I’ve lived in England all of my life. Like most British-born ethnic minorities, this is the only home I’ve ever known, but sometimes it doesn’t feel like it. Between having to identify as Black British on official documents and people asking where I’m "really" from, I’ve become aware that ‘British’ isn’t all I am. Initially, I hated this idea - I didn’t want to be thought of as ‘other’ - but looking at myself as Black British - as having two identities - has made me think about who I really am.
I’m British but I’m Nigerian. I’m Grace, but also Ibidolapo. Balancing my Nigerian heritage and my British nationality is something I’ve done for as long as I can remember. While friends went on holidays to Tenerife, I was in Lagos shuttling between the city and the village. I told classmates about the heat, the beach, and my cousins, but left out the bucket baths, 6am alarms for church and the ever-failing electricity supply. I was self-conscious about having an upbringing that was different to my friends. I wanted to fit in, and having Nigerian parents made it impossible to do that.
I grew up in.
I first met my grandmother in 2007. She’d lived in Somalia her entire life and, at aged 70, moved to the UK to live with us. She was Somali through and through. Somali was the only language she spoke and the only culture she’d been immersed in for nearly three quarters of a century. An absolute contrast to my melting pot of conflicting ideals and mismatched customs.
My grandparents probably never imagined that a grandchild of theirs would grow up in England and struggle with their native tongue. At my age my parents never imagined they would live in the UK today. But that’s what happened and a significant lesson I have learned from the past generations of my family is to live and love the circumstances life throws at me. Check out the gallery of my favourite pictures from some of our family albums.
IN THIS HEIRLOOM: 'MY FAMILY AND I' SERIES OUR CREATIVES SHARE PERSONAL INSIGHTS INTO THEIR LIVES. GRACE EXPLORES HER DUAL HERITAGE AND CULTURAL EXPERIENCES BORN AS A BRIT WITH NIGERIAN HERITAGE
by GRACE SHUTTI
MY FAMILY AND i:
1ST GENERATION BRIT