BORN AND BRED
What does it feel like growing up in Scotland but having to constantly prove your Scottishness? Vaishnavi Ramu tells of her experience
During our first summer travelling around Scotland, my father, brother, and I stayed in a lovely bed and breakfast in Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis. There were several things that stood out to me during those seven days of travelling, but one thing I’ll never forget was an exchange with one of the owners of the B&B. After telling her that I was from the Scottish Borders, she replied, “Yes, I could tell from your accent!”
Up until that point, we had mixed reactions from fellow travellers and locals up north; and no one had ever been able to tell that I was from the Borders before then. Some people were extremely welcoming while we travelled, not at all second guessing my brother and I being from Scotland. Others, were not so kind. From disapproving stares to questions regarding whether my brother, Kiran, and I were “really Scottish”, we questioned how accepted we were as fellow Scots.
Having been born and raised in Scotland, I was used to this kind of treatment. The sad part was, for a long time I simply accepted that I had no real historical connection to Scotland, even though I was proud to be Scottish.
At school, we delved into Scottish history, but it was never the full picture. Stories from the Celts to the Jacobites were told time and time again; yet we only had a single lesson on Scotland’s participation in the British Empire. For this reason, I had no idea that people of colour played a significant part in Scottish history.
Scottish history is intertwined with global history. Scotland played a huge part in the British Empire. Once Scotland became part of the Union with England in 1707, she profited hugely from the slave trade, though many Scots do not know this themselves.
Scots from all class ranks could be found working in and benefiting from the slave economy. Scottish people also had a presence during the British Raj, many of them employed by the East India Company military.
Due to this global connection, black people and people of colour have been coming to Scotland for hundreds of years
Due to this global connection, black people and people of colour have been coming to Scotland for hundreds of years, shaping Scotland right up to the present day.
Tom Jenkins, Britain’s first black schoolteacher, grew up in the Scottish Borders and taught in the Scottish village of Teviothead. Andrew Watson was a Scottish footballer and the first black footballer to play internationally. Saroj Lal was one of the first South Asian teachers in Scotland and spent her life fighting racial inequality. Yet I never learnt about any of these figures in school and finding out about them was not easy.
Scotland thrives on its tourism industry, with its rich history attracting visitors from around the world all year round. So, it is time for people in Scotland, as well as for international tourists, to see Scotland for the multicultural society it is.
Being Scottish and a person of colour should not be mutually exclusive, and if we begin to learn about the diversity that is interwoven into Scottish history, people of colour can finally cease to prove their ‘Scottishness’.