English | Guyanese
I identify as mixed-race English Guyanese & heterosexual. My mum is from England and my Dad is from Guyana. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly when I recognized I was mixed-race, there are a littering of key moments that I’ll always remember which essentially boil down to feeling a difference to my peers and those around me. My Father left when I was very young and is estranged from his family, so I have little knowledge of him or his Guyanese culture. My upbringing was predominantly White British. I am very conscious that I know next to nothing about my Guyanese heritage and it’s something I am actively trying to change right now. I love that being mixed-race is essentially a result of the world connecting and different cultures creating and growing together. I think as I grow older I am aware of it much more and although that’s down to my own personal journey I think it is also in part because it is way more common place which I love. I was recently quite deeply affected by a conversation I had with a lady of similar background to me, sharing very similar stories where I felt so comforted and excited in being able to share with someone who could identify. We talked for hours and I realised that the reason it had this effect was that despite having a mixed brother and a fair few mixed friends it’s just not a conversation I’ve had before. I believe it is not just media representation of all ethnicities that is needed but also actual conversation and education surrounding them that has a huge role to play in battling any kind of negativities people face due to a misunderstanding of their culture/ethnicity. Which is why this project is so great and I’ve found it very comforting reading through all the amazing stories. I think it would be so interesting to hear the stories of parents of mixed-race children too. If I had the opportunity to be reborn I wouldn’t want to change anything except maybe having a hoverboard from back to the future, I’d really hoped we’d have those by now.
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