|
Umara's
father left Pakistan in 1969 to study at the University of Leeds
and her mother came in 1978. Her parents moved to Gloucester in
1984 and after gaining postgraduate qualifications and professional
chartership, are working at a senior level.
Umara
has one elder brother who is reading medicine at the University
of Oxford and also has a little sister who is nine years old.
Umara
was educated at the High School for Girls in Denmark Road. She initially
had the urge to join the British Army to follow her grandfather's
footsteps, but her mind kept changing.
I
am of Pakistani origin but a British Muslim girl. I go to Pakistan
because all my relatives live there. I never realised what benefits
I had until I saw Pakistan for the first time since the age
of 14.  |
| Umara
Hussain |
She
is now doing A Levels in Maths, Chemistry, Biology and Economics
and hopes to study sciences at higher education.
Umara
has got a special interest in writing poetry and has had pieces
published in the Gloucestershire Young Poets book "Look Out Look
Vol 4". A few of her articles have also been published in the local
media and she worked as a volunteer with ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Radio Gloucestershire.
Umara
loves to listen to rock music and enjoys English food. She also
plays table tennis.
She
says: "I am of Pakistani origin but a British Muslim girl.
I go to Pakistan because all my relatives live there. I never realised
what benefits I had until I saw Pakistan for the first time since
the age of 14.
Sense
of purpose
"Being
with relatives was a great experience that I won't forget. I felt
the love from all my family, which I had never felt before because
I have no relatives in England. It gave me a sense of purpose and
I felt like I was someone.
"'I
had travelled from England in search of my identity. I found out
that there is a part of me that has adapted to the English style
of life and that I can never be as Pakistani as the people living
there.
"The
advantages of going to Pakistan were that my mother tongue improved,
my relationships grew stronger and I learnt more about my culture.
I did not really feel at home though when I stayed with my relatives.
A
half of me is Pakistani and half of me is English. I have found
out that I must take the best from the Pakistani way of life
and culture and also of the English. When these fit together,
they make me a British Pakistani Muslim. I love England from
the depth of my heart. It is my country, my birth country.
|
| Umara
Hussain |
"I
also visited big cities like Karachi and Lahore and small towns
and villages as well. I am able to compare the two different lifestyles
people have there. Many places fascinated me. Museums taught me
a lot about the history of Pakistan - how it was created and how
culture has changed in Pakistan over the century.
"I
made a speech at a women's postgraduate college on Independence
Day, talking about the downfalls of our independence from the British
Raj and the benefits of it. This won me a trophy that I am proud
of.
"I
have decided that being British, I have more advantages than my
parents and relatives had especially in that I have a better standard
of education. English is my first language, but I can also communicate
in Urdu, Hindi, Punjabi and German.
"The
disadvantage of living in England is that I am far away from my
relatives and do not have much face-to-face contact with them.
"We
must learn that family life in England is very different to that
in Pakistan. A half of me is Pakistani and half of me is English.
I have found out that I must take the best from the Pakistani way
of life and culture and also of the English.
"When
these fit together, they make me a British Pakistani Muslim. I love
England from the depth of my heart. It is my country, my birth country."
»
See 'The Pakistani Community'
|
