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>“The thing with the Irish is you’re a lot more aware of your history. No matter what side of the history you stand on you’re aware of it. It’s acknowledged. People have an opinion on it. If you fall in the category of [seeing] the English [as] oppressive colonisers, it’s easier for those Irish bands to take a stance. Whereas, in England, people are not aware of the history.”
>As a black British person, he sees himself as in the middle. “It’s a little different for me, because, while I was born here, I’m in it but not of it. How did I come to be here? My dad came over here; his mum came over here. Why did they come over here? Because back home in Jamaica, the country was so destabilised – a postcolonial society – they kind of had to come over.”
>He pauses. “Well, how did they get to Jamaica in the first place? Because they’re not Arawak Indians [the indigenous people of the Caribbean]. They’re African – how did they get there? For me it’s easier to see certain things – atrocities that this country continuously commits. Whereas if you’re not looking into the history of your existence and your place within this country, maybe it’s harder for you to find any common ground with anybody or see wrongdoing. Or even take a stand when you see wrongdoing being done.”