British | Ghanaian

Growing up in Ghana and then moving to the UK later in my life, I don’t see race in the same way as my colleagues who were brought up here. When in Ghana, I was seen as being white and when in the UK, I was seen as being black. It is almost like I am immune to race. It is probably because I have a grasp of my Ghanian side. I feel comfortable with that half of me. At the same time I had my mum (who is Ghanaian but grew up in the UK) and my Dad imprinting both sides of my culture in me so I identify with both sides. I am quite confident in that. I am proud of both sides, I am almost blind to racism. It doen’t hold any water in my eyes, people speaking ignorantly. I find that speaking with colleagues and friends who were brought up here and are mixed, they seem to be more sensitive. Maybe it is because they don’t have a story to fill the other side of them, their other identity. It is interesting and something that I have observed here. Through conversations and the way people represent themselves, you can see a distinct difference between people who have an understanding and grounding of their culture and people that don’t. If I came back as someone else, I would want to be someone who is given the opportunity to experience other people. Their race, their way of thinking. Once you have that understanding, you no longer look through the eyes of race. You look at people for who they are and their personality. From the onset, being exposed to cultures has definitely given me a different perspective. I think that in my same shoes, if I was just limited to just England or just Ghana, my perspective would be skewed. It's a big deal for anyone to openly embrace other cultures and not be shy because it is difficult to understand. It is important to take an interest in why people do certain things and where it stems from. Not even being mixed-race but having the opportunity to be exposed to two different cultures because of my parents gives me that perspective and understanding of people. If I have learned anything in my life it is to understand and take an interest in other cultures. It is not what you are physically made of but what you embrace.