Williamsburg Regional Library

I belong here, a journey along the backbone of Britain, Anita Sethi

eng

Includes bibliographical references and index

maps

index present

non fiction

I belong here

bibliography

1155708911

Anita Sethi

a journey along the backbone of Britain

Anita Sethi was on a journey through Northern England in Summer 2019 when she became the victim of a race hate crime. The crime was a vicious attack on her right to exist in a place on account of her race. After the event Anita experienced panic attacks and anxiety. A crushing sense of claustrophobia made her long for wide open spaces, to breathe deeply in the great outdoors. She was intent on not letting her experience stop her travelling freely and without fear. She was eager to continue journeying alone as a woman, asserting her right to exist. One day Anita was looking at a map of the country and reflecting on that traumatic TransPennine journey. Between the route from Liverpool to Newcastle lays the Pennines, known as 'the backbone of Britain', including nature reserves, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Britain's oldest long-distance footpath. That 'backbone' or 'spine' of Britain runs through the north and also strongly connects north with south, east with west - it's a place of borderlands and limestone, of rivers and gorges and 'scars', of fells and forces. The Pennines called to Anita with a magnetic force; although a racist had told her to leave, she felt drawn to further explore the area she regards as her home, to immerse herself deeply in place. Anita's journey through the natural landscapes of the North is one of reclamation, a way of saying that this is her land too and she belongs in the UK as a brown woman, as much as a white man does. Journeying through the Pennines, the 'backbone' of Britain, is a way of showing backbone and that she will not let having been the victim of a hate crime curtail her movements through the world. We're living in an era of increased hostility in which more people of colour around the world are being told to 'go back'; strong statements of belonging are needed more than ever

Prologue: a place called hope -- Mouth: onwards: a TransPennine express journey -- 1. Speaking up -- 2. Bearing witness -- Skin: wanted: a long green trail -- 3. If your nerve deny you, go above your nerve -- 4. You make your own path as you walk -- 5. Walking as a woman of colour -- 6. On race and place -- Backbone: Malham Cove and Limestone Country -- 7. Protected characteristics -- 8. On strength, courage and trauma -- 9. Going viral -- Lifeblood: upwards: a Pennine journey -- 10. Settlements -- 11. Scars -- Feet: the way: North Pennines to Hadrian's Wall (via Manchester) -- 12. Northern nature -- 13. Areas of outstanding natural beauty -- 14. Forces -- 15. Walking and witnessing -- Epilogue: up from a past that's rooted in pain

adult