For Mohamed Semra, the relentless online abuse he faces as a young, African-born, Muslim mayor can be overwhelming. In these moments, he often draws strength from a vivid childhood memory: a solitary journey on the back of a donkey in Sudan. He was just 10 years old, a city kid from Melbourne on his first visit to his mother’s homeland, a place she had fled with her six children when Mohamed was merely three.
The family needed water, and his uncle entrusted a young Mohamed with the task. He was placed atop a donkey laden with water barrels and sent on his way to a well, a journey of about two hours. His uncle’s crucial advice echoed in his young mind: “Do not get off the donkey until you are safely back at the village with the water.” The warning was stark: the animal could easily be spooked, leading to the precious cargo being spilled.
The trek through the vast desert was daunting. As Mohamed neared his village, the donkey, to his dismay, veered sharply towards a tree whose low-hanging branches, laden with sharp thorns, presented a formidable obstacle. He was faced with a critical decision: dismount, save himself, but risk losing the vital water, or cling to the donkey’s neck and hope for the best.
“I made the decision that I was going to go through the tree,” the 27-year-old mayor recounts. “Obviously, I had a lot of scratches on my face, but the water made it home.” This experience, he explains, taught him a profound lesson: “sometimes… sacrifices need to be made in the service of others. And while I had a few scratches on my face, my family could enjoy water that day.”
This philosophy of making sacrifices for the greater good is one Mohamed Semra now applies to his role as the Mayor of the City of Maribyrnong, located in Melbourne’s vibrant inner west. Since assuming the mayoral robes, he has endured a barrage of online vitriol, but racism is not a new adversary for him. An incident at a local Apple Store when he was just 15 garnered international attention and ultimately spurred significant changes within the global company. This experience has prepared him to endure the current wave of abuse, viewing it as a necessary sacrifice to advance the community that has fostered his growth.
“There are people out there that are not comfortable with a Black man, a Muslim, in the position I’m in today,” Mohamed states candidly. “And it’s my job to make them more comfortable. As mayor, I see my role as representing the entire community… I have lived in the community for 20 years. I wouldn’t have put my hand up if I didn’t love this community and didn’t believe that I can add value.”
Mohamed Semra stands as the first person of sub-Saharan African descent to be elected mayor in Australia, representing a community as diverse as the world itself, with residents hailing from over 80 different countries. He acknowledges the inherent challenges of being a pioneer. “But if my mum can travel all the way from Sudan, move to a whole new country, not knowing how any of it was going to turn out, then I could put my hand up for local government.”
Finding His Voice
Responsibility has been a guiding principle for Mohamed from a young age. His older sister, Engi, affectionately describes him as “a big nerd” who “always wanted to be a role model.” While his siblings were engrossed in cartoons, Mohamed gravitated towards the news and historical documentaries, often leading to a playful battle for the remote control.
Leadership appears to be in his genes. Mohamed’s father is a tribal elder in Sudan’s eastern desert. In 2002, he was among many arrested without charge by the government in an effort to suppress unrest among Indigenous groups. This imprisonment compelled Mohamed’s mother, Samira, to flee with her children to seek refuge. His father has since been released but remains in Sudan.
Mohamed admits that a significant impediment to his early aspirations was a severe stutter. “My head would rock and my tongue would come out and it halted me from doing a lot of the things that I wanted to do,” he explains. This frustration, he confesses, sometimes led him to act out, describing himself as “a bit of a troublemaker” in his early teens.
However, Leah White, his English teacher and student wellbeing coordinator at Maribyrnong College, recognised his potential. Despite his “lively” nature, his written work revealed a sharp intellect. Ms. White’s suggestion of an intensive speech therapy course at La Trobe University proved transformative. “He just grabbed it with both hands,” Mohamed recalls, adding that this intervention “gave me back my voice.”
This newfound confidence propelled him onto the debating team, marking the beginning of his leadership journey. In Year 11, a casual remark from a schoolmate, who laughed and told him that running for school captain was “a white thing,” deeply struck Mohamed. “I was very struck by that conversation because, you know, when did leadership become a white thing?” he questions now. Undeterred, he stood for the role and won.
The Apple Store Incident: A Turning Point
Perhaps his schoolmates had already recognised his leadership potential following a defining moment at a local Apple Store when he was 15. Mohamed and five African friends visited the store, eager to see the latest iPhone. Their excitement quickly turned to discomfort as they noticed they were being shadowed by security. Racial profiling was a familiar experience, but this time, the group decided to leave.
As they exited, Mohamed felt a surge of conviction. “Something struck me. I go, ‘If we let this go, it’s going to happen to so many other people that have done nothing wrong.’” They turned back, with a friend discreetly recording on their phone. Store security and the manager confronted them, asking the group to leave due to concerns they “might steal something.”
The video of the incident went viral after Mohamed’s friend uploaded it. Mohamed found himself speaking to international media outlets. Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, issued a public apology and pledged to retrain all Apple staff on inclusion and customer engagement. “I stepped into it because I understood the weight of the moment,” Mohamed reflects. “That was a huge win for us… it reminded us that our contribution is valuable and that people want to hear what we have to say. And our stories are important.”
A Pandemic-Stricken Campaign
Politics was not initially on Mohamed’s radar. However, the Victorian government’s stringent lockdown of public housing towers in Flemington and North Melbourne in June 2020, in response to a COVID-19 surge, changed his trajectory.
Volunteering had become Mohamed’s passion. Despite being accepted into a commerce and international relations degree, he dedicated his time to working with multicultural and youth organisations. When residents of the towers – predominantly refugees and migrants, including Mohamed’s friends – were forbidden from leaving their homes, he immediately offered his assistance.
While the government provided food, it was often not halal or culturally appropriate. “I saw that happening and it hit me that we need more people on the decision-making table that represented and reflected the makeup of the community,” Mohamed explains. “I was volunteering, doing a lot of grassroots advocacy and activism but I never considered what it would look like for me to be on that table, making some of those decisions.”
With council elections due later that year, he decided to run. It was an unusual campaign, devoid of public gatherings or doorknocking due to restrictions. The 22-year-old ultimately lost. The defeat was humbling. “It’s not easy the first time you put yourself out there and things don’t go your way,” he admits.
He initially thought that was the end of his political ambitions. He redirected his advocacy efforts into establishing Endeavour Youth Australia, a social enterprise focused on working with diverse youth in schools and organising an annual multicultural youth leadership conference.
However, a pivotal moment arrived in 2023 when he was invited to attend a keynote speech by former US President Barack Obama. Mohamed had only ever known Obama as a figure of triumph. But when Obama spoke about losing his first congressional race and his initial reluctance to try again, it resonated deeply with Mohamed. “I saw a lot of similarities in my own story and… it felt like there was still a lot of work to be done,” he says. “The aim, the mission, hadn’t changed.”
In 2024, he re-entered the political arena, running as an independent councillor for Maribyrnong. His mother, Samira, with whom he still resides, noted the mixed reactions during his campaign. “Some people [are] very racist,” she observed. “Some people [are] very nice.” Many of his campaign signs were defaced, but his social media presence proved strong, connecting with many of the area’s young people.
The moment he learned of his election was, for Mohamed, “an overwhelming feeling.” “I can’t even put it into words. I started jumping up and down and celebrating,” he exclaims. “But [I also felt] the weight of the responsibility… now the work starts.”
‘He’s Got Thick Skin’: Mohamed’s Test
The speeches have concluded, and Mayor Mohamed Semra is now on the dance floor, energetically grooving with the Filipino community as they celebrate a local resident’s 100th birthday. He is known for his willingness to join in at community events, and the women present are clearly delighted, vying for a dance with him.
“It means a lot to them that I’m here as the mayor… it shows them that the City of Maribyrnong cares, that we are here, that we are listening and that we’re accessible,” Mohamed explains. “It’s so much fun, right? I’m gonna have energy for the rest of my day.”
Not all aspects of his role are this joyous. His position demands difficult decisions about the area’s future – decisions that inevitably draw opposition. A significant challenge for Mohamed will be the implementation of a previous council’s decision to construct an indoor stadium, intended to provide youngsters with a much-needed space for basketball, a sport he credits with keeping him out of trouble as a child.
Some residents have campaigned against the stadium, citing concerns about its impact on green space within a local reserve. However, Mohamed points out that the venue’s footprint will occupy just 3.3 per cent of the reserve and that the facility is crucial for reducing waiting lists for community sports. He will need to draw upon all his leadership skills to assuage the protesters’ fears and secure the $60 million in funding required from the Victorian and federal governments. “If we don’t get this done, it’s only going to pass the buck onto the next council and the next council after that,” Mohamed states.
His friend and fellow African activist, Tigist Kebede, however, believes that Mohamed, who was nominated for Victoria’s Young Australian of the Year in 2023, possesses the resilience to navigate these challenges. “There’s discipline there, he’s got very thick skin,” she remarks. “I think the experience of the speech impediment, Apple, just being a Black boy in Australia has created a lot of resilience in him. I definitely think there’s an intense pressure and also more eyes on him. He’s the first, the only, the different, and that means there’s a lot of hopes riding on his back.”
His burgeoning profile has already attracted the attention of political parties. Katie Hall, the local Labor member for Footscray, has revealed that Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan finds him impressive. The question that inevitably arises when a councillor gains prominence is whether they will seek a state or federal seat. Mohamed is not ruling out such a possibility.
Recently, he was among three Victorian mayors who travelled to Canberra to represent local government, an experience he described as “a big moment.” He understands that individuals like him – Africans, Muslims, young people – look to his position as mayor and see a role model, someone they can aspire to emulate. He is acutely aware that there are currently no people of African descent in the federal parliament.
“It would make a huge difference to see someone from an African heritage background in federal parliament,” he asserts. “The more we get representation in decision-making spaces, the more we are able to change the narrative where African-Australians are concerned. The more opportunities for good work to be shared and good stories to be out there, I think can make a long-lasting impact.”
For now, Mohamed Semra is content serving as Maribyrnong’s mayor, dedicating his efforts to his local community and honing his skills in politics, leadership, and compromise. Yet, as he stands outside Parliament House, the very place where seminal decisions shaping the nation are made, Mohamed admits, “The thought does creep in, ‘Is this a ceiling I can break?’”
