As a child, Daisy Aiken didn’t think consciously of race. She did know, however, that she was ‘different’ – as one of the few non-white people in her school.
26-year-old Daisy grew up in Stirling, Scotland, and says there was ‘maybe a handful’ of Black or Asian children in her primary or secondary schools.
‘I got my hair touched a lot,’ says Daisy, adding that people would ‘ask [her] where [she] was from all the time’ despite the fact she’d lived in the same town since she was a baby.
Microaggressions like this were common, with Daisy telling Metro.co.uk: ‘I went to the doctors with my mum one time – and her my little brother are both white, because I have a different dad from my brother – and the doctor kept was asking my mum if she was my childminder.
‘I didn’t really think about it at the time. But now I’m older, it seems like such a blatantly stupid things to say.’
Daisy says her mum, Shona, was ‘really determined to make me aware of my heritage and all of the things I need to know. She didn’t want me to be unaware of where I came from.’
That involved everything from ensuring her daughter’s afro hair was cared for correctly, to having difficult conversations with her about the civil rights movement or stop and search policies.
She fought for Daisy after an incident with an exam board, where they came to her school and took pictures of the students, having them sign waivers (with the kids assuming pictures might be used for textbooks or similar).
As teacher, Daisy’s mum noticed her daughter’s face on a training document about how to integrate newly emigrated students into the UK.
‘My mum found me on it, and they’d blown a picture of me and my friend who’s Asian,’ says Daisy, whose mum helped her see why that was wrong and how to stand up for herself if similar things happened in future. ‘They’d blown up our pictures and put it on a double page spread, but they never asked for permission to use it for that.’
From not being able to find foundation in her shade to noticing that plasters did’t match her skin tone, Daisy says: ‘It’s really little things, but they all kind of just add up over time.
‘And then when you’re an adult, you have the perspective to look back on it and you see how race filters into so many things that you hadn’t really considered before.’
Although Daisy is ‘fiercely proud’ of being Scottish, she knows that – like many countries – there are issues with race.
She’d always been active on social media and in her own circles, talking about things she’d faced and about wider social problems, but says that lockdown and the climate around race relations at the moment spurred her on to do more.
She says: ‘Recently, I felt like I was kind of screaming into the void and just posting on my Facebook, when there’s only a few people that actually have me as a Facebook friend. Like, how many people’s mind are you going to possibly change?
‘I think probably being so stuck in the house this year – and also all we’ve all been able to do is just watch how unjust the world seems right now. That’s really pushed me to be like “well I shouldn’t be being quiet when I have so much to say”.’
Despite being wary of ‘taking the mic away from someone who had more important things to say’, Daisy was able to find her voice and realise that – particularly in Scotland, and even more so in a small place like Stirling – what she had to say was vital.
In the wake of the police killing of George Floyd, Daisy first spoke at a rally in Stirling where she read out the names of those who’d been killed by police brutality, and BAME healthcare workers who had died in the pandemic.
Organisers had ensured there were crosses on the ground denoting space, masks were worn, and hand sanitiser was given out to protest attendees to keep everybody safe on what Daisy said was ‘really, really powerful’ and ‘an emotional day.’
From there, Daisy went on to speak at a later protest in Stirling and another in Dundee, sharing a blog post she’d written with thousands of people who’d turned up in support for Black lives.
‘I felt really obliged to be there and to be a present for Stirling and to speak when I was asked,’ says Daisy.
‘I just felt like it was it was a privilege that I couldn’t turn down.’
That’s not to say that she didn’t feel nervous standing in front of all those people. In fact, she says she ‘felt like she was going to throw up’ – which may be why the Dundee organiser only sprung on her that she’d be speaking at the last minute.
The response was incredible, however, and Daisy next appeared in a painting in her hometown of Stirling as part of the Black Lives Matter Mural Trail across Scotland.
Her artist friend Jade Addison painted a picture of Daisy – as well as others who’d taken part in rallies and awareness raising – that had pride of place in the city centre.
‘I pure felt like a celebrity,’ says Daisy.
‘Jade did such a beautiful job. It was stunning. And I think it was the perfect tone at the perfect time.
‘Because they were so bright, so you can’t really walk past them and ignore them. You had to stop and read what they had to say.’
This turbulent period during lockdown has been something of a blessing in disguise for helping people to find community and strengthen bonds with those they hold dear.
That’s what’s happened with Daisy, who’s started a DJ series called Mixed Heritage with friend Liam René, centering Black artists in the dance industry, and a podcast alongside her friend Josh Kilimangaro and a small group of other Black, mixed race, and minority ethnic people.
They speak about current affairs, but have also touched on deeper topics that help them work through their own experiences with racism.
‘A lot of us have really similar experiences with being the only person of colour in a predominantly white space,’ says Daisy. ‘So it’s our aim is to be a touch point for other people of our generation who have had similar experiences, and have grown up in mostly white areas without a Black community.’
That community is what Daisy says has kept her head above water recently, offering people she can talk to after seeing the many atrocities happening throughout the world.
She says: ‘What I’m noticing is a lot of people that I’m friends with that I’ve never really had to have a conversation with about it are so outspoken – and not in a way where they’re shouting over anyone, but just in a way that I really really appreciated seeing.
‘People are just done, like they’re tired and they’re sick of seeing the world unfair and unequal. It has been quite refreshing to see so many of my white peers speaking out about racism.’
Change can never happen overnight, and in the country’s capitals as well as in smaller towns and villages it will take time to achieve true equality.
‘Personally, I feel like I’m barely scratching the surface,’ says Daisy.
‘But I do feel a lot more positive than I that’s about it. Even though there’s not that much change to feel positive about, I feel a lot more positive than I did even a year or two ago.
‘I think that there’ll be a lot of tiny changes that may eventually make life easier for like the next generation.’
While Daisy emphasises that she’s ‘definitely not saying anything new,’ adding, ‘my experience is an experience that was shaped by the people that came before me,’ she’s managed to become the catalyst of one of these tiny (in her mind) changes, so that hopefully no child will grow up feeling ‘different’ in future.
Proud Of What We're Made Of
This article is part of our weekly series, Proud Of What We’re Made Of, celebrating inspirational women with powerful stories.
Each Wednesday we’ll share the story of a woman who’s overcome challenges to achieve something amazing. You can read every Proud Of What We’re Made Of article here.
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source https://metro.co.uk/2020/11/18/meet-the-woman-talking-at-black-lives-matter-rallies-in-scotland-13455261/
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