Max Russel

Fareena thanks very much for talking to me today. The first question I want to ask you is what initially made you want to get involved in this project?

Fareena Porter

Okay so firstly thanks Max for asking me to participate. I think for me I wanted to understand in more detail about what my own father and his family had gone through, and I think I had not really explored that, I'm in my late 30s now, so I've not explored that for most of my adult and child kind of existence and I always heard anecdotal stories but I never really knew the level of detail and the level of disruption that was involved and the heartache etc. that went with it, and obviously being from Leicester, and Leicester being a big part of that journey, it was a really good opportunity for me to kind of embrace it more and when the opportunity came for me to participate it just felt like a no brainer for me because it's increased my awareness and it's made me a better person for learning about, fundamentally my heritage, in more detail.

Max Russel

Amazing and then of course you came and attended one of the training days that we did with other individuals like yourself who have a similar background who were also interested in taking part, how was that meeting people from different parts of the UK on that day as well and getting together and sort of sharing those ideas, and then also what did you think of the actual training as well?

Fareena Porter

That was amazing actually because it was the first group that got together and I seem to have been connected to nearly everyone in that room by someway shape or form which was bizarre for me, but also I found the training really useful, I'm quite into academia anyway but to have a university lecturer in oral history training, it really enhanced a skill set for me and actually helped broaden my own skill set, yeah it was a learning experience for me, so I really enjoyed that because I do like learning new skills, and also just speaking to other people and their experiences as well, it was a really really worthwhile day.

Max Russel

And then of course you were actually the first volunteer do an interview for our project, and I believe for that you did it in-person and you went to the persons’ house, is that correct?

Fareena Porter

Yes I went to Sophie’s home.

Max Russel

How was that experience?

Fareena Porter

I think going to her home was really important actually, and Sophie was really open with me, and we had really good dialogue I felt, and I think being in her home it made me feel when she was talking, it made me feel what she was feeling, with her family photos, her possessions around her, and I think it really brought everything to life and it was really humbling for her to let me in her home as well, and for her to be so open about her experiences, and I think it really brought the whole experience and the interview to life rather than just being, I don't know in a coffee shop or doing it over zoom, you didn't get that emotion that we definitely felt, I think we both felt it. I paused that interview throughout at certain stages so we could have a break because it was quite emotional for both of us, and I do think being in her environment really helped embrace what we were trying to get out of that interview process.

Max Russel

Completely, I think it was a beautiful interview. In terms of the interview was there anything really unique that came out of it that maybe you weren't expecting to hear, you said you've heard some sort of anecdotal stories from your own family, but was there anything in that interview that really stood out to you?

Fareena Porter

There were a couple of things actually. I think firstly the lasting impact it had on Sophie and reasons why she changed her name for example, and her explaining that, and her wanting to be in a society where she felt that she had a place as well, and knowing how troubled her childhood was with, obviously being from up north and experiencing a lot of differences that she felt about fitting in, that was definitely the first part, and the second part for me was when she was describing the smells that really resonated with her, and the food, you know food is such an emotive subject and it was something that my dad always spoke about fondly, the food, the things that he loved doing. And I think food in any society, in any culture, brings people together and it was a big part I think of the culture over in Uganda, and the wonderful food that people had, and the memories that that invokes in people really really stood out for me.

Max Russel

That's fantastic. I think food is a common theme in oral history, and as you said a very powerful one. So it's been a while since you conducted that interview. You were talking about your initial interest in this stemmed from wanting to understand your own heritage more, have you, outside of the project, been doing stuff that's built on that, or it's just made you think about it, or…?

Fareena Porter

No I've done something further. So I always knew that my father helped get one of his best friends out of prison, he was being tortured as part of Idi Amin’s regime, and he got him out. It was always a story that was very familiar in my family, and he basically saved his life, and his family were forever grateful to him, and treated him like a brother, which a lot of families did in Uganda, so I wanted to understand more about that. So I went to London and met, unfortunately my dad's best friend died years and years ago whilst my dad was still alive, but his brother is still alive and very much part of our family growing up. So I haven't seen that network for years and years, so I organised with my mum and my sister to go to London, and we stayed the night with them, and we found out all the stories in detail. I understood everything behind this amazing story of my dad helping to get one of his best friends out and how forever grateful they are, and we just reminisced, and we had really nice stories, and we spoke about the past, so I definitely have had more detail and more understanding. I also went and met the Reverend who took my dad in. So what I understood and found out, because I could never understand, my dad never went to one of the camps that were set up, he never spoke about it, and it’s something I learnt through this project that existed, so I couldn’t understand all the pieces. So I went and spoke to Reverend Philip Spence, who actually took my dad in. And what transpired was that the Reverend turned the car back round after visiting the camp and welcoming people from Uganda, he turned the car back around and he went and he stopped and he got my dad off the bus before he went to the camp, and he took him into his own home, and stories like that I never could piece together, I only knew bits. So I managed to piece a lot together, so I’ve done a lot subsequently to understand the stories and the evolution of my father when he came to Britain.

Max Russel

That's amazing to hear.

Fareena Porter

Yeah it is, it really is. The stories that, you know like I said, the Reverend said he turned up at the door, and how wonderful is his wife, they had two young kids, two toddlers, and they brought this fundamental stranger to the door and his wife took him [in] with open arms you know, unbelievable.

Max Russel

That's incredible. I think that also leads on to my next point which is during this project we've come across so many unique stories, but there are still so many to be uncovered, and so many aspects that are still not fully studied or truly understood, all these different things. And so last year was the 50^th  anniversary, this project is now sort of wrapping up this year, what do you think, do you see as the way forward for this history to be shared, and what do we need to do in the future to make sure that this isn't forgotten, and that more people understood what happened now 51 years ago?

Fareena Porter

I think it's definitely about education, and about people learning about our history in the classroom, it doesn't happen enough. You know we talk about the big pieces of history, but these small pieces of history have impacted Britain and the United Kingdom in a positive way with the immigration that happened, and it still happens today, because society doesn't learn from its past, and the only way we can do that is by talking about it, being more open about it, talking about the bad times as well as the good that has come from it. But educating future generations on this, to allow some foresight to happen, and prevent things like this happening, and continuing to happen to this day.

Max Russel

I think that’s a fantastic point. Is there anything else you'd like to note or comment on, or any final reflections?

Fareena Porter

I think it's been really humbling for me to take part in it, so I feel really grateful to have been part of it, so thank you very much. I think it's left me with so much food for thought that I still sit and many times just contemplate, and I don't make time in my life to contemplate enough and I'm really aware of that, I'm always on the go. And personally it has really made me sit back and think, and reconnect, and it's really really evoked a lot of emotions for me, both good, both happy and sad, but emotions nonetheless that I think are worth evoking, so big thank you personally.

Max Russel

No thank you to you for taking part, thanks you so much Fareena.

Fareena Porter

Thanks Max.