‘I’ve had people assume I’m into gang violence’

MICHAEL BOATENG was eight months old when he became trapped next to a hot water pipe and was burnt down the side of his face. The 32-year-old is now married with two children, and works for Virgin as a network engineer.

‘I hope this selfie says that I am a normal person, that nothing about me is out of the ordinary – I have two eyes, a mouth and all the things that make up a face. I rarely take selfies day to day, but my wife takes loads.

‘My scars bring out all sort of reactions in people. I’ve had assumptions that I am into gang violence. Someone once came right out and asked me if I’d been in a gang fight. Instead of getting angry, I just tried to explain to them about what happened to me. The best way to tackle prejudice is to educate people.

‘I have two kids – Jacob, four, and Thea, two. A couple of years ago, I lost the prosthetic ear I’d had since the accident, because the skin around it got infected. The NHS wouldn’t pay for a new one so I decided to crowd-fund it. I raised £1,500 and then a relative kindly chipped in and helped with the rest.

‘It was the first time my son was aware about my visible difference. When I told him I’d burnt my face, he thought I was in pain because he associated it with when he’d recently burnt his little finger. Kids are really curious, not malicious, but I feel I’ve given my son an advantage for when he meets someone who looks different.’