“My mother was a musician, she was a classically trained pianist… she turned to jazz… My dad was from West Africa, Gambia, and he studied economics.
I went to school in Leeds and that was very difficult as myself and my brother were the only people of colour… My headmaster used to make me wash my hands every morning before joining the other children in the classroom. At the time, I didn’t really know anything about race, racism…
It wasn’t until I was about 15 … that I experienced walking the whole length of a particular diverse street in Leeds without being called nigger, blackie, wog. I learnt to read situations so when I went somewhere, I could quickly assess whether it was safe for not… I read some people’s intentions by reading facial expressions, gestures and body language. It got me out of many a potential difficult situation.
We were extremely poor… we went to live in the mining village for a while after getting evicted for adopting a stray dog. I loved Maths and English, but left school at 15 without any qualifications. I was able put food on the table. I started work at 6am in a woollen mill. Later I worked as a petrol pump attendant, then as a sewing machinist, sewing pockets on an assembly line. And at one time I was banging heads on brushes in Batty’s Brush Works… I had lots of jobs like that.
I returned to learning as a mature student in my twenties. I took a CSE, then went on an Access course. All the Black people sat on one side of the room and all the white people sat on the other. I moved in between both groups. This was in the ‘80s. I thought ‘Hmm, that’s interesting’. That became a topic of my studies in biography, race, identity, communication and conflict. This led to a career in conflict resolution and mediation. I was later awarded a British Academy scholarship to study for my doctorate at the University of Wales, Lampeter.
As a response to the COVID-19 crisis, I set-up Diversitree.Wales, a virtual gallery and website which incorporates my images and soundscapes as a celebration of our local Welsh environment.”
“Cerddor oedd fy mam, pianydd wedi’i hyfforddi’n glasurol... fe wnaeth hi droi i jazz... un o Orllewin Affrica, o’r Gambia, oedd fy nhad, ac fe astudiodd economeg.
Fe es i’r ysgol yn Leeds ac roedd hynny’n anodd iawn gan mai fi a fy mrawd oedd yr unig bobl croenliw... Arferai’r prifathro wneud imi olchi fy nwylo bob bore cyn ymuno â’r plant eraill yn yr ystafell ddosbarth. Ar y pryd, wyddwn i fawr ddim am hil, hiliaeth…
Dim nes oeddwn i’n tua 15... dyna oedd y tro cyntaf imi gerdded hyd un stryd amrywiol yn Leeds heb gael fy ngalw’n nigger, blackie, wog. Roeddwn i wedi dysgu darllen sefyllfaoedd, fel fy mod yn gallu mynd i mewn i ystafell ac asesu’n gyflym iawn a oedd hi’n ddiogel yno ai peidio... fe allwn i ddarllen mesur ysgwyddau pobl neu’r ffordd roedden nhw’n troi eu pennau, iaith pob rhan o’r corff
Roedden ni’n ofnadwy o dlawd... aethon ni i fyw mewn pentref mwyngloddio am gyfnod ar ôl cael ein troi allan am fabwysiadu ci crwydr. Roeddwn i’n dwli ar Fathemateg a Saesneg, ond gadael yr ysgol yn 15 heb unrhyw gymwysterau wnes i. Roeddwn i’n gallu rhoi bwyd ar y bwrdd. Fe ddechreuais weithio am 6yb mewn melin wlân. Wedyn, bues yn gweithio fel cynorthwyydd pwmp petrol, yna fel gwniadreg, yn gwnïo pocedi ar linell gynhyrchu. Ac ar un adeg, bues yn gweithio’n taro pennau ar frwsys yn ffatri Batty’s Brush Works… Fe gefais i lawer o swyddi fel yna.
Fe wnes i ddychwelyd i ddysgu fel myfyriwr aeddfed yn fy ugeiniau. Fe astudiais y CSE ac wedyn cwrs mynediad. Roedd y bobl Duon i gyd yn eistedd ar un ochr i’r ystafell a’r bobl wynion ar yr ochr arall. Fe symudais i rhwng y ddau grŵp. Yn yr 80au roedd hyn. Meddyliais, ‘Hmm, dyna ddiddorol’. A dyna oedd pwnc fy astudiaethau mewn bywgraffiadau, hil, cyfathrebu a gwrthdaro. Arweiniodd hyn at yrfa mewn datrys gwrthdaro a chyfryngu. Fe ges i ysgoloriaeth gan yr Academi Brydeinig yn ddiweddarach, i astudio ar gyfer fy noethuriaeth ym Mhrifysgol Cymru Llambed.
Mewn ymateb i’r argyfwng COVID-19 fe wnes i sefydlu Diversitree.Wales, oriel rithiol a gwefan sy’n cynnwys fy lluniau a seinweddau sy’n dathlu ein hamgylchedd Cymreig lleol."