We travelled up to Edinburgh for the first time to see formidable authors Afua Hirsch in conversation with Chimamanda Adichie. What an enlightening and enchanting conversation it was. As we meandered through the cobbled streets, seduced by the wafting aromas of warm, melting fudge, we navigated the unfamiliar territory, frequently wondering how we may be perceived, as many racially minoritised people do when going somewhere new. Coincidentally, Chimamanda starts by speaking of her journey to the festival with the taxi driver who saw her Blackness first- othering her, channelling ‘asshole’ energy. She gives the driver grace, offering possibie stories to explain his rudeness and dismissiveness but also adds “but we Black people, we know”. There was a resounding hmmm from the audience presumably from the few Black people present, who know.
Throughout the conversation, Chimamanda continued to challenge us to think compassionately about the complexities of those who are different to us, whether that be culturally, politically or economically. An integral value at We Are Akoma is recognising that humanity and connection begins with understanding, empathy and acceptance.
What stood out to us from Afua’s conversation with Chimamanda about her book Dream Count- following the interconnected stories of four immigrant women navigating their lives in Nigeria and the USA – was the duality of navigating different intersectional identities while sharing similar cultural backgrounds. Much of the work we do at We Are Akoma is about bringing this to the forefront of practitioners’ minds, so they see each child’s whole story. When you connect with other people’s stories and experiences, you see them beyond the stereotypes and assumptions. We do this by providing training, consultancy and supervision, that helps practitioners to build inclusive, culturally affirming spaces where children and young people can be themselves and thrive.
Chimamanda gifted us by affirming our identity, when an audience member asked how we can get the courage to exist in a country that differs from your country of origin, that regularly others you. Chimamanda responded by boldly explaining that courage is simply not needed. Confidence is, understanding your heritage is, knowing who you are is, believing you are always at the center regardless, no permission is needed. Feeling worthy is our right
We were fortunate to spend time with Chimamanda and Afua after the event. They both took an interest in We are Akoma, and were impressed by what we stood for, reiterating a message We Are Akoma frequently use in anti-racist training from Chimamnda’s previous Tedx talk in 2009 that explains children are more than a single story and that their mental health matters. Her parting words to us were – thank you for doing ‘God’s work’ at which point we dropped our metaphorical mics and fan girled all the way back to London.