Rami Malek has reflected on his experiences with racism as an Egyptian- American living in the United States.
The Bohemian Rhapsody star, 43, recalled a racial profiling incident he found himself caught up in where he was “thrown” atop the hood of a police car.
“I got thrown on the bonnet of an LAPD cop car because someone had robbed a liquor store and stolen a woman’s bag,” Malek told the Guardian in a recent interview.
“They said the [thief] was of Latin descent and, ‘You fit the description.’
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“I remember how hot that engine was, they must have been racing over there and it was almost burning my hands.”
Thankfully for Malek, his friend was quick-thinking and was able to clarify the situation with the officer.
“My friend, who was Caucasian, was clever enough to go, ‘Actually, sir, he’s Egyptian. Not Latin’,” he said.
“I remember laughing on the cop car, thinking, ‘OK, this is a very precarious situation. I may well be going to jail for something I’ve not done.'”
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Earlier in the interview, Malek reflected on his experience of feeling as though he and his family “didn’t fit in” growing up.
“I don’t know how you ever get over that. I’m what’s called ‘white passing’, but I have very distinctive features and we definitely didn’t fit in,” Malek explained.
Because of this, Rami explains that he and his brother Sami developed hyper awareness of their surroundings.
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“We just had an uncanny way of sensing people,” Malek said before explaining how another actor observed this to his partner Emma Corrin.
“‘From the second Rami walks in the room, he is assessing every single situation, how it will affect him, or others, the domino effect of it all’,” Malek recites the observation.
“I don’t know if it’s a blessing or a curse,” he added, explaining that he can’t turn it off: “Sometimes I find it detrimental.”
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Malek later explained the anxiety he feels anxious about Trump’s return to presidency and what it may mean for attitudes towards immigrants in the States.
Referring to Barack Obama’s books The Audacity of Hope and Dreams From My Father, Malek reflected on the sense of hope instilled by Obama’s presidency and the apprehension that the current political climate brings.
“The idea that a man with a father from Kenya and a mother from Kansas could become president of the United States, it was one of the most hopeful moments from the story of the American dream,” Malek said.
“That’s been flipped on its head. I always look at situations like this and just hope that it brings out the absolute best in us.
“And, yeah, at times I do feel a bit sad that [my parents] had to make this extraordinary pilgrimage to America to investigate the possibilities.
“And now [my mother is] dealing with, perhaps, a certain sense of repression that they may not have known had they not moved. If that makes sense.”
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