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Dislocated from his cultural roots
As a result of having to fit into the English way of life as a means of survival, Mo has lost touch with his Pakistani roots. "Perhaps I should mix with my people more than I do" confesses Mo, "but the seeds were sown the day I went to school and that was the trigger." He has an English wife and three daughters who are all very integrated into western culture. He admits that he now has quite a prejudiced view of the Asian community and feels very much that he is a "brown man in white skin" who is a stranger from his own people.
As a result of having to fit into the English way of life as a means of survival, Mo has lost touch with his Pakistani roots. "Perhaps I should mix with my people more than I do" confesses Mo, "but the seeds were sown the day I went to school and that was the trigger." He has an English wife and three daughters who are all very integrated into western culture. He admits that he now has quite a prejudiced view of the Asian community and feels very much that he is a "brown man in white skin" who is a stranger from his own people.
Mo has not lived within an Asian community for over 20 years, but that is about to change.
His undercover life
For the next ten days he will live in a rented flat on what is known locally as the 'curry mile' in the Harehills district of Leeds, home to the city's largest Asian/ethnic minority community with the highest unemployment rate in the city.
Before Mo even begins to find people who he could potentially help, he is already struggling with his identity and facing his prejudices head on. "I am worried that this is going to become a Pakistani project… My life has taught me more than that. There is a big wide world out there with a lot of decent people…A lot of decent English people. And if it wasn't for the decent English community, I wouldn't be where I am."
His new job
Over the next few days, Mo divides his time between a job he has found at a local gym, hanging out with a youth project set up in the nearest park which encourages kids to keep out of trouble and working as a volunteer at Asian Fever radio which is a-not-for profit station providing the community with music, culture and essentially their own voice.
Tensions
It is during one of his volunteer shifts at the station that all Mo's tensions and frustrations with the Asian community come to a head. Taking part in a radio discussion show about arranged marriages, Mo is confronted by an angry and overly inquisitive caller who clearly disapproves of the fact that Mo has admitted he is happily married to an English woman who he married for love with his freedom of choice. The situation becomes very uncomfortable for Mo, who ups and leaves the room visibly upset. "The community is going backwards, not forwards", he says.
By the time Mo reaches the half way point in his undercover adventure, he is clearly still struggling to connect with the whole community and is seriously having second thoughts about his assignment.
Turning a corner
Things slowly begin to look up when Mo is invited to join a kids martial arts class run by his friend Scabber, who he met during his shifts at the gym. As well as teaching the kids respect, self confidence and fitness techniques, Scabber acts as a mentor, encouraging them to talk openly about anything that is bothering them. This really strikes a chord with Mo, who admits that he would have seriously benefited from having somebody like Scabber around when he was younger.
Invigorated, inspired and generally feeling more positive about the journey ahead, Mo returns to the Radio station and finally begins to understand the real benefit of the station. He gets how they would remain isolated and voiceless if there was no means by which they could communicate with the whole community. He even returns to the youth project at the local park with a renewed energy. Initially disheartened at how disorganised the project seemed to be, he now spends time talking to some of the kids who take part and who clearly benefit from the few hours they spend there each week.
Now Mo has a dilemma he never thought he would be facing - who to help within the Asian community and how?
Intro | About Mo | Mo's Testimonial
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