Overcoming barriers
Having grown up in one of the most deprived areas in Wales, I felt from a young age that the chance of me succeeding in any professional industry would be slim. Not because I wasn’t ambitious or hardworking, but because I knew where I lived would restrict the opportunities available to me.
The place we are born is not a choice we have any control over, but for some of us it’s an unlucky ticket we carry through our adulthood and into our career.Too often, this unlucky ticket given to people born into poverty maps out a hard and relentless life journey, regardless of our abilities, talent or even dreams.
Almost five years ago, as I worked clearing tables, I decided I would once and for all discard my unlucky ticket. I went to university in my 30’s and left with a first-class honours. On my graduation day, my eight year old daughter cheered for me from the audience and I felt like I’d finally succeeded.
In my quest to shake off the unwanted boundaries created by the area I lived, I quickly noticed that the industry I had chosen to be a part of was going to be yet another big hurdle for me to tackle.
My deprived roots and Epilepsy, which restrict me from ever being able to drive a car, were making it hard for me to find my place even though I had worked so hard.
"The journalism industry in Wales and beyond is in desperate need of diversity and for talented marginalised people it shouldn’t be a fight to be noticed and accepted."
Inclusive Journalism Cymru Director
Our so-called unlucky tickets should never segregate us but instead should be worn as a badge of pride because our lived experiences allow us to bring something a little more powerful to the table.
For me, Inclusive Journalism Cymru is the spear and its members are the power that can drive change.