Refugees and asylum seekers have launched an art exhibition in Glasgow exploring their experiences of racism and mental health.
Our Power is an exhibition of works created and co-curated by participants of the Our Power project by Mental Health Foundation on display at the Gallery of Modern Art until the end of October.
It explores the mental health impact of racism, particularly racist microaggressions, with artworks including textiles, zines, haiku, painting and installations created over the past year by people living in Glasgow with lived experience of racism.
NHS worker Mary Waithera came to Scotland five years ago looking for a safe place to call home and raise her daughter.
STV NewsShe told STV News: “I had an experience in the hospital when my daughter was sick. I felt like I was never heard because the doctor felt she was okay, and as a mum, I had to step up and stand bold for my daughter.
“It doesn’t have a good impact on my mental health.”
Programme manager Ghizala Avan said: “What we’re doing is highlighting subtle forms of racism that can chip away at you and impact your self-esteem and confidence.
“A lot of people internalise these issues. There are a lot of problems around self-blaming. You’re always left thinking ‘did that really happen or did I imagine it?
“It’s important not to sweep these issues under the carpet because they’re going to keep coming back.
A large part of your cognitive abilities is thinking about that, playing it over and over again, and it takes your sense of belongingness. We want people to feel they belong to Scotland.”
STV NewsRonnie Tagwireyi – who moved to the UK from Zimbabwe in 1991 says he still feels like an outsider.
“You get instances of ‘you’re so articulate’ and you think ‘is somebody like me not meant to be like that?'” he said.
“As a black person, any bad things done by a black person it’s ‘you lot’. I’ve got my own identity, and I’m my own person.
“That kind of thing wears you down eventually. It’s very stressful. It’s an advanced state of being vigilant all of the time.”
Our Power is being held at Glasgow’s GoMA until October 31.
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