'I get on a London bus, and it is full of African people. Then I get on a plane to Dublin, and wonder where they have gone', writes Florence Mutesasira
I 'M TOLD that in the 1970s, when my family first came to Ireland, whenever new Africans were flying into Dublin, one of the three or four resident African families would be asked by the Department of Foreign Affairs if they would meet the new arrivals at the airport. There's a bit of a stretch in this tale - but it's true that there were very few Africans to be seen in Ireland at that time. I was too young to remember; all the stories I tell from those days I got from friends, my parents and older siblings.
Apparently, the sight of a living African usually created a "bit of excitement". Take, for example, the story about someone rubbing the skin of one of the African kids to see if the colour would come off. Understandable, perhaps, in the early 1970s. I might have wanted to do the same if I saw a truly "black" person for the first time. But then again, maybe not.
Ireland has changed a lot since then. The influx of immigrants in the past few decades has brought more colours to the face of the Irish population. We've gone through a lot of phases. Like the time when "where are you from?" to an African always came out as "are you from Nigeria?" No offence to Nigerians, God bless you, you have truly multiplied and filled the earth.
I hesitate to tell people I am Irish; it just doesn't seem believable. Must be something to do with how I sound and look that is not convincing. "Where are you from?" I am asked. "Dublin," I say. "No, I mean where are you really from, you know, before you came to Ireland?" "Dublin," I say again. "Oh."
Then again, if I reply "Uganda", someone always comes back with: "Did you know Idi Amin?"
I am still bemused when I hear all the talk about how so many Africans are coming to Ireland. When I am flying from Ireland to London, I am always reminded how few of us Africans are here. I get on a London bus, and it is full of African people. I hear my language spoken at every corner. Then I get on a plane from London to Dublin, and wonder where all the Africans have gone.
When I first returned to Ireland, an old family friend who hadn't seen me since I was about five came to pick me up at the airport. When I got on the plane, I realised why he was confident he would recognise me when I arrived - I was the only African on the flight.
But I love living in Ireland. So much is changing about the place. It's brilliant being a part of that and trying to keep up. And seriously, the Irish are some of the most friendly people I know. I always pray that with all the changes going on, that friendliness remains central to the national character.
There's an excitement - for locals as well as new immigrants - when a place is invaded by an influx of different cultures. In Ireland now, there are suddenly so many different languages, food, music, fashion, style, art - and many different ways of doing things. Some of it, you may not like. I wasn't too impressed when I was first introduced to Irish coffee, for instance. Nobody mentioned the whiskey until I said I was feeling a bit drowsy! But in the past five years I have learnt so much about the Irish, the Polish, Nigerians, Brazilians, South Africans, Chinese, Scots, Lithuanians . . . So bring on diversity!
I do get a bit concerned about some things, though, like watching particular communities slowly turning into "African areas", one culture moving in and another moving out. What's the point of moving into a new community if you want to stick with your own? I would shy away from all-African anything that keeps other cultures out.
I love being African. I love the variety and the depth of African culture - the music and the dance, the art and the fashion. The personality of Africa is beautiful and resilient. There is such a richness of culture in all things African, it just has to be shared. We must not let a fear of the unknown prevent us from getting to know one another.
Florence Mutesasira is one of the ambassadors for Africa Day 2008. She has been working in the communications/PR sector in Ireland for the past five years and is media officer for Christian Aid Ireland