Mojatu Magazine Berkshire B033

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THE UNFIT Nigerian MEN & Mental Health A WOMAN of Vision Constance Gooding

Our Covid-19 work Stories Pg 12 – 19

Female Genital Mutilation

FGM – FACTS, HELP & ACTIONS Facts

• FGM is any procedure that intentionally alter or cause injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons.

• FGM has been illegal in England and Wales since 1985.

• FGM is a form of child abuse and violence against women and girls.

• It is an offence to fail to protect a girl from the risk of FGM. • FGM is Non-Islamic, against the teachings of Islam and brings Islam into disrepute.

• FGM is putting the health of our daughters, sisters, mothers and wives at great risk.

• FGM affects girls and women both physically, emotionally and psychologically.

• Over 200 million girls and women worldwide have undergone FGM. • 10,000 girls aged under 15 who have migrated to England and Wales are likely to have undergone FGM. Taking Th • In Nottingham, about 85 new cases were recorded through NHS in 2016/17.

Taking The City To the Fa Taking The City To the Farm

Help

Are you concerned a girl or woman is at risk or need support?

• Are you from an affected community in Nottingham wanting to make a difference: • Join the Community FGM Steering Group: Contact us • For emotional & peer support for survivors in Nottingham, join the FGM Survivor’s club: Contact us Free • Refer survivors needing medical attention to FGM medical specialist in Nottingham: Contact us Sessions: Free Refugee • Drop in sessions at Mojatu Offices 167 Alfreton Road, Nottingham, NG7 3JR: ContactSeeker us Sessions: Free FGM helpline Refugees & Asylum • Call 0808 028 350 for a 24/7 anonymous or email: fgmhelp@nspcc.org.uk Tuesdays Seekers Welcome Sessions: • Call Nottingham City Council Children and Families Direct: 0115 876 4800 Saturdays Certifica Tuesdays • Ring the police on 999 if FGM has just happened or about to happen Saturdays Certificates Offered ADOP Tuesdays Activities include: Saturdays ADOPT A TREE include:Fruit Harvesting Actions Activities Fruit Harvesting Tree Management Activities To help end FGM and support survivors, join oneinclude: of our campaigns or projects Tree ManagementWeeding for Pumpkin Fruit Harvesting • FGM Survivors Club • Volunteer with us Feeding the animals Weeding for Pumpkins & Maize Form Tree Management • FGM Steering Group • ‘Adopt a tree’ project https://go Feeding the Pumpkins & Maize • FGM Global Faith Ambassador Weeding• for Donate to support ouranimals work Form online @ • FGM Global Young Ambassador Feeding •the Fundraise our work oodland 9sz animals to support https://goo.gl/WyH

W gement nd a l ana ionEDIBL d o M o W t E n e ss s‘18 m e SeWOODLA ag nEDIBLE nd n a l a d p M o e s o S W ment pr- Home Farm, Screv AEcocentre, ssio ‘18 SeWOODLAND For more information, contact Foundation p www.farmeco e ManeasgseiMojatu S s r n p Home Farm, Screveton, NG13 8JL AEcocentre, https://goo.g Mojatu Foundatio S eo07794372214 Phone: 01158457009 Mobile: 8 1 ‘ p www.farmeco.co.uk S r T: 0115 784 6666 | M: Ro 07 Email: valentine@mojatu.com Website: Ap www.mojatufoundation.org Mojatu Foundation | 167 Alfreton https://goo.gl/pEK1AC

• Request for training

T: 0115 784 6666 | M: 0751 366 1176 | E: ang @mojatu.foundation Mojatu Foundation | 167 Alfreton Road, NG7 3JR T: 0115 784 6666 | M: 0751 366 1176 | E: angela@mojatu.com @mojatu.foundation @ mojatuf @ @mojatu.foundation

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Editor’s Welcome

So, what news do we have for you in this latest edition of our esteemed Mojatu Berkshire Magazine. Firstly, special thanks to all our community champions who continue to uphold our communities with compassion though the Covid-19 pandemic. Secondly, thank you to our readers, contributors, sponsors and supporters of the work we continue to do in our communities.

Contents News and Sports A woman of Vision......................................................... 4-6 Refugee dinghy became a divisive symbol ............. 6 Black History article........................................................... 7 Death of Mercy Baguma calls for Changes .......... 8-9 Community

Our cover star Constant Gooding is a great passionate community champion whose smile is infectious in our neighbourhoods. Read her inspiring, connecting and enlightening story on page 4. Meet Pastor Trevor Thomas on Life Development Centre of Reading West Seventh Day Adventist Church with the great work of impacting knowledge and building resilience both spiritually and physically through the Lockdown and beyond—page 10.

Reading West Life development................................12

Connect with our young people to gain the knowledge and information you need to navigate through life; Mercy Njoki Mwaniki analysis Black communities and Mental Health while Stella Muiruri summaries on what to find/do during this Black History Month in our locality; the youngest of all—Kathy Githinji as she talks about her Quarantine; Tombe Tombe on Men & Mental Health. Also meet Antony Darway as he explores managing anxiety and depression in the time of difficulties, and Johnson Kako Mavalla on Revising the role of Nigerian Diaspora in post-COVID-19 Nation Building.

My Quarantine..................................................................18

Meet the Reading origin Rachel Meadows with the other Southampton grass root influencers who continue to selflead as they inspire, influence and impact their communities in style. Clearly, they Aspire to Inspire Before they Expire.

Southampton Grassroot Influencers........................13 Our Covid-19 Work Time to Relax, Reset & Refocus during lockdown14 Being Black and pregnant during Covid -19 .........15 The Unfit Nigerian.................................................... 16-17 Utulivu Christmas Giving Tree ....................................19 Health & Food Managing anxiety and depression ................... 22-25 Men and Mental health by Tombe Tombe ............26 Education & Career Importance of Girls Education ...................................28

Cover

Constance Gooding Cheer up with Mary Gatu, a warm and welcoming community champion as she encourages us to Relax, Reset and Refocus Mojatu Media Disclaimer during the Lockdown—it is all about remaining positive.

The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily Happy Reading! Cecily Mwaniki Managing Editor: Mojatu Magazine Email: news@mojatu.com.

Editorial Group Editor: Frank Kamau – frank@mojatu.com Managing Editor: Pa Modou Faal Graphic Design / Photos: Robert Borbely Contributors: Cecily Mwaniki | Angela Wathoni | Constance Gooding | Hillary Burage | Laura McCartan | Holly Barrow | Stella Muiruri | Pastor Trevor Thomas | Mary Gatu | Akeisha Robinson | Mercy Njoki Mwaniki Mugo | Johnson Mavalla | Kathy Githinji | Annice Thomas | Lorna Obure | Anthony Oscar Darway | Tombe Tombe | Lillian Mhando IT / Social Media: Stella Muiruri Sales & Marketing / Community Engagement: Abdoulie Jah - jah@mojatu.com Kevin Price - kevin.price@mojatu.com

those of the publishers. Every effort has been made to ensure that the contents of this magazine are accurate but the publisher cannot take responsibility for errors, omissions, nor can we accept responsibility for the advertisements or editorial contributions.

Edwin Ubah - eddy@mojatu.com Accounts: John Gordon - accounts@mojatu.com Admin: Penny Cooper - penny@mojatu.com News & Comments: news@mojatu.com Getting the magazine Online @ www.mojatu.com/magazines Subscription @ £24 per year including postage subs@mojatu.com Address: Mojatu 167 Alfreton Road, Nottingham, NG7 3JR T: 0115 8457 009 | 0751 6962 992 Facebook: www.facebook.com/mojatu Twitter: www.twitter.com/mojatumedia Printers: Mojatu Media

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A WOMAN OF VISION

By Constance Gooding

“A woman of Vision” is how Rev. Tom Stuckey, former Minister of Wesley Methodist Church described her in one of his books. And so she is. Full of passion and energy ref works of serving and helps. Exhibiting clear, purposeful Vision for changing the day to day experiences of vulnerable groups in her Community for the better.

Constance Gooding, now Co-Ordinator of the Globe Luncheon Club for the BAME Senior Citizens in Reading, a work which she has pioneered over for the past four years, began her career of giving care to others, as a Registered Nurse’/ Midwife in Guyana, South America, where she grew up.

Desiring to reach the top of her Profession, do the best for which she was capable, and of course improve her material lot in life, she competed and won a Pan-American Health Organisation and World Health Organisation Scholarship, to pursue Studies in Nursing Education/ Administration, at the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus, Kingston, Jamaica.

This Qualification propelled her from being a first year Ward Sister, to the position and status of Nurse Teacher in the country’s main School of Nursing. From there it can be said that her Pioneering career started. Very soon after, she was chosen to lead a new two-year Nursing Programme, and shortly after replicate it, in the outlying hinterland of Guyana. She later became the Principal Tutor of a non-government Nursing School in the Bauxite Mining Area. It is said by her colleagues, that it was easy to recognise the students who were educated under her tutelage. They carried themselves well, were courteous and kind, passed their exams, and got married before having children.

Coming to England as she tends to tell it, for a rest, she worked at the Battle Hospital, Reading in the Elderly Care Department, as a Staff Nurse, then Ward Sister. As Care in the Community was being rolled out in the late 80s, Constance explains that she could not bear to be a part of giving the low standard of care which was being meted out to the Elderly. She sadly realised that she was a representative of the Hospital Administration, could not at the same time be a true Advocate for the patient. So she resigned her Post as Ward Sister, hoping to work as an Agency Nurse.

She became ill on the day she was due to do her first shift with the Agency. Whilst waiting to have Surgery, she enlisted the help of a young man, and went on the Oxford Road, and surrounding streets,

every Wednesday night to witness about Jesus to anyone who would risk stopping to listen, and invite them in to a very informal Christian meeting, held in the Methodist Church. She looked specially for , Alcoholics, Prostitutes; people who would not normally go to “Church” or be received well in our Churches on any day.

Churches in Reading Drop-in Centre, situated in St. Saviour’s Road/Berkeley Avenue, was birthed, when a group of Homeless men, who at that time slept in nearby Squats, asked for somewhere where they could go to during the day, have a wash, read the Newspapers, play games, listen to the radio , have something to eat. They asked for a Drop-in Centre. They said that there was no God; that if there were a God, then he did not love them, to have them sleeping on the streets, eating food from rubbish bins. Constance vowed to them that within one year, there would be a Drop-in Centre for them. She did not know how that was going to happen. Ten months later, on 31st October 1990, CIRDIC was opened by the then Mayor Robert Dimmick. Constance was the first Manager.

She had managed to gather people around her from most of the Churches, who in turn invited other people to the work, people with the necessary skills. Her very modest home was used to store food.

She supplied the Homeless group with hot cooked food twice a week and on Sundays. Appeared at Church Services and other Events around Reading to publicise the need for volunteers and Finance. Soon a Management Committee was formed, then Charity Status achieved. The rest is History. Constance understood her role as Pioneer of this work.

The emerging phenomenon of homelessness in Reading was a complex one. Who was sleeping on the streets, and why? Which age group was most affected, which gender? Did everyone need a flat or house to live in? Were some in employment? What part was poor Mental Health playing? How many were being seen regularly by their GP? What about family relationships? What was being presented to us, Service Providers?

The Drop-in Centre, in addition to providing warmth, company, clean clothing and a hot meal etc, was a space to assess the needs of individuals, and develop streams of care and intervention. A healing Centre for individuals, at that time presenting with situations of homelessness, which would develop over a period of time. As more and more people were added to the volunteer base, highly skilled and qualified individuals, Constance realised that the time

Berkshire connected to hand over the Manager’s position to someone else had come. That is the Hallmark of Pioneering - starting a work, laying down foundation principles, systems etc, then leave as soon as you can, so that others with perhaps greater skills of Management, would come in, find their place, and further develop the work.

In 1991, Constance had major surgery. Clinical Depression followed, as she could not take most of the post-op medication offered. She deduced that she needed to be attending a Day Centre. At that time there was only one in Reading for outpatients with Mental Health problems, and they were full. She realised that as the roll out of Care in the Community was at its peak, there most certainly were many individuals like her, needing Day Care Services, which were few.. She felt that she had to do something to remedy that situation.

Churches in Reading Women’s Centre, CIRWIC, held at Wesley Methodist Church Hall, three days a week came into being in February 1992.There is where she met Rev. Tom Stuckey, the then Minister of Wesley Methodist Church, and the person who has bestowed on her the greatest accolade she could ever receive from another human being.

At this Centre, emphasis was placed on providing Space, Listening, Storytelling, and the sharing of Skills. Persons attending could turn up at any time, sit wherever they felt comfortable, talk or not speak with anyone, sit and stare if that is what it felt like for them that day. There was always someone available to listen either privately or in the open. Forum for Storytelling, compiling items for the Centre’s Monthly Magazine.

Sitting around just gassing with each other. A Tailor/ Dressmaker served the Centre two full days a week, supporting individuals in the making of simple items of clothing, alterations. Etc. Discussions on Assertiveness. Weekly sale of clothing. Basic Cooking Skills for those who had left the Care System, not having been taught how to cook, and now lived on their own. Making one-pot meals only.

Financial support came from the RBC and individuals.

One day, during a session of Storytelling, an 18 year old girl, asked why it was that she was abused by her parents and thrown out of her home when she told the Authorities? What does God have to say about that?

Constance gave an answer, which she herself was not satisfied with. She reasoned that her response was inadequate, because her Bible knowledge was inadequate. She immediately arranged to attend Bible College, choosing Studies in Christian Education and Church Administration. Training in Christian Counselling through the University of Lampeter, prepared her for work as a telephone adviser with Napac, the Charity which offers services to adults who

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were abused in childhood, and with ParentLine Plus, a Charity which serves parents.

In 2011, Constance sustained a brain injury, which interfered with her memory and vocabulary. At her last consolation with the Psychologist in 2013, when asked what plans she had for the future, he was surprised when she said that she had already paid for a one-day Food Safety and Hygiene Course. That she was preparing to serve refreshments at Church, clear the tables etc. She had not done that before, maybe she would be allowed to do so. In 2015, she changed Church Congregations. In a strange twist, found herself a part of the Globe Church, a place she had not ever desired to be, though she had always hungered for an opportunity to serve her own race.

Settling in for her was not easy. She was hoping that she would be used in the Christian Education Department, teaching young adults 18 -25 years old or new converts. There was nothing. No one knew she was a highly qualified and experienced Bible teacher etc. Just as she was about to be feeling bored out of her mind in the Spring of 2016, she applied for a position of assistant to the Manager of the Globe’s Hospitality Department. To wash dishes, make sandwiches, sweep and mop the kitchen floor, she thought. Seems she failed that interview, as for weeks there was no communication from the Interviewers. She told friends and family that she had failed an interview for washing dishes. How had the Mighty fallen!

It bothered her that she had not been told the outcome of the Interview. Later learnt that that position had been “pulled. “Which made her think that she had better leave that congregation. The Luncheon Club for the BAME Seniors in the Reading Community provides a Service to 40-51 persons, who come from 13 Caribbean territories, Africa and India. They meet for 5 hours one day a week, which is quite inadequate, considering the needs of the BAME Community.

Though a hot nourishing meal is very welcome, what about Talks, Outings, Films, Artwork, Games, Exercise via Dance, Concerts, Transport, Music, Plays, and the special needs of the emerging Alzeihmers population?

At least one other day is currently needed with staff being paid standard wages. Already signals are about that indicate the running of a Day Care facility alongside the Lunch Club. You see, she is even now seeing, planning the further development of Services to the BAME Seniors………Yes, truly a woman of Vision.

During this period of Lockdown, with the majority of Lunch Club attendees being shielded, Constance created a Virtual Luncheon Club via a WhatsApp Forum, through which 18 users communicate 27/7. The

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w degree of loneliness and isolation experienced by this group at this time, allows for this type of unhindered communication. Postings are unlimited, and all sorts of items acceptable. Every day there is a topic for, at times, heated debate.

Some debates go on all day. Participants choose TV shows that they can all watch at the same time. They tend to say “Good morning” and “Good night “to each other, discuss in detail their everyday activities, show what is growing in their garden, what cushions and

curtains have been made etc Birthdays are celebrated.

Someone makes a cake, post it on the Forum.

Users who cannot access the Forum, receive a telephone call at least once a week, from one of our four volunteers to whom they are assigned. Each volunteer has been assigned to four users of the Service.

Food parcels of ambient items are distributed weekly to the homes of 10 users. Information re Take-away and Delivery is available to all.

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How a refugee dinghy became a divisive symbol for hope vs hate

By Laura McCartan

Channel crossings continue being reported almost daily in British news outlets since the start of the summer, and it is impossible not to draw parallels between the rhetoric and situation on the Channel and another migration route, the Aegean sea. I have spent the last year working as part of a search and rescue team on the North Shore of Lesvos, 7km from Turkey and a major route for those fleeing violence and persecution, who must make terrifying journeys on dinghies which are not fit to be at sea. This summer, while many of us have been trapped in our homes, the channel crossings have become a recurring news article, and in some shocking stories, journalists have filmed from boats sailing alongside dinghies without offering rescue.

The death of a Sudanese man in mid-August, whose body was found washed away onto a French beach near Calais, reminds us of the viral image of threeyear-old Alan Kurdi, who drowned off the coast of Turkey, together with his mother and brother, shortly after boarding an unseaworthy dinghy to reach Europe. That tragedy sparked continent-wide outrage and mobilization to support and welcome refugees to Europe. One would think that five years later, European policy-makers would have stepped up and followed through the extensive existing legislation to offer protection and a safe haven to refugees. However, as we can see from the humanitarian situation at the English Channel, this is far from true.

With right wing governments in both Greece and the UK, the pride in pushing boats back and refusing entry to those most in need has become commonplace in media strategies designed to demonise refugees.

While articles surface in the New York Times and countless other outlets showing examples of violent pushbacks, in a Trump-like denial of fact, Kyriakos Mitsotakis claimed all push-back evidence is simply

‘Turkish propaganda.’ At the same time, the UK Home Office chose to release a video blaming ‘activist lawyers’ for allowing refugees to uphold their right to claim asylum and promising to deport all sea arrivals as quickly as possible. It is little surprise then, that on the beaches of both Lesvos and Kent, armed groups greet new arrivals and those there to support them. On social media we see armed fascists in both countries saying things that could never have been imagined five years ago as Europe grieved the loss of a young life who should never have been lost in this way.

It is also five years on that we see most rescue boats firmly docked or impounded, the will to save lives at sea still remains, but with serious criminal charges facing those who rescue.

As we write this, the crew of Mare Liberum have been harassed, arrested and had mobile devices seized, the Maersk Etienne remains afloat with 27 refugees, several of whom have tried to commit suicide, and even the hope brought by the Louise Michel is hard to grasp due to the death toll on their first mission. This week, a list of ‘criminal NGOS’, most of whom are not present on Lesvos have been announced by the Greek government, and a facing serious threat of violence for their lifesaving work. The situation seems bleak.

What remains is the hope that groups can monitor the situation on both shores and record human rights violations, used to hold governments to account.

While the UK government attempts to deport as many asylum seekers as possible before they leave the EU, small charities work even harder to support them with access to their basic rights. Fascists on the beaches continue to be met with protests by those who do not want a hostile environment, and who see a future for the United Kingdom as a safe and welcoming country for those forced to flee their own.

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BLACK HISTORY MONTH ACTIVITIES

By Stella Muiruri

organisations have collated a list of activities and events that are taking place in Nottinghamshire. Below are some of the listed activities so far: Monday 19 October and Thursday 29 October, 2pm – 3pm – What is in a Name? Celebrating Black Identity and Culture presented by the Nottingham University Business School. Are you an African or African Caribbean UoN Student or Young Person in Year 3 to Year 9 in a Nottinghamshire School? This event will inspire your creativity and deepen your understanding of identity and culture. Are you an African or African Caribbean UoN Student or Young Person in Year 3 to Year 9 in a Nottinghamshire School? This event will inspire your creativity and deepen your understanding of identity and culture. Sign Up Via Eventbrite: https:// bit.ly/3kIrM1D The annual anniversary celebrating the global achievements of the African diaspora is here once again. Has it ever crossed your mind how the proposal of the day occurred? Well, I decided to further educate myself on the history and found that the initiator of what is now known as ‘Black History Month’, was a Harvard graduate historian by the name of Carter G. Woodson. The story began in 1915, just 50 years after the 13th amendment was implemented, where Woodson, along-side minister Jesse E. Moorland, founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH), which was ‘dedicated to researching and promoting achievements by black Americans and other peoples of African descent.’

In 1926 a ‘national Negro History week’ was shortly birthed, choosing the second week of February (In the United States of America) to correspond with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln (a vocal opponent of slavery) and Frederick Douglass (an escaped slave who became a prominent activist).

The Nottingham University Business School celebrates Black History Month with the ‘Name’ Challenge, which is a widening participation and civic engagement initiative. The ‘name’ challenge aims to help young African and African Caribbean people to deepen their understanding of identity and culture as they explore the origin and meaning of their names. Through research and sharing of name stories, the young people will ‘own’ their names and take joy and pride in their meaning.

The challenge is an opportunity for participants to share about their heritage, to learn from each other and to build more confident individuals who are respectful and tolerant of each other’s cultures. Award vouchers will be given to the best presentations in three categories: Key Stage 2 (Year 3 - Year 6), Key Stage 3 (Year 7 – Year 9), and University of Nottingham Students.

This event encouraged communities and schools nationwide to organize local celebrations, launch history clubs and host performances and lectures.

It was not until 50 years later in 1976 that the 38th President of the United States of America Gerald Ford, decided to officially recognize Black History Month, which has been recognised worldwide and celebrated in the United Kingdom in the month of October.

Nottingham Trent University (NTU) have planned a special season of events and activities not just in October, but throughout this whole academic year, #BHM365 to celebrate the important black historical figures who helped make Britain what it is today.

NTU recognises that the Black history experience is not limited to one month each year and have made a commitment to work year-round to host a programme of events, resources and campaigns to help create a more equal future for everyone.

I am sure we have all participated in some sort of ‘Black history Month’ event or activity growing up. If you have not, do not panic, we have got you covered! Mojatu, in collaboration with institutions in Nottingham such as University of Nottingham (UoN), Nottingham Trent University (NTU) and other Black community

From film screenings and reading and writing workshops, to samba drumming and music talks, there will be something for everyone to enjoy and participate in. To participate in different NTU #BLM activities, please visit this link: https://rb.gy/yyenwf

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THE DEATH OF MERCY BAGUMA CALLS FOR RADICAL CHANGES TO THE UK’S ASYLUM SYSTEM By Holly Barrow On 22nd August, Mercy Baguma, a 34 year old asylum seeker, was found dead in her flat in Glasgow with her malnourished baby son crying next to her. While the cause of Mercy’s death is currently under investigation - with no confirmation as of yet that this was due to starvation - the harrowing circumstances surrounding this tragedy have sparked renewed pressure to end a key component of the government’s hostile environment policy - the No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) condition.

Mercy had recently become jobless - in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic - after her leave to remain in the UK expired. She was reportedly undergoing the process of claiming asylum however asylum seekers in the UK are unable to undertake paid work while their claim is being processed and must rely on a meagre weekly allowance of £37.75. This payment is intended to cover all daily essentials - from food to toiletries and clothing. As a result, Mercy is believed to have been living in extreme poverty in the weeks leading up to her death and had sought help from Scottish charity Positive Action, confiding in them that she didn’t “have enough money to look after herself or her child”.

She had similarly received the support of African Challenge Scotland in July, as the organisation published a video via their social media of Mercy gratefully accepting a much-needed food parcel. While it has not yet been confirmed that the cause of Mercy’s death was due to her destitute circumstances, her tragic case speaks to an urgent need for the government to eradicate needless hurdles and such scant support for those seeking asylum.

The UK’s asylum system has long provoked criticism and calls for change from immigration lawyers, migrant charities and campaigners alike. Destitution among asylum seekers is rife and this devastatingly comes as no surprise given the restrictions and delays often endured by these individuals throughout the asylum process.

Countless reports published by researchers, thinktanks and organisations have demonstrated a desperate need for reforms to the asylum system, with so many vulnerable individuals falling through the cracks. This is largely as a result of the No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) condition which prohibits asylum seekers from accessing statutory homelessness assistance and most welfare benefits, including Universal Credit and child tax credits, as well as presenting significant barriers when it comes to accessing free healthcare and housing.

A report carried out in 2017 by Refugee Action found that, despite the Home Office having a duty to ensure that those who require support while waiting on a decision for their asylum claim do not fall into destitution and homelessness, many who seek support from the charity are living on the street or haven’t eaten properly for weeks. Barriers to accessing asylum support play a significant role in this, with many wrongly denied assistance or being made to wait unnecessarily long periods of time before receiving financial support.

The charity found that less than half of applications for emergency support that they assisted with were granted on initial application - however, after appealing these refusals, 92% were granted, often with no change in the applicant’s material situation.

This demonstrates quite how frequently those who are actually eligible for support are initially refused until challenged: what happens to those who are unaware that they can challenge such refusals or who cannot access legal support?

To add insult to injury, leading politicians seem entirely unaware of the far-reaching repercussions of their own policies. In May, Prime Minister Boris Johnson made clear just how little he truly understands his government’s No Recourse to Public Funds condition, after insisting during a committee meeting that ‘people who have worked hard for this country and who live and work here should have support of one kind or another’.

He was corrected by Labour MP Stephen Timms who informed him that, as a matter of fact, thousands of those who have been granted leave to remain in the UK are subjected to the NRPF condition, preventing them from accessing key financial support both in normal circumstances and throughout the duration of the pandemic.

This same level of ignorance was only further displayed by the Minister for Work and Pensions, Therese Coffey, in an interview with SkyNews commentator Kay Burley following Mercy Baguma’s death. Despite being explicitly encouraged to offer her condolences and sympathise with Mercy’s tragic case, Coffey repeatedly insisted that ‘there are ways’ for those in circumstances such as Mercy’s to ‘access that help.’

Only, this demonstrably isn’t the case. The government assistance referred to by Coffey is that which is referenced within Refugee Action’s 2017 research, which found that applications for emergency (section 98) support were incorrectly refused on a regular basis.

Berkshire connected To suggest that those in destitute circumstances will receive urgent support simply upon completing an application is wilfully misleading.

Such rhetoric feeds into the widespread misconception that asylum seekers in the UK somehow have an easy ride, with far-right groups such as Britain First recently storming hotels which are temporarily housing refugees awaiting permanent accommodation during the pandemic.

The misrepresentation of asylum support by leading politicians inevitably contributes to the myth that those seeking asylum are provided with an abundance of assistance and need only complete an application form in order to receive this.

The reality, however, paints a different picture, with asylum seekers going months with non-payment of funds, facing barriers to health care, housing and employment, and having no entitlement to benefits.

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How can we expect the public to recognise the fundamental inhumanity at the core of the asylum system when the Prime Minister himself demonstrates a critical lack of awareness towards the difficulties faced by migrants and asylum seekers in the UK and the Minister of the Department for Work and Pensions refuses to acknowledge that delays and unnecessary refusals of assistance sees many asylum seekers plunged into destitution?

This misinformed narrative must end and measures must be taken to ensure that asylum seekers are provided with the urgent support they so desperately require.

Holly Barrow is a political correspondent for the Immigration Advice Service; a leading immigration law firm which provides free legal advice to those seeking asylum

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How institutional racism is affecting black asylum seekers: A Testimony By Ophelie Lawson Paul is from Congo RDC. He came to Greece on the 7th July 2019, fleeing persecution in his country. He has been living in the island of Lesvos for 14 months waiting for his asylum to be granted. After two initial rejections, Paul is making a last appeal on his case.

In this testimony, Paul speaks up about his experience as a Black asylum seeker in Greece, and more specifically inside the old notorious Moria camp in Lesvos. He talks of the racism he experiences, the unfair and inequal access to support services available to him due to racial profiling and share of his experience of the Greek asylum system and Greek culture.

Paul: I came to Greece, Lesvos, 14 months ago. In one month, it will be 15 months.

I had to flee a political situation which I was trapped in.

This is why I escaped to come here and ask for asylum.

To come here, I had to go through Turkey. It wasn’t easy there. Now that I am here, none of my rights as an asylum seeker are respected. Here it seems as if the laws to protect asylum seekers change every week, always in our disfavour. Our conditions are inhumane in every aspect: sanitary, hygiene, living conditions, and accomodation. The asylum procedure and paperwork is extremely slow. It’s hard to accept. Everything we tell seems to be hard to accept by people, our reality, our stories, everything we are living now and everything we went through. I had two rejections for my asylum claims.

In the camp, we were overcrowded. The camp was made for 3,000 people and at one point we were 20,000 people. There was too much disturbance, too much hostility between communities. Rapes, thefts, crimes, fights, all because of the horrible conditions in which we were forced to live.

What did you hope for when you crossed the Mediteranean sea asking for safety here in Europe?

When I arrived in Europe I had no dreams but an objective: regaining my rights which were violated back in my country. I wanted to be protected and to continue living a normal life, just like I used to back home before everything happened. I led a normal life, I had my routine, and went about my business freely. I did not leave my country because I wanted to, I lived well with my family there. Europe has never been an Eldorado for me, it is because of the political situations of my country that I came here to ask for protection

and I was forced to leave all of my family behind.

Like everybody else I had dreams for the future, now it is as simple as wanting to live in peace, it is the lack of peace in my life back home that made me escape.

I didn’t have security, or protection, my life was in permanent danger, all because of our dictatorial regime which is the reason many of our citizen rights are often violated. I want to work again, contribute to society, give more to the future generation, be part of making the world flourish. Because even if my current situation tells me otherwise, I know that I still have some things to give to the world. We are always called to leave good traces behind us for other people to survive, and one day I would like to find my family if possible, and help people in similar situations like the ones I am going through today. Being an activist is perhaps my new dream, help the voice of the voiceless be heard, support the weak, the abandoned, fight for racial equality, nations, ethnicities. Fighting for justice and against injustice too, because those difficult roads, these difficult moments that I went through made me understand how hard this life can be. But I trust that there will be a change in the days to come, because I know that every man is good by nature but it is society that makes them bad.

Can you tell us about your experience as a Black asylum seekers ?

Since the first day that I arrived at that camp I felt a lot of discrimination. While we were checking in with the police, I was among the first to enter but when we started the registration I was number 22. During food distribution, it was even worse, other communities such as Afghans, Syrians, Iraqis were able to have endless supplies of meals but for Black people this was restricted and our food was carefully measured. This was not the case for the other communities not. In the row if you get noticed you are severely punished.

Inside the camp, the African communities are always targeted by other communities. Many times we were attacked by Afghan communities that terrorised us with knives to steal our phones. If you resist you can lose your life, and there is no hope or expectations that the police would ever intervene.

I was personally attacked twice. I did not try to resist and just handed over my phone. In this year alone 4 Black people lost their lives because of phones. They tried to resist and defend themselves, so they got stabbed on the spot. Hemorrhages were caused by the wounds

Berkshire connected and they lost their lives, some in the hospital, some w where the incident happened. And this happened just many times. Other communities are more privileged than the Black communities on many different aspects.

Once I seeked medical assistance and requested a medical examination due to a continuous discomfort I was feeling because I was tortured in my country. I asked for a brain scan and ultrasound for abdominal pain, but only received a few pain relief tablets, that’s it. An Afghan friend of mine who had suffered a traffic accident back in his country also went to seek medical assistance, he explained his case and was quickly transferred to the hospital for scans.

Here at the camp we had areas where we could connect to the internet for free. After 8:00 p.m, in these areas you could not find any Black people because it was so dangerous for us. And about all these treatments, crimes and discriminations that I just spoke about, there are times when you could even see the person who stole your phone or another article and you cannot inform the police because it can cost you your life and the police also do absolutely nothing in such situations, so apart from discriminatory racism we also lived continuously feeling unsafe.

There is a lack of lasting support for Black refugee communities which is firstly part of racism and discrimination, secondly there’s a lot of irony. All the countries of Europe, where people ask for asylum, know the political realities of our countries, they know about the corruption of our authorities, dictatorship, insecurity, war and organized crime, the persecution, kidnapping, corruption, exploitation of man by man, ethnic and tribal conflict, a flow of armed groups in every nook and cranny of the country.

But it is a system that must continue because they [Europe] do not want us to escape this cycle of abuse in order for people in Europe to continue taking what they need from us. I see their strategy is to ensure that the Black community continues to be mistreated so it does not benefit from its goods and wealth. Because once we awaken and start claiming our rights, once united no one could stop the Black community.

Here [Lesvos] it’s not at all easy because I have no support or outside help, this is because of discrimination, racism and inhumane treatment. There are some of my brothers from the same community who help me to have food and drink because I don’t even dare to go to the “food line”. There I am exposed to all kinds of danger, the police see in plain sight how we, the Black community, are mistreated and they do absolutely nothing to protect us. Some months ago, a Cameroonian was stabbed by an Afghan, his only crime was being in the wrong place and finding himself in a

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misunderstanding. We get very very little support.

Have you ever thought of going back to Africa?

I am never tempted to return to Africa because I know that my life is still in danger, and apart from my country I have never experienced another country. With all that I have lived through, the stress, fear, trauma and torture, I cannot find a way to return there. I make the effort to be informed almost every day and the news that I receive in all four corners of my continent is always the same; war, crimes, assassinations, attack of armed groups, political problems which never have solutions, insecurities etc. In my own country there are more than 150 unidentified armed groups which are terrorising the population daily, looting, spreading violence, persecution, destroying sometimes entire villages. There are always sensitive images circulating on social networks, it does not give me the courage to one day try to return to Africa.

Many of us Black people who are single men here, we suffer a lot from injustices and insults followed by discrimination. Often others benefit from it [this racist system]. I also volunteered for the food line distribution role but it was not easy for me. Because of the threats and discrimination I was to forced to give up to avoid bringing unnecessary trouble. Inside the camp the major community is always in charge. We hardly receive drinking water. I bought it with the 90 € that we received monthly, it is in this way that I have survived.

mojatu.com

12 Community

READING WEST LIFE DEVELOPMENT

By Pastor Trevor Thomas

Reading West Life Development has become a real asset to the wider community of Reading providing community discussion for all. Covid-19 has proved itself to be an obstacle to community social interaction with its strong emphasis on social distancing. However, it has also given birth to new means of reaching out and connecting to others around us that we could not imagine possible a mere 6 months ago.

Today Zoom conference meetings have become almost as simple as picking up the phone or sending a text message.

Tough Questions. These will allow community member to discuss in a safe environment questions related to worldview, ethics, and morality such as ‘Is There a God?’ ‘What Happens When We Die?’ and ‘If God Exists, Why is There Suffering?’

Life Development will also partner with Community Health Education for Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, and Surrey to provide health education classes for the wider community.

It is in this environment that Reading West wanted to reach out to the wider community of Reading. As the Pastor of Reading West it has long been my belief that the nature of the programmes presented within the walls of the church were of such a high quality that the wider community would be benefitted by them.

Outside of our online community programmes Reading West is strongly involved in the wider community of Reading with a youth football team and youth discussion groups.

However, the four walls of a physical location meant that community members would have to travel to and from their homes which is not always convenient or easy to do.

Zoom has allowed us to make these programmes easily accessible to all and as convenient as clicking a button on your phone or notebook. Our first community wide presentation was in June this year on the subject of a ‘Matter of Conscience’ giving us insight into the challenges of being an objector to war and violence.

Since then we have had presentations on ‘Boosting Your Immunity,’ ‘Covid 19 & Social Stigma,’ ‘Mental Health First Aid Training,’ and ‘Be Kind to Yourself,’ during July and August.

Reviewing the presentations with the Life Development Core Team we recognised that we wanted to continue these discussion group meetings as they provided a wide range of interesting topics that community members could identify and engage with thereby breaking the chains of social isolation and providing a means of making new friends with members of the wider community.

In addition, we noticed that participants from the wide diversity of society express faith perspectives while discussing these topics of physical, mental, and emotional health and well-being.

It is with that in mind that Life Development now aims to make a second monthly presentation titled

Community Health Education leader Mufalo will be making an initial presentation in September with ‘Know Your Numbers’ and following up with a series of 8 presentations titled New Start.

Our youth football team was started two years ago and even throughout Covid-19 has been active playing both home and away matches. The team manager Mr Thomas Ondieki takes great pride in the team who play enthusiastically and have risen to almost top place in their division. Thomas commented that these teenage boys enjoy the physical activity and grow in personal maturity as the socialise together.

The Reading West youth discussion groups also provide and arena for young people and young adults to discussion relevant personal, relational, and social issues affecting their lives. The youth team including Angelina, Alex, Jewel, and Neil, coordinate these programme and can be contacted via my email address (tthomas@secadventist.org.uk). These discussions allow young people and young adults to share their views, listens to the opinions of others and develop a strong network of friends.

The core leadership team at Reading West would like to make special mention and give thanks to certain community leaders who have both encouraged and supported Life Development from its inception to the place we are today. These include Victor Koroma from ACRE and Cecily Mwaniki & Esther Onduso.

The Life Development core team consists of Andrew Singo, David Aboagye, and Michael Oppong-Mensah, and I am very pleased to be working alongside such committed and dedicated team members who are passionate about community well-being.

It is because of this passion that the Life Development Team recognise that one of the greatest needs of our community is social interaction and it is with

Berkshire connected this in mind that we aim to provide a number of new Friendship Groups where small groups of community members can discuss topics that are important and relevant to them. The purpose of these Friendship Groups is to create a ‘family’ of friends that we can share life experiences with.

If you would like to join one of the Friendship Groups,

Community

please contact me at the email address above.

Life Development are interested in making contact with well-meaning groups within the community of Reading and from the wide range of ethnic and cultural diversity. Lastly, we would like to thank the editors of this magazine for the opportunity to tell our story and to reach out to all its readers.

SOUTHAMPTON GRASS ROOT INFLUENCERS. We are a community group based in Hampshire, Southampton.

Our aim is to bring women in Hampshire together and share in social and cultural events by building a strong community, which will provide the all women with opportunity to share their culture within the community.

Our mission is to embrace/adapt to the British culture, to teach our children to embrace values, sense of belonging, self-esteem for the young ones, and the wider family background.

Under the same umbrella, we have a sisterhood group which empowers women and inspires our young girls to never doubt that they are valuable and powerful. We believe there is no limit to what we can accomplish and deserving of every chance and opportunity in the world to pursue and achieve our dreams.

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14 Covid-19 Work

TIME TO RELAX, RESET AND REFOCUS DURING LOCKDOWN

By Mary Gatu

Year 2020 is a period of time that humanity at large has experienced extreme difficulties that have impacted us in all aspects of our livelihood: Spiritually, Emotionally, Physically, Financially and Socially, Spiritually- Generally, Most people find comfort and get support from their faith communities, but during lockdown while many may have thrived by maximising their serene moments and appreciation of less busyness, others may have struggled to stay positive and to continue encouraging themselves to stay afloat, loneliness and limited support from their loved ones, may have left many questioning their faith.

Personally Lockdown was a time that meant spending more quality time meditating about my spiritual journey and time with family too, and as a result my roots of faith have grown deeper to enable me withstand storms of life ahead of me. We have also grown in love and care for one another drastically as a family unit.

Emotionally, since we are relational beings, we tend to desire acknowledgement and acceptance from others.

We all gravitate towards expressing love and receiving love, this notion creates in us emotions that fuel our dreams and aspirations. During lockdown it meant that majority of people missed this booster that helps nurture their emotional wellbeing. Personally, this time, I am grateful because I had my children living with me and it was a time that we used to strengthen our family bonds. It was a time we told stories, cooked together, shared memories, prayed and praised God together.

We all have grown in our relationships to a great extent.

Physically- We can’t underestimate the importance of our physical wellbeing. While most people often struggle with their physical health, during Lockdown it was a reality to such individuals with limited mobility and less Human connection and that grieved my heart during lockdown.

Personally during lockdown, I was able to do indoor activities including exercise, deep cleaning and tidying up my home, and when we were allowed to exercise again, I appreciated the fact that I could go out for walks and jogging regularly. With this daily routine, I often felt energetic and enjoyed being outdoors admiring the beautiful nature and creation and Meditatively absorbing the fresh air and energy that nature gives to us daily.

Financially- This lockdown effects were most felt by people who lost jobs or businesses it must have been undoubtably stressful for such individuals.

A great struggle trying to make ends meet. Though the government did fairy well to support people as much as possible, it wasn’t a smooth sailing

for everyone. Personally- I was able to continue working from home. This was a blessing in disguise because I was also able to home-school my kids.

The following quotation is from the bible and it’s a good reminder that the creator of this universe is still in control of his creation without any doubt. And no matter how tough life may become, God has promised that he will never leave us or forsake us. Let us not lose faith and we shall rise above every obstacle along the was of this journey of life.

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”

Romans 8:28 -Holy Bible In conclusion I have learnt that the most important things in life are , good health, sufficient food and drink, a home to live and good relationships.

Berkshire connected

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BEING BLACK AND PREGNANT DURING COVID -19 – HOW CAN I PROTECT MYSELF AND MY BABY?

By Akeisha Robinsony

At the height of the COVID 19 pandemic it became evident that men and women of a Black, Asian and minority ethnic background were much more vulnerable to the effects of the Covid 19 virus. There is no one reason as to why this is the case, however what is known is that it is multifactorial and depends very much on factors such as a person’s health at the time they contract the virus, how likely they are to access healthcare, their medical history, living conditions and any pre-existing co morbidities such as obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes.

Later on, emerging data provided from The UK Obstetric Surveillance System (UKOSS) investigating data from the cases of 427 pregnant women who tested positive for Covid 19 between March – April 2020, found that of these pregnant women who tested positive for Covid 19, 56% were from a Black and other ethnic minority groups (UKOSS, 2020).

These stark findings when placed alongside the backdrop of the MBRACCE report which showed that Black women were five times more likely than their white counterparts to die during childbirth, prompted a national drive to address this issue (MBRACCE, 2019).

At the Maternity Unit at the Royal Berkshire Hospital we are working towards increasing the support and surveillance offered to pregnant women from a Black, Asian and minority ethnic background. As we enter flu season and we prepare for a second wave of the virus we want you to know three things: Firstly please follow the government guidance on handwashing, social distancing and wearing facial coverings. These simple steps will ensure that you reduce your levels of exposure to Covid 19.

Please ensure you are taking a Vitamin D supplement or Pregnancy Supplements. Vitamin D will not stop you contracting Covid 19 but there is some evidence which links Vitamin D deficiency with increased vulnerability to respiratory infections. As Covid 19 is a respiratory illness it is therefore vital that you try to protect yourself as much as possible by increasing the levels of Vitamin D in your body. You will get some Vitamin D from the sun but as winter approaches it is vital that you take a supplement. Please speak with your midwife about this if you have not been advised to take a Vitamin D supplement in your pregnancy.

Finally and most importantly please contact the maternity unit if you feel unwell or are worried about yourself, your baby, or your baby’s movements. We will advise you on the next steps to take. Do not leave it until the next day.

We currently have a big challenge to tailor our services to best support the needs of our black women, but we cannot change these services without your input. We would love to hear your experiences of maternity services and know of any ways we could improve. Contact Akeisha.robinson@royalberkshire.nhs.uk with your thoughts and ideas.

Keep safe!

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THE UNFIT NIGERIAN: Revising the role of Nigerian Diaspora in post-COVID-19 Nation Building By Johnson Mavalla It is no secret that the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has exposed the weaknesses of policies, systems and governments globally.

There are Nigerians in almost every country on earth, with big communities in the United States, United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Italy, Canada, China and many other countries. The Nigerian diaspora continues to grow rapidly. Due to their achievements in various disciplines, the remittance into Nigeria continues to be one of the highest in Africa.

and it continues to grow.

The COVID-19 pandemic has sent waves of fear and uncertainty across all ages, backgrounds, nations, businesses, and systems. To the keen observer, it’s evident that COVID-19 is more than the health crisis it is flagged to be.

The ripple impact of COVID-19 has stung economies, healthcare systems, the livelihood of millions across the globe. It also threatens disruption of democratic systems in countries with nascent democracies where the pandemic and fears have disrupted elections during this period of lockdown, ushering in the increased likelihood of violence and political instability.

The pandemic has brought out the best and worst of Nigeria and Nigerians. We have seen decisive leadership in some states as well as questionable actions in some others, including tactless policies, recklessness and obtuse remarks made. Many have also been inspired by the courage and sacrifices of our heroic healthcare workers. However, there were also those who capitalised on the lockdown to rob their fellow countrymen.

As the lockdown starts to ease globally, and as Nigeria begins her long journey to ‘normalcy’, the true impact of this pandemic will gradually become clearer. The adverse impact on the economy will be felt by Nigerian families and will be worse still for the vulnerable ones long after the lockdowns and curfews are lifted.

The pinch will be felt, and the pinch will be real.

Governments will be left with no choice but to explore creative ways of increasing revenue. For example, Sadiq Khan, the London Mayor, recently increased the congestion charge to drive into London to£15 (N8,250 - abokiFX). Nigeria, like every country, would have to explore options to set the economy on course. The government’s handling of the pandemic is a discourse for another time.

Their role and importance to their country of origin cannot be ignored in areas of human development, democracy, peacebuilding, and economic development. The PWC Strength from Abroad 2019 report reveals that, Nigerian “...migrant remittances translate to 83% of the Federal Government budget”

While the role of Nigerians in the diaspora cannot be overemphasised, there have been sentiments (read about the brain drain syndrome) that their migration suddenly strips them of their ‘Nigerian-ness’, thereby declaring them unfit, so to speak.

I believe Nigerians abroad hold very patriotic ties to the motherland and we have a significant role to play in nation-building.

Berkshire connected The Nigerians abroad pump into the economy over $25 billion year in, year out. This continues to grow and over the next few years is projected to be well beyond $34 billion (N13,209,000,000,000.00 – abokiFX).

Beyond the funds, the role of diaspora in shaping the world view of Nigeria cannot be overstated.

One of Nigeria’s best exports to the world is the skill contribution on many fronts. Take Jelani Aliyu (Designed Chevrolet volt, electric car), Dr. Achelefu(designer of the cancer-seeing glasses) Kamaru Usman (UFC champion), Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche (famed awardwinningwriter), John Boyega (mega film-star), Emmanuel Ohuabunwa (at 22 became first black person to graduate top of his class at John Hopkins and topped result that year) and Anthony Oluwafemi Joshua (two-time unified heavyweight champion) to name a few.

The diaspora youth must recognize their integral role in nation-building as ambassadors in shaping Nigeria’s global PR. Coronavirus has shaken things up globally, and as the dust settles, it is imperative that Nigerians wherever they may be should come out of this current global experience with an energised passion and a single-minded focus to rebuild our nation.

In closing, those of us lucky enough to have survived this pandemic that has claimed the lives of many should walk away with a heightened sense of purpose. This purpose must be rooted in pride and respect for ourselves and our nation. Personally, I have recommitted myself to the following steps that I believe every Nigerian in the diaspora, irrespective of class or location can use as a means to contribute his or her quota in nation-building: 1. Continue to be an exemplary ambassador of Nigeria and continue to add value wherever I find myself - some of us will be in the unique position of being the only Nigerian someone, somewhere will ever come across. What opinion of Nigeria will you leave them with?

2. Continue to be proud of my roots and heritage.

Another thing this pandemic has exposed is the shortcomings in the leadership of some of the most ‘developed’ countries. Nowhere is perfect. So, we can all proudly commit to furthering our motherland in our little way.

3. Stay in close contact with the family. While money and help is important, we all need to love and be loved.

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4. Mentor someone.

5. Be your brother’s keeper: help by supporting, in resources, information and in any way that meets another brother’s (or sister’s) needs.

6. Support NGOs and organizations working to improve the health and welfare conditions of Nigerians.

7. Invest. Invest. Invest. One of the quickest ways to secure our tomorrows and develop the country’s economy is being vigilant to opportunities opening up and making the most of them.

Thanks for taking a peep through this window into my mind. Until next time!

Nagode.

Peace, Kako Johnson Mavalla

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18 Covid-19 Work

MY QUARANTINE

By Kathy Githinji had no idea what was going on.

All I heard was’ CORONAVIRUS IS A DANGEROUS VIRSUS’ ‘SCHOOLS ARE GONNA BE SHUT DOWN’. Of course, my first reaction to hear that school is off was ‘yess no school. I was so wrong.

Hi, my name is Kathy, I’m 11 years old. As we are all aware about coronavirus. It changed everything as we had to go to a lockdown for a few months. School was off and everyone was bored and scared at home. Now I want to tell you all about how my lockdown went.

So, when lockdown was announced I was in the middle of year 6 and I

The first two weeks of lockdown were fun. I stayed home went on my phone and played with my brother.

But when it got to three to four weeks in, I was so bored. I was doing home-schooling and It really help me not fall behind my schoolwork.

Although we did do some interesting activities like painting and drawing it was still very boring being at home all the time, not seeing my friends and going out for activities. There was one thing Luckily, a few days later the government said that students in year 1 and year 6 needed `to go

back to school.

I was incredibly happy, and school was fine. I was a bit worried about going secondary because of lots of things like {SATS} but I didn’t let them stop me from finishing Primary school.

So around the last week of July I finally finished primary school. My friends and I planned a small leavers party {we were socially distancing and were at a park} and that’s was it.

I was off to YR 7 Starting secondary school knowing that I won’t know what set I’m in, due to not doing STATS, and that I didn’t know whether I would make friends or not was scary .But now I’m soo happy that I went because I have made so many lovely friends. Know it’s my third week at my school and I already feel soo comfortable.

Little Things Mean A Lot

By Annice Thomas I live on a road with many elderly people. During lockdown I felt a yearning to be proactive and to do something positive for my elderly neighbours.

I received a call from my elderly neighbour who said she had hurt her leg and could not get out, she gave me the details to collect her prescription. This became a weekly occurrence for two of my neighbours.

On a Friday I would regularly bake bread and on a Saturday, I decided to wrap 4 pieces of bread and deliver them to each of my elderly neighbours.

I wrote my name, address and mobile number on a card and dropped it through their letterbox.

I said I was available to collect their prescriptions from the chemist and offered to buy basic food for them such as milk, bread and eggs.

The bread was gratefully received and the conversations developed as I stood 2 metres safely away on their driveway.

During the summer I grew potatoes and onions in my garden. When I dug them up there was far too much than I could manage so I made 20 bags and delivered them

to my neighbours. Again, this gave way to discussions and neighbourly friendships started to develop.

I have been blessed by my neighbours and the sacrifice on my part has been minimal.

I have been rewarded by their strength and their courage through this difficult pandemic.

I would encourage everyone to choose one neighbour on your road to befriend.

You do not have to give a lot of your time as what is most important is that you are committed and consistent in giving 15 minutes or an hour a week.

It has been my experience in the most meaningful way that little things mean a lot.

Berkshire connected

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UTULIVU GIVING TREE

By Lorna Obure

One of the greatest highlights of Christmas Day for any child is ripping open a wrapped present from under the Christmas tree. This act of gift-giving at Christmas originated from the biggest present God gave the world – His son Jesus Christ. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life.”

The birth of Jesus on Christmas saw the Three Wise Kings bring Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

This act of giving is believed to bring good fortune in the year to come. The gesture of acquiring, preparing and bestowing something of value to friends and family is a tradition that has been honoured and practiced all over the world for thousands of years during Christmas. Nothing melts my heart more on a Christmas morning than seeing the huge smiles on my children’s faces as they unwrap their carefully wrapped gifts. However, there are many who are less fortunate and unable to celebrate the festivities.

distribute them to these children and families.

This Giving Tree initiative has been running for 10 years in Reading and has been very successful. Last year, Utulivu managed to donate 50 gifts to these children.

This year we hope to help many more.

Below is some of the feedback Utulivu has received: “I cannot express just how much the Giving Tree makes a difference each year to my family. I would otherwise not be able to give them a gift as I can’t afford to buy my children one.” (Mum of two) “This is the best Christmas gift I have ever received.

Utulivu, you’ve made my year. Thank you so much.” – Imani O. “These gifts have changed my child’s Christmas. I was under a lot of stress and anxiety wondering whether my child would have a gift to open for Christmas as finances are so tight this year.

Utulivu Women’s Group in conjunction with Reading Connect have been running an initiative to help combat this issue. They run the “Christmas Giving Tree Appeal.” This initiative aims to ensure that these children get a present they want on Christmas Day thanks to the generous donations from well-wishers and businesses of the local community. Esther Oenga, Trustee at Utulivu Women’s Group said, “the Giving Tree Appeal makes a big difference to the children, many of whim would not have a present to unwrap on Christmas Day.”

This donation means so much to us as not only does he have a gift for Christmas, but he has the gift he has been eyeing for months. Thank you so much Utulivu.

Seeing his smile as he opened his gift is the best Christmas I could have asked for.”

How Does It Work?

Utulivu would like to thank all the well-wishers, donors and volunteers who’ve worked tirelessly to put a smile on a child’s face and make this initiative a success.

As we prepare to launch this year’s Christmas Giving Tree, we would like to appeal to more well wishers to participate in this initiative and help us to reach out to even more children and make their Christmas amazing.

1. Utulivu provides their Giving Tree gift lists to Connect Reading. Utulivu works with vulnerable and less fortunate members of the community and can identify and provide children who would benefit from this initiative.

2. The children are provided a budget of £25 to select a gift of their choice from local shops, high street or online.

3. Connect Reading uses this list to write and distribute tags to local firms and donors including the name and age of the child.

4. These tags are then sent, and they are bought for the children who then return them back to Connect Reading.

5. Utulivu volunteers then collect the gifts and

The Giving Tree has captured the hearts and minds of the people of Reading. Their generosity has made a world of difference to the lives of many disadvantaged children in Reading over the years. It has made these children feel special and cared for.

If anyone would be interested in finding out more or how they can be involved, please contact Utulivu Women’s Group using the details below: Utulivu Women's Group T: +447828307997 M: +447828307997 E: info@utulivu.co.uk W: http://utulivu.co.uk

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20 Health & Food

Mental Health In The Black Communities

By Mercy Njoki Mwaniki Mugo

In the UK, those who identify as Black/ African/Caribbean or Black British make up 3% of the total UK population. Despite our underrepresentation in the population we are highly overrepresented in the mental health sector in comparison to our White and other Ethnic Minority counterparts. In comparison to the admission average in the UK, the admission of Black people is up to six times greater.

With so many contributing factors to our unfortunate reality, I really do believe that the influence that culture has is major yet out of all the contributing factors it has the simplest solution as it lies within our mindset and changes through eradicating what is false and educating ourselves on what is true. In this short blog post, I aim to explore the influence the Black AfroCaribbean culture has.

I would also like to add that while I have taken time to research more on this sensitive topic, I’ve also made use of my own personal opinions during this discussion.

Important Facts and Figures.

Before I delve into the main point of this blog post, I thought I would share some important information that gives reason as to why these discussions are important.

While these facts and figures have a lot to do with the unfair treatment of Black people in the UK by the institutions that govern us, I still do believe that they are relevant to this topic as they still need to be discussed.

Afro-Caribbean people are up to five times more likely to be diagnosed and admitted into the hospital for schizophrenia in comparison to any other group (Race Equality Foundation).

diagnosed as psychotic (Institute of Race Relations).

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) revealed that between 2011 and 2012 the proportion of Black/Black British people given Community Treat Orders (CTOs) was five times greater than the proportion of Black/ Black British people in the general population (Institute of Race Relations).

There is a huge cultural stigma around discussing mental health within the Black community, almost as if the term “mental health” is going to reveal depressing and negative thoughts. It’s important that we, first of all, emphasise that mental health is a person’s condition with regard to their psychological and emotional wellbeing and so discussions can bring up almost anything.

Today I could be on top of the world and tomorrow I may be all alone in my thoughts feeling not so good. It’s important we express these emotions with each other so that we continue to build and improve our community.

I personally believe that for my generation speaking about mental health is much easier and will be much easier for generations to come in comparison to my parent’s generation and generations before them.

However, it’s never too late for all of us to educate each other as a way to build and improve relationships between generations. The idea of learning, evaluating, and changing attitudes towards sensitive topics such as mental health has been my motivation to write this post.

How is Culture Acting as a Barrier?

Detention rates under the Mental Health Act during 2017/2018 were four times great for Black/Black British groups in comparison to their White counterparts (Mental Health Foundation).

The influence culture has on this issue is huge.

Coming from an African background, I find that the many of those in my parent’s generation and those in generations before can only understand the term “mental illness” to somebody whose life is completely wrecked and has now lost their ability to be “normal” and so the idea of being depressed, anxious and so on cannot exist as an issue in our mental health. This misconstrued perception on both mental illness and mental health only means that when discussions do come up, to suggest that your mental health may not be where it should be, becomes an insult to yourself and to your family. I’m lucky to have parents who work in the community and so understand a bit more on this matter but for many of my peers, this is their unfortunate reality.

Research in 2013 indicated that Black people detained under mental health legislation are 29% more likely to be forcibly restrained than White patients. Black people are 50% more likely to be placed into seclusion and

I also find that a lot of parents believe that issues such as mental health only exist in other communities. I’ve also noticed that even those who work in the mental health sector to some degree, leave their career at the door

The risk of psychosis in the Black Caribbean community is nearly seven times higher than their White counterparts (Mental Health Foundation).

Rates of depression are reportedly much higher amongst Black and Minority Ethnic communities than for White communities (Mental Health Foundation).

Berkshire connected of their household. What I mean by is that they believe issues in mental health only exist in their workplace and could never exist in their home. This ideology creates a space where children become uncomfortable with the idea of seeking support from their family and this creates greater issues in the relationship children have with their family.

Another issue culture brings when it comes to discussions on mental health is the idea that success cannot bring mental illness. Have you ever heard someone in your family say “you’ve been given everything you need for a good life and so you shouldn’t feel this way”. This mindset is severely damaging. We need to understand that material gains may physically support us but that is not enough to ensure that mentally we are well.

Our successes can be severely draining especially when we fail to consider how our path to success may impact our mental health. It’s also important to note that perceptions of life challenges are different for all types of people and so what I perceive to be a roadblock may seem like a walk in the park for another person. We shouldn’t invalidate each other’s personal experiences but rather empathise and support each other through our journeys. Sometimes we fail to enjoy our success because of the journey that came with it and so mental health discussions in these areas of our lives are vital because we begin to explore stored up emotions and improve our state of mind.

While the culture of the Afro-Caribbean community is beautiful I do believe that some aspects have resulted into families failing to accept reality. A lot of our parents have not addressed their own mentally challenging moments during their path to success.

Think about it, coming to the UK with nothing, trying to keep one step ahead of the Home Office and working hard to ensure you and your family are ok is not easy and may have been a traumatising experience and though they may be ok now, it’s important that they explore and express these emotions, especially with those who went through similar journeys to be as successful as they are today. This normalises feelings and enables us to filter out the negative emotions that came with hard work.

The final cultural barrier I want to discuss is the idea that anything that happens stays in the home. This could be because there is a fear of accepting reality or revealing family secrets.

While I do believe that not everything has to be shared, I’ve found this idea can trap you in a state of

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negativity. Imagine if you cannot talk to your family members about your mental health and you’re also being discouraged from seeking professional help. This factor is one of the main reasons why we see less of our community accessing mental health services and so needs to be a factor that requires re-evaluating in order to ensure each and every one of us has a great support system behind us.

So What Can We Do to Reduce the Negative Influence Culture May Have on Discussions?

Educate.

Education on both mental health and mental illness and how it is impacting the Black community is the first and most important step required to ensure change is possible. A lack of education on this matter can lead to ignorance and we can already see that with many people who refuse to believe that this topic is a big issue. The best and simplest way to educate ourselves and each other is through reading up on statistics as these provide a clear breakdown of the topic.

It’s also important that we share this with our family and friends. For some people, the only way for them to take this topic seriously is through facts and figures, so we must do our best to ensure we all have access to these resources Here are a few useful sites: The Mental Health Foundation: https://rb.gy/da4cld BME Groups- Dudley & Walsall: https://rb.gy/7msynr Institute of Race Relations: https://rb.gy/rkmtar Eradicate.

While our culture is beautiful, there are aspects and cultural mindsets that we most definitely need to eradicate, and this is ok. By removing negative aspects, we grow into a new and improved community.

This change starts with yourself. Are there any views you have on mental health that may be dangerous to yourself? or to family and friends?

Ask yourself these important questions, evaluate your answers, and make the necessary changes. The change then moves onto your family, friends, and community.

How can we improve relationships? How can we spread the message? Once these questions have been answered we can all evaluate our answers and make necessary changes together.

Today’s post was not in any way trying to crush the community I was brought up and live in but has aimed to highlight an important matter as a means to bring positive change. It’s my hope that this post has shown that.

Wishing you all the best,

mojatu.com

22 Health & Food

Managing Anxiety and Depression in time of Difficulties.

By Anthony Oscar Darway.

No pain, no gain!

In the 19 century, a German philosopher by the name of Friedrich Nietzsche created this all-time famous aphorism which has been translated into many languages and become one of the dominance maxims of selfmotivation and strength in the English-speaking world; “out of life’s school of war—what doesn’t kill me, makes me stronger.” Out of the life’s school of war which is our experience, that which doesn’t kill us, make us stronger right? th

From our relentless efforts to get the best education that money can buy for ourselves and our children, with the hope of getting the best paying job when we are done, to physical fitness that help us to burn body fat and avoid illness, as well as to the pursuit of those endeavours we put our heads and hearts into, and many, many more, you name them. It’s believed that if we take the hits, we will end up building our stamina to withstand difficulties and become prosperous. “No pain, no gain,” the statement goes.

Anything which doesn’t kills you, makes you stronger. But if that was the case, why do many people fail to withstand adversity when they are faced with the reality?

The answer is, maintaining your stamina to withstand difficulties it’s not that easy, if you don’t have a reason or prepare yourself to do so, it has nothing to do with your effort and desire to be recognise by other through your achievement, it’s about you and nothing more. If it was that easy, we all will be strong and unbreakable after going through a phrase of life testing situation.

The Covid19 pandemic is a good example.

A philosophy professor at the University of Glasgow by the name of Michael Brady once explained that when Nietzsche said in his aphorism that which doesn’t kill us, make us all stronger, he “does not seem to think that all suffering will result in strength, but rather that he is suggesting one should take suffering as an opportunity to build personal strength, and that those who are already strong are those who can do so” easily and others have to learn to do so. Jonathan Dollimore, the author of Death Desire and Loss in Western Culture English portrays the practise of human beings embracing pains and discomfort as an opportunity to gain strength, as “magical, cannibalistic ingestion.”

Most times when we are confronted with complex incidents which falls beyond our control, as in the case of the corona-virus pandemic which has disrupt the livelihood of many of us across the world, our life and feeling goes through a five-stage process which include; denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and finally acceptance. As we are aware, even though we are concern about our future and the future of our loved ones during this difficult time, we are now coming to terms with the situation and the aftermath as the ‘new reality’.

Those people who were already designed to be strong by nature and capable were easily able to embrace the difficulty and discomfort brought about by the corona-virus, the Darwinism “survival of the fittest.” On the other hand, it will take many of us time and encouragement before gaining strength and come to term with the new reality. As humans, we should be aware that it’s inevitable for us to go through these experiences

of been pull in various directions by external forces, whether it’s the result of nature's gravity or an ongoing crisis. This is what makes life a mere tries, without the assurance when our hour will be up.

How Anxiety made me see the World.

In 1990, when I was around 10 years old, I inevitably came to terms with my first recognised new reality, and ever since my life has been through numerous phrases of what I described as new realities. Whenever I’m confronted with any of these new realities, as we are currently undergoing a phrase of global new reality, I try as much as I can to focus on the fact that being human comes with many limitations, and accept that anything which is beyond my power is a human limitation set out by nature and trigger by a circumstance and try to find a way to adapt myself to the situation.

What I’m sharing with you is a little trigger of some of those new realities which formed part of the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle found in my ‘life hack mental toolbox.’

The reservoir of experience and knowledge which has become the model upon which my life is built and usually helps me to navigate the rough current of life’s inevitable challenges which I periodically face, as we all are facing this global challenge brought about by the corona-virus. As everything in nature is made in pairs, I’m convinced that whatever situation we faced, there is something positive that we can learn, even from our bad experiences. If we decide to take our time to understand the incident without perceiving it at first glance as a mountain, we might be able to

Berkshire connected work out a plan that might work in our advantage in the long run.

bill. I’ll also bring you some food on my return.” He said.

On one unforgettable day in March 1991, at the pick of the Liberian civil war, when I was yet a child and almost at the point of death due to the impact of an illness that have been dragging on for years, my father made a decision which changed the cause of my history and laid the foundation for the current life which I’m living today. Whether it was his original plan or part of my destiny design

by God, I would honestly confess that I’m still here today because of that extraordinary decision.

Ever since that occurrence, whenever I’m confronted with a life challenging situation, I will use my mental scale to compare the impact of the current situation to similar situations which I already have in my mental ‘burden bag.’

If it happens that I’ve experience something worser than what I’m undergoing at the moment, I’ll put aside the anxiety and confront the condition with a positive mindset “like a man, like a real man.” But if the new challenge is heavier than anything that I’ve ever been through, I’ll first of all take a neutral position to try to understand it better by creating hypotheses which will help me to see the dim light of hope beyond the obstacle.

“Tony, who will take care of me when you are gone?” I asked.

“…It was barely a week since my admission at the Segbwema government hospital in the beginning of March 1991, when it happened. Dad woke me up that early morning with the surprising news of his intention to return to Liberia, as he once did while we were in Mobai where I was first admitted at the local clinic when we entered the country few months earlier.

“Oscar, wake up, I’ve to return to Liberia today so that I can try for some money to pay your hospital

“I’ve spoken with the people here at the hospital to look after you until I’m back.”

“But Tony, you know I can’t wash my clothes, Solomon and Naomi aren’t here to help me, what will I do when my clothes get dirty while you are away?”

“Son, don’t worry yourself, I will be back within a week to wash your clothes.”

“Tony, you just want to leave me here alone, you still have the money which the UNDP man gave to us when we were coming, why can’t you use it to pay the bill and buy us food?” I confront him.

“It’s the money that we’ve been using for our feeding over the past few days we are here and the balance isn’t enough to pay your bill or feed us anymore. I’m not going to stay long; I’ll be coming back soon enough to look after you...”

In the end, that’s how I failed to stop him from leaving me in the hospital, not even after I’d cried my eyes out, even though I thought at first that he might be joking. But from the look on his face and the responses I got to my inquest, it seemed that he was already on his toes before breaking the news of his departure, and there was nothing that I could say or do to dissuade him from making his expedition.

Beside the entrance door of the long hall which comprises the male ward where I was admitted, his few belongings were already packed in a little bundle and placed against the door post and ready for pickup. We had barely ended the conversation when I saw him on his feet; walked toward the door

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23

and picked up the bundle and opened it to leave. I quickly sat up on the edge of the bed with my feet touching the floor and started to gazed at him. My little Vono bed which was big enough for a single person was the first bed on the right roll from the entrance door. The ward was filed with two columns of those little beds with the main passage in the middle and little space in between the rolls for easy movement.

My heart started pounding rapidly as I envisioned the situation which I was going to be in until his return.

Our eyes met and he looked at me in a way that suggested that he wanted me to escort him to the door. I got up on my feet and started to usher him outside the quarter. We both walked through the corridor where we usually hold our morning devotion before catching the few concrete steps leading to the path that he was going to use to exit the hospital compound.

When we had left the presence of the other residents at the ward, we walked silently along the footpath for a while before I could halt the escort and stood in the middle of the road and started watching his back as he left for Liberia, after he had say his farewell to me which receive no response. He went on to reassure me that he wasn’t going for long. However, I felt abandoned and betrayed as I continued to look in his direction until he became a dwarf and varnished in the distance. I took a deep breath, looked up at the blue sky before slowly turning around and started to head back for the block in order to face the reality of me taking care of myself in his absence.

However, to be on high alert for someone or something that you weren’t fully assured will come to pass isn’t an easy undertaking. I turned my weeping and longing

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24 Health & Food into anxiety, as I speculate the full length of the trip, the same kind which took us nearly three days before we could reached the country when we first left our home, with hours turning into day and days into weeks and weeks becoming months, as I continued to pile up my used clothes which he would clean as soon as he’s back. All these activities and my other interactions with people in the hospital were happening at the backdrop of threats from a deadly disease and menace from a crunching civil war, which was now obvious to encroach the whole country.

But after such a long anticipation, I was surprised and heartbroken, since he never shows up anymore, neither send me a message to explain why he has delayed.

Nothing of such and that forced me to change my perspective about his return since I now believed that his promise of coming back to take care of me and pay my hospital bill was of a shallow impression. They were like words from my fatherly Christ who’ll surely come, but in time infinite…

A Lesson from the Pass.

From an early age, my life has always been smeared with some form of misfortune or challenges right into the present day, but I tried to see the positive aspect of every situation. For example; I manage to use my status as refugee in a foreign country to send myself to school at the time when life and death was like the flip of a coin, something which I wouldn’t have achieve if I was peacefully in my home country and with my biological family due to my background.

For many years, I’ve been longing to visit the UK from Sweden, but being postponing the visit due to me not wanting to leave my comfort zone. But when my relationship

broke up and my ex-wife manage to unlawfully took my only child away during her aspiration to become a single mother which will qualify her to get child support from the government, instead of me to continue dwelling on the situation or engaging her in an never-ending court battle for child custody, I came to terms that it was time for me to make my trip to the UK because that which was holding me down, has forcefully been broken.

I have a mindset of what I describe as “me shouldering my own world without trying to depend on anyone else for assistance.” I’ve always tried to avoid falling prey to cynicism, bitterness, or self-pity. I deal with what life gives to me.

I take responsibility of my action and avoid the ‘blame game’ of pointing finger at someone or something else for any mishaps which I incur. I only use my story as a means to empower, educate and motivate others who might believe they are at the lowest level of their lives.

We all have a history, but sadly there are people who for one reason or the other aren’t proud of their history or able to convey their story. I came to understand that the best way for us to identify our strength and weakness can easily be achievable by narratively knowing who we truly are.

Nobody knows your story better than yourself. So if you take a closer look at yourself and manage to identify some of your hidden strength and work on building them to work better for you, I can guarantee that you will discover new meaning or reason to excel under any circumstance, even during this Covid19 era.

As I’ve learned over the years, the

real defeat that anyone could suffer usually starts with their mental state of being and not merely by pressure from an outside force.

From the above passage about me and my dad, you will discover that even though the act of me stomaching the thought that my Dad wanted to abandoned me in the hospital was the last thing that I could ever imagine and try my known tricks to stop him from leaving.

Eventually when I realise it was time for me to stand my ground as the reality unfolds, I started to encourage myself. The first thing that I did was to stopped daydreaming about him and the situation which I wasn’t able to change, and start working on plans that will bring me back to the world of reality through self-consolation.

This is how I describe that moment of transformation; “…I went on to put on a brave face with my head high above my shoulders so that those around me will know that without him or his help, I would still be able to make it on my own, yet bearing in mind that my action in such critical time will have an impact on my treatment and physical wellbeing, which was the reason of me been hospitalise.

In my effort to help myself to get cure from the disease, I try to forget my father, forget my mother, forget my siblings and other relatives who have always been part of my life right onto the time of the trip to Sierra Leone, and started to focus on how to survive in a foreign country where the government was now in a full-scale war with the rebels…”

In conclusion to this narrative, I will leave you with these questions; what is your response when someone hurt you, do you keep grudge and dwell on the bitterness

Berkshire connected for days and week or even years or allow yourself to easily forgive and forget and move on? When things don’t happen the way you expect it to happen in a disgraceful way, do you blame someone else, blame yourself or take responsibility and move on? Remember, taking responsibility for your action is different from blaming yourself.

Your answer to these questions can help determine your mental strength to endure pressure in time of a life challenging situation like the Covid-19 pandemic, as I once did when my dad left me in a foreign land to fend for myself when I was barely ten years old.

Don’t panic, stay focus because nothing in this world is permanent, everything is here for just a brief moment, even our very existence is not here forever, therefore, build on your divine strength and join force with others likeminded people and fight a just cause against Covid19 and any other difficulties that life might throws at you.

Passage is from the “Wailing from the Bleeding Nations series”, a political trilogy about the Liberian and Sierra Leonean civil wars of the 1990s and early 2000s.

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26 Health & Food

Men & Mental Health

By Tombe Tombe

One in four people in the UK have experienced mental illness.

Going through mental illness is bad enough but often, for almost two thirds of people with mental health problems, the stigma and discrimination experienced is as bad the symptoms of their condition.

Admitting you have mental health problems and seeking help may be as hard as dealing with the problem itself. People need to know and understand that mental illness is more common than people may know and that looking down on or brushing it under the carpet makes the situation worse. I will be focusing on men's mental health, as it carries the most social stigma and men are more likely to feel uncomfortable discussing or admitting mental illness. Sometimes, you may not even know that you are experiencing mental illness, but you feel as though something is just not right.

You may be feeling more emotional, more lethargic, less sociable and you might stop wanting to do activities you usually enjoy. You may also feel agitated or find it hard to concentrate at work. This is understandably hard to deal, with people looking fine on the outside but unwell mentally.

Whatever it is, mental illness affects everyone differently, even though there may be similarities in symptoms. The stigma of mental illness can be

so overwhelming that men self-medicate with illicit drugs and alcohol just to manage. This short-term solution, of course, hurts in the long run, often leading to more substance abuse to numb the body and mind, leading to more problems.

Mental illness can unfortunately lead to extreme measures just to end the mental torture. Suicide in men is three times that of women in the UK. The highest suicide rate is in men between the age of 45 to 49 and is unfortunately increasing. Reasons can range from sustained mental illness over years and years or suffering a nervous breakdown from a sudden traumatic event.

We have to remember though, that something trivial to one person can be life changing to another suffering from mental illness. It can affect men from all walks of life. From the poor to the wealthy, from the 'average' man to famous actors and royalty.

Even the 'toughest' of men, from professional fighters to soldiers are not immune. I just want to let men know that whatever you are suffering from, whether it be anxiety, depression, bipolar, schizophrenia, stress or any other mental illness, there is hope, there is help.

Don't suffer alone. It may be even harder in these coronavirus times but it's ok to talk to someone.

Maybe a family member, partner or friend. If you don't feel comfortable with that, talk to your GP or just google 'mental health illness help'. Things can and will get better. Thank you for your time.

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28 Education & Career

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IMPORTANCE OF GIRLS EDUCATION By Lillian Mhando According to UNESCO there estimated 130 million girls between the ages of 6 and 17 are out of school.

15 million primary School aged girls will likely never enter a classroom in their lifetime. This was taken in 9 July 2018. It breaks my heart so much to know that this kind of behaviour and injustice is still existing in this time.

read or write because I have not been to school all this times, I was working as a house girl. The same year my boss whom I was working for decided to reward me for my hardworking which was to take me to school and not just a school to start primary no! She wanted me to start SECONDARY SCHOO (Year7).

When I started year 7 without knowing reading or writing, it seemed impossible but, because I was so much hungry with Education, I persevered and gradually thing started to change. In two years time, I was able to read, write, do national exams and even knowing why I was in school. I have to say. It is remarkable that, through faith and hope that I had for a better future I defied the odds.

With no formal primary education, I managed to obtain a Secondary Education and become a graduate and associate member of the Association of Business Executives. In 2018 I managed to publish a book called the ‘’THE BOX OF THE COVENANT’’. I am now continuing to pursue other aspirations making sure that I give back to the community what I was given (Education)

I was born and grew up in Africa, in a beautiful country called Tanzania. A country that any child will wish to grow, because it has so much to offer, from the morning when you wake up the big trees and flowers that you see outside they gives you dream, peace, hope and assurance that one day I will be able to grow and become like that big tree or flourish and blossom like that flowers.

But what the country has to offer it will much depend on which community, society or family that you are coming from, do they see the opportunity that the country has to offer and if they see it do they believe in it?

In 1990 I was 7 years old it was the time when I was supposed to join primary school, but I was told that I cannot join school because how to handle house chores so that when I get married I will be good wife.

As young as I was it pained me so much and at that point of time, I realised that the dreams, aspirations and hope that I had of becoming someone significant in the future was taken away, completely ripped away from me.

Do not underestimate the power of hungry girl: There are so many reasons to why girls are denied education, and one of them is the fact that they say, girls are not capable and not cleaver enough to go to school, but this is the big lie, it is a propaganda that does not have any truth in it. I will prove it in the following paragraph: In 2003 I turned 19 years old but still, I wasn’t able to

Why is so Significant to give Education to Girls.

There proverb which says ‘’ if you educate a boy, we educate one person. If we educate a girl, we educate a family, and whole nation. By giving a girl an access to education, you are ensuring the future of her children because you know that she will take her children to school as well, because she knows the importance of Education.

When you give girls education you are basically rescuing their dreams and their lives. Since they will be in School, they will escape early marriage so as early pregnancy which causes lot of death to girls in so many developing countries. Girls who received education they are more aware of what is happening in their community and so it can be easy for them to involve themselves in bringing positive change in the community or the society they are.

When you educate girls, you give them confidence which can help them to be able to participate in Economic, political and social discussions, and in decision making which can leads in promoting productivity and effective government. Girls are so quick in picking things and doing them very well. If a girl want, something, she will move mountains to make sure that, she gets what she wants. Girls have an extraordinary power within them, if they use it well, they are unstoppable.

My message to every Country, Society, Community and families, if we want this World to be a better place for everyone let’s come together and give Education to girls because it will change so many things.

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