Djanira came to Northern Ireland 22 years ago, but her migration story started in Angola.

Raised by a Cape Verdean mother and an Angolan father she grew up bilingual in creole and Umbundu. In 1992 her family was forced to flee Angola to Portugal because of the civil war, and since then she never returned to Africa. Djanira and her siblings have dual Angolan/Portuguese citizenship and were able to stay with their Portuguese grandparents who also had to flee an earlier Angolan Civil war in 1974.

10 years later she decided to move to the UK to learn English and meet new people. Initially, the plan was to stay for a year. That was 22 years ago and since then, the UK became her third home because that’s where she met her husband who is from Slovakia and had their  two children.

Djanira became a community interpreter supporting the Portuguese speaking community in accessing services helping them understand how things function in the UK. “Being an interpreter gives me the opportunity to do what I love, to help people. It humbles me, people entrust me with their personal struggles, and achievements, and I’m truly honoured by that.”

Over the years she also taught English and gained various qualifications which paved the way for a career in education and currently she works as a SEN assistant and newcomer's support officer in one of the local primary schools. “I'm grateful for my job, I work for amazing little children that teach me about the human condition every day. I am happy to be able to connect with children who recently arrived here, and just like me in Portugal, need help to overcome the language and cultural barriers. That effort is also extended to their families as in our school more than 20 different languages are spoken” 

Djanira says that she truly felt the effect of Brexit  recently when the family decided that her mother in law should come to live with them from Slovakia as she was no longer able to live independently. Applying for status for her was a stressful, lengthy and bureaucratic process requiring lots of evidence and costing a small fortune in translation costs for the Slovakian documents. It was such a relief when pre-settled status was eventually granted, but in a couple of years they will have to go through the process again. 

When reflecting on how her  and her friends’ lives changed since Brexit, Djanira points out that the referendum was a pivotal point for her and many others and yet those most affected were not consulted and represented when it happened and it made her question whether she was welcome here and whether she should stay.