human Rights Day
In collaboration with Comune di Milano, Consulate General of Switzerland in Milano and 24 ORE Cultura
JE SUIS NOIRES
June 2020. Thousands of white and Black Swiss citizens take to the streets in Geneva, Zurich, and Lausanne to denounce racial discrimination. It was the first time that the stories of visible minorities came to light. Black women played a leading role, denouncing systemic racism and challenging the stereotype of humanitarian Switzerland as an island of peace and prosperity. In a country that has made irreproachability its dogma, it is difficult to confront its darker side, to reveal its ties to colonialism. It is hard to make people understand that the legacy of this colonial past still fuels the racist nuances deeply rooted in the collective unconscious. With director Juliana Fanjul, narrator and protagonist Rachel M’Bon questions her country, women on the street, a historian, a political ally, a collective, and “opens” a door to six protagonists. Each of them has a journey that echoes her path to emancipation.
Programme:
10.12.2024 H18:00
Introduction
Tommaso Sacchi, Deputy Mayor for Culture, Municipality of Milan
Greetings
Stefano Lazzarotto, Consul General of Switzerland
Film Screening
JE SUIS NOIRES, Rachel M’Bon & Juliana Fanjul
2022, 50 minutes
Original version, Italian subtitles
Greetings
Joëlle Comé, Director of Istituto Svizzero
Talk
Rachel M’Bon, Film Director
Sarah Kamsu, Journalist
Michael Yohanes, Photographer & Visual Artist
(The talk will be held in Italian)
Moderator
Bianca Aravecchia, Head of the Office for Networks and Cultural Cooperation, Museum of Cultures Area, Intercultural Projects, and Art in Public Space, MUDEC
MUDEC, Museo delle Culture
Via Tortona 56, Milano
Biographies
Rachel M’Bon, born in Switzerland to a Congolese father and a Swiss mother, is a journalist and film-maker. After a federal diploma in communications and studies in journalism, she worked for over 15 years, for several Swiss media groups in the society and culture section. In 2018, she launched the Instagram account NOIRES to highlight black and brown women in Switzerland, which would later become the account of her association NWAR (Now we are Rising). Her first film, “Je suis noires”, co-directed with Juliana Fanjul, premiered at the Geneva International Film Festival and Forum on Human Rights (FIFDH) in March 2022, exploring themes of identity and the issue of racism. Its success earned it the Swiss Film Prize in March 2023. Rachel is a strong advocate of diversity and inclusion, founding NWAR and the Afropea Cultural Center in 2023. In September 2023, she was named one of the 100 personalities of the year by the Swiss newspaper Le Temps, and continues to work on filming and writing new stories about black representation.
Juliana Fanjul is a Mexican-born director based in Geneva. She graduated from the International Film School of Cuba and the HES-SO Master’s program in Switzerland. Her films explore power dynamics in the female world and have been screened and awarded globally. She is the head of the documentary department at the Film School of Cuba and teaches at EPFL and HEAD (Geneva).
Sarah Kamsu, a journalist of Cameroonian descent born in 1997 in Milan, studied Political Science between Italy and France. She is the founder of We Africans United, a platform that promotes the discovery of African cultures and the diaspora through articles and interviews. The project aims to educate new generations about the rich history and culture of Africa, often ignored or distorted by traditional media. In 2022, she hosted Afrik Story, a program about historical African figures, broadcast in 45 countries. In 2023, she launched the first app in Italy that brings together the Afro community, offering a guide to Afro restaurants, businesses, and more. Winner of the Leader of Change award at the Black Carpet Awards, she participates in festivals and conferences to promote inclusion and diversity. Sarah is an influential voice in journalism and the promotion of cultural diversity.
Michael Yohanes, born in Amman in 1987 to an Eritrean family, moved to Italy in 1990 following the invasion of Kuwait by Saddam Hussein. He graduated in Photography from the Istituto Europeo di Design in 2011 and has worked in the field of photography, focusing on portraiture, fashion, and social photography. He has collaborated with many magazines, including Vogue Italia and Elle, and international brands such as Prada and Dior. His goal is to provide an authentic representation of the Italian Afro-descendant community and Africa, challenging the mainstream media narrative. His most recent projects focus on Black Culture and changing the narrative around Africa and Afro-descendants.