By Catia da Nova
I wasn’t sure if I would like to talk about this matter. After the death of George Floyd, the world’s focus is on America again. Racism and black lives are back in the news. This is a difficult topic to discuss. It hurt to grow up in Brazil, in a country where 80% of the population are of African descent. Racism in Brazil is, I believe, camouflaged, whereas in America it is out there – everyone knows where it’s at. Of course I’m not saying that is the right way, that’s just how it is.
My mum was a teacher and my dad was a policeman. I grew up with my mum constantly telling my brother and I that because you are black, you always will be watched wherever you go.
It is not easy to have this stress on top of everything else in life. I had a few occasions when I suffered from racism during my life, but when you are young, sometimes you don’t take it too seriously. The first incident I remember was when I went to visit my granny during the summer, back in the 1980’s. I was with my cousins, going to a carnival at the time, and we were walking in a street where there were lots people going to a club. I said to them, “We can go there’’, and my cousin said ‘’No we can’t’’. I couldn’t believe it, we were not able to get into the club because of our skin colour, in much the same way as you once couldn’t get into a club because your jeans were ripped!
For many hundreds of years, black people have suffered racial and social inequality – going right back to colonial times.
We had Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, Bob Marley in his music. The fight and the pain is deeper than we can imagine. Countries such as the USA, Brazil, England and France all have their own problems in relation to racism. In these countries, the battle to find a solution is far from at an end.
Since I came to Ireland over 19 years ago, it seems the character of racism has changed. It is no longer only black people who feel the effects. I think in Ireland, it’s time for people to learn to accept all varieties of humankind. Racism here is more evident towards Travellers and immigrants. While the subjects are different, the consequences are the same. It is well known that immigrants are mostly in lower-paid jobs.
I came to Ireland with no English and for me it was very important to learn the language. This was probably because my Mum always told me, ‘’You need to try to do your best, you will always be watched’’. Being a black woman and an immigrant meant I always felt the need to get involved with the local community, to improve my English and to get to know my neighbours. I think Ireland, compared to other countries, has a chance to avoid making the mistakes which have led to the kind of headlines that we have seen in recent weeks. People of all races need to get to know each other, to know each other’s culture, to understand each other’s background and to understand that all lives matter! Nobody is born to be a racist, it is something that is learned. Tolerance and education will go a long way towards stamping it out!
