Shaah and Sheeko
‘Members apart of the Shaah and Sheeko program posing for a pic’
Intergenerational Research Project with Elders
Walking into an African home is like being transported into a world which was left but never forgotten, and always having the feeling of being neither here nor there. Parents’ minds are always back home. It’s as though they have never left.
However long they have been away, their values, beliefs and culture are based on the African traditions they grew up with. These are embedded in every aspect of their lives. For some it’s the only way of life.
The youth from these homes walk out into a world that teaches the opposite to everything their traditions say. Many young individuals become trapped into living double lives so they can be accepted and fit into both worlds.
Every generation had and still has their own version of modern Africa. Just look through old photos of parents; look at their style, hair and music. Youth create their own youth culture – even our parents didn’t stick to traditional norms.
They expressed themselves by adapting with the world through films, music and travelling. There is also the transitional stage where people start leaning towards their traditions to hold on to their African heritage.
A safe space for elders to connect share ideas, dreams and hopes for the future. This also a space where we want to gather stories and challenges they faced as elders since coming to the UK. We hope to create a communication channel between elders and young people.
Aims of the Project
Create spaces for African diaspora to interconnect with African heritage by starting from our individual journeys and exploring where we fit as a whole as community.
Create a network/ forum for African diaspora to share experiences, learning, resources to generate ideas and dreams
Over last 3 weeks we have brough together 60 elders from across Northwest London We are meeting with SOAS university to discuss partnership about creating an archive of individual stories of Somali elders.
This will be unseen photo gallery and part 3 of the unwritten tales of the tongue book. This is a long term project which we will be working on for the next two years
