Indian/Jamaican | Unknown
I was born via in vitro fertilisation so my Mum is not exactly sure where the donor is from but it’s suspected he is Trinidadian or Chinese. My Mum really wanted another baby after she had my sister, the man she was married to was unable to have children so they opted for fertility treatment. Unfortunately, the marriage didn’t work out so my Mum raised two girls on her own, whilst working round the clock to make sure we had all the things we could ever want.
Until the age of 13 I thought I was just Black. It wasn’t until my Mum explained where my Grandparents were from and that my biological Father is Asian that was when I became aware of my mixed-race heritage. It knocked my confidence, I didn’t know where I fit in society, especially going to a predominately White school, there wasn’t anyone who looked like me or who was in my situation, it made me quite isolated for a while.
As a child, I lacked an understanding of my privilege. When going to my predominately White school, having straighter hair and Asian features allowed me to float seamlessly between different racial groups and never feel left out. When I attended a predominantly Black college, I got a lot of questions about my race and found it harder to fit in.
To tackle racial inequality we need representation in all industries, open conversations around colourism and an overhaul of our societal structures. I work in journalism and podcasting and there are barely any mixed Asian and Jamaican heritage women in senior positions at well-known broadcast media companies. There are many talented journalists, broadcasters and podcasters of colour that never reach their full potential due to them not being employed in senior positions, or not being able to tell the stories that they think are important as they may not appeal to a mass audience. It reinforces the rhetoric that as a person of colour it’s not enough to just have talent, you need copious amounts of luck and resilience to get to the top of the career ladder. I have a podcast called @interconnectedvoices showcasing underrepresented voices on political topics, see a trailer by swiping right.
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