Trinidadian/Irish | Jamaican
Both my parents were born and raised in London. They are both of mixed ethnicity and are second generation migrants. My mum is half Trinidadian and we are told Irish, but my grandma (dark hair and bright green eyes) was left on a church doorstep so it’s somewhat unknown. My father is Trinidadian and Jamaican. My mum brought us up knowing about our Trinidadian heritage, and I knew there was Irish in us because of my mum’s skin colour. I think in only the last few years I have really started to understand properly what that means. The tipping point which led to my family moving from East to West Hull was when the neighbours put dog poo through our letterbox. I remember moving to a new house and being told it was to do with the neighbours having problems, and the word ‘racism’ being used. It wasn’t until later in my life that I began to dissect and understand what that all really meant. I feel people haven’t fully learnt what it really means to be prejudice and discriminate. We still live in a society where structural and systemic racism is woven from the top down throughout the economy. As long as that exists, so does biasness. The bias attitude of society is internalised by us all in some way, whether that be race, disability, sexuality, religion etc. It’s our job as individuals to become aware of how it’s ingrained in us, and how we work to change that. I think we need to be honest, open and strong. It’s not wrong to admit we don’t know something, it’s not wrong to open up about our prejudice and lack of awareness. What's wrong is to remain silent and ignore social problems that affect us directly and indirectly. It’s up to everybody, as a community to stand for each other. Mixed-race people have a platform across their cultures, but that doesn’t mean to say it’s easy for their voices to be heard. We need to work together in our communities to see change. Society may see you as a Black person but doesn’t negate you being mixed. Stay educated in the cultures that make you whole, don’t leave one out in hope you’ll fit in more. Educate others as you move, because we still have quite a journey on our hands.
Want to read more? – Subscribe here #mixedracefaces