Mini library set up by parents working to build bridges across cultures

“Before I came to Hannah More Primary School I don’t think I’d ever spoken to anyone from Somalia. I certainly hadn’t spoken to anyone from Senegal,” explains Ruth Cochrane, who has now been the community lead at the school for over a decade.

Ruth set up Bridging Gaps group three years ago to bring together parents from diverse cultures and help staff increase their cultural knowledge.

“We have to give people opportunities to find out what they have in common,” says Ruth. The parents in the group come from a range of backgrounds. An atmosphere has been created where “it’s okay to ask pretty much anything, we trust each other to respect that it’s fine not to know something”.

The group had previously been delivering cultural awareness training to staff at Hannah More Primary School in St Philip’s and other educational settings across Bristol. They have now set up a mini library in the school, which they plan on using alongside their training sessions in the future.

The mini library includes books featuring characters from different cultures that are free for staff and parents to borrow, adding to the collection already available at the school. Due to lockdown restrictions, the library is currently only being used by staff at Hannah More Primary School.

One book the teachers have been talking about is It’s not about the Burqua. The book covers topics such as faith, feminism, sexuality, race, identity and divorce, seen through the eyes of 17 Muslim women. The author, Mariam Khan, felt it was important to give a voice to Muslim women after David Cameron described them as “traditionally submissive” in 2016.

Bridging Gaps member Soumia – herself a Muslim woman who wears a hijab – is very conscious of the stereotypes that influence the way others view her. It was her motivation for joining the group: “A lot of people think because you are wearing a hijab you are not educated or achieving anything. I wanted others to understand us.”

Alongside novels and adult non-fiction titles, the library also includes many children’s books. One that Soumia’s son particularly enjoyed was Planet Omar by Zanib Mian. The series of books, about a boy who is a spy and whose mother is a scientist, really resonated with him.

Soumia says her son told her: “‘Oh mummy, the mother is working and is taking care of her kids’. He was so happy to see a woman with a hijab who was a scientist.”

Shani, who joined the group to increase her own cultural awareness, has seen the importance of books that represent black children through her own childrens’ reactions to these books:

“I realised that it makes such a difference. My daughter came back from university and my youngest had the Amazing Grace book. My eldest was so excited.” At 20, she still had fond memories of the book that she read as a child – which is about a girl who wants to be Peter Pan but is told by classmates that she can’t because she is a girl and because she is black. Encouraged by her mum and grandma she ends up getting the part.

Shani believes that it is good for children to see “other children like them” in books as it “boosts their courage to step out and do different things”. She herself has been inspired by a book in the collection: Glory: Magical Visions of Black Beauty by Kahran and Regis Bethencourt. After following the couple’s Instagram account she was delighted to receive the book as a Christmas present.

The library also includes modern American classics such as Maya Angelo’s 1969 autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, and the 2019 bestseller Natives by British rapper Akala.

For Ruth Cochrane, black history wasn’t something she was taught at school and she hopes the library will provide a valuable resource for staff who want to increase their historical knowledge.

“Malcolm X was an incredibly important figure for some children but there are staff in the school who don’t really know about him,” explains Ruth.

The whole ethos behind the group and the library is about the school learning from the community. But it is also a chance for people to learn from each other.

Fatoumata, who is a member of staff at Hannah More Primary School but also a parent, found that when she went to training events outside the school, people would look at her and it would feel awkward as she was often the only black person or the only “hijabi woman” in the room. At times she would question whether she was in the right place.

Joining the Bridging Gaps group was a chance for Fatoumata to share her story so that her experience of feeling uncomfortable in training wouldn’t happen so often to others.

“I wanted to help people understand us and at the same time understand this new culture that we are living in,” says Fatoumata.

For others, the group has played an important role in ‘navigating’ the school’s multicultural demographic.

Shani says it has helped her understand different cultures. Previously, she was worried that when her childrens’ friends came to the house she might “say something to offend them”.

Iwona from Poland hadn’t met anyone who wasn’t white and Catholic before moving to Bristol and feels being in the group has enriched her life: “I learn a lot in this group. It has really helped me to navigate multiculturalism. Before Covid-19, when we used to meet every week, it really was a highlight of my week: just to hear the stories, just to have a good laugh.”

The group plans to compile a list of recommended books and films that they can distribute to others while they are unable to meet in person. They hope that the mini library can be expanded in the future and others will take up such initiatives.

Main image supplied by Bridging Gap

Read more: The Bristol project changing the narrative of black history in Britain