Mohamed Iman

I was born in Somalia in 1966. I have lived in London, in Haringey, since 1994 and I’m married with three children, the oldest of which is 11 year old. Living in this borough sometimes I find myself really believing that I’m not far from Somalia. This shows me the multicultural value of Haringey compared to most other London boroughs, and makes me love this area and want to stay here.

I am the trustee and chair of an organisation called Somali UK Community Association Link. About two decades ago the Somali people first started to move out of Somalia because of the civil war that was ravaging the country. So most of us have now been here for quite a long time, but still, sometimes this is not enough. Besides, many people keep coming in, especially families with children. Therefore, in my organisation we feel that we need to do more for the Somali youth, to help them understand the culture of other people. We propose activities as many other pre-existing organisations, because we believe that there is always the need for more. In fact, we started in 2002, when we realised that we needed more bases that the Somali people could reach easily.

As a life motto, I would say that it is important to be brave, face challenges, have the courage to make a change. I’ve got to say to future leaders that there is a lot to do for the community to be updated and for a better social understanding to be fulfilled. It is fundamental that we spend time with the children and transmit them our knowledge, too.