One day, while I was sitting on the floor with my young classmates in primary school in rural Malawi, a group of angry parents stormed our class, brandishing panga knives, wooden sticks and an assortment of other makeshift weapons.
It was the early 2000s and my home area in southern Malawi was abuzz with rumours of ‘bloodsuckers’. According to the rumours, the vampires possessed supernatural powers and were targeting their victims to extract blood for witchcraft rituals. Word had spread that bloodsuckers were at the school. We children were sent home, while urgent meetings between the school management and the community took place.
