1. A good upbringing in Sierra Leone
I WAS born in London, but we moved to Freetown [capital of Sierra Leone] when I was four years old. My three siblings and I had a good life when we were growing up. Our parents really gave us everything, we never lacked anything.
We went to one of the best schools in the city. My life was a happy life. I made so many friends.
2. The war in Sierra Leone
When the war broke out in 1991, it didn’t affect us really. We were in the capital city and the war was out in the provinces. It didn’t affect us at all, as far as I can remember.
I was finishing my GCSE/O-Levels at the time. You know what teenage life is like. You make friends, you start to go out. It was a time when we were enjoying ourselves. I didn’t want to leave my friends and go somewhere new.
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But, as things got more difficult, our parents decided that it would be better for us if we went abroad to further our education. Each of us moved to London separately from the others. Sheku and I moved in the same year, but in different months.
3. Life in London
When I moved to London, I was 17. It was a bit of a strange transition. It was a new life, a new beginning. It wasn’t a place that I knew. We had relatives there, cousins and so on, and I was excited to meet them again. I developed more family relationships with them.
Some of my friends from Sierra Leone also came to London [fleeing the war]. We all hooked up again, which was good. Then, at the age of about 22, I moved to Kirkcaldy to begin my training as a nurse.
4. Moving to Scotland
The move to Fife was lovely. I had lived in a quiet area in Sierra Leone.
The hustle and bustle of London was a bit of a surprise. When I moved to Scotland, I found myself in a more quiet, friendly, family-orientated community. I fitted in quite well there.
Most of my time was spent with my university friends and people I met through my placements. I didn’t have many dealings with the wider public because I was just here to study and do my training. It was quite intense.
In terms of the places that I went to, the people that I mixed with, everybody was good to me. I didn’t experience any kind of racism during that time.
I saw the love that I experienced in Kirkcaldy, and that convinced me to encourage Sheku to move there from London.
5. Nursing training in Kirkcaldy
The nursing training went well. Everywhere I went, I was welcomed. I had good mentors and good lecturers. It was a supportive environment, and I had good friends who helped me through my nursing studies. It was good, I had no problems at all.
There was even one teacher who was so welcoming when I arrived in Kirkcaldy. She took us around, showed us where everything was in the town centre, took us to the hospital where we would, potentially, be doing our placements. She showed us where we would get the train to go into Edinburgh, and things like that.
6. The death of my brother, Sheku Bayoh
Sheku's death [in Kirkcaldy on May 3, 2015] took a big toll on our lives. The way he died [being restrained by six police officers] was unbelievable. I saw Sheku the night before he died. We were all having a good time, and, the next day, for them to tell me that he was no more was terrible.
7. The treatment of my family by the police following Sheku’s death
Instead of telling us exactly what had happened to Sheku, the police told us different stories. That made us so upset, as a family, and so disappointed in the system [of law and order]. I didn’t expect them to treat us like that.
Sheku’s death has really turned my life upside-down. I’m not the type of person who is an activist. But now, I fight for justice for Sheku.
8. The support for the Sheku Bayoh Family Justice Campaign from the Scottish trade union and anti-racist movements
These organisations [including the Scottish Trades Union Congress, numerous trade unions, Stand Up to Racism, and others] have really been supportive throughout the time of our campaigning for justice since Sheku’s death. They have raised awareness of Sheku’s death. They have encouraged my family and me. They have been there for us, and they have also pointed us in the right direction.
9. The role of our lawyer, Aamer Anwar
Without Aamer, we wouldn’t be where we are today. It was so tough following Sheku’s death that we reached a point where we were going to give up. However, with his encouragement and persuasion, we carried on, and thank God we are where are now [in the midst of a public inquiry into Sheku’s death, led by Lord Bracadale]. I’m so grateful to Aamer and his team for taking us this far.
10. Lament for Sheku Bayoh by Hannah Lavery
I wasn't expecting this theatre piece to turn out as it did. But, when I went to see it for the first time, it was exactly how I wanted it to be. Hannah Lavery captured everything as it should be.
The message was told in a brilliant way, and so it did console us as a family. Hannah raised awareness of the case, she showed how Sheku was a loving child, and she showed how he was growing up, instead of his character being demonised.
A recorded version of the National Theatre of Scotland’s staging of Lament for Sheku Bayoh will be screened in cinemas in Fife and Edinburgh on January 17 and 24: nationaltheatrescotland.com
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