Fuad Amir Tarmum, chief physician at the hospital in Borgo San Lorenzo in the Florentine region. Born and raised in Somalia he arrived in Florence to pursue his medical studies. Throughout his career he attained two specialisations and his curriculum is proof of a great commitment and involvement in both Italy and Somalia. Undeniably, his remarkable efforts lead him to achieve his current chief position, in 2001, so making him the first black medical chief in Italy.
Antonella Bundu, fifty years old and, sister of the known boxer Leonard; is a civil rights activist as well as having been a mayoral candidate for the city of Florence in the May 2019 elections. Antonella was born in Florence, after her father had moved there, from Sierra Leon, to study architecture and ultimately meet a local Italian women that would become his wife and the mother of his children. As a child Antonella lives between Italy, Sierra Leon and, Liverpool. In the latter, she settles for a few years and develops her passion for political activism. Then in 1989, she returns to Florence and studies to become an interpreter meanwhile dedicating her-self to activism. When asked to describe her-self Antonella answers: “I am a Florentine liberal black woman.”
Tommy Kuti, 29 years old, Italian rapper of Nigerian origins. Raised in Castiglione delle Stiviere in the neighbourhood known as the “5 continents”. He vividly recalls when a schoolteacher held a class on African history and culture: “all us that were clearly different from our peers felt appreciated and accepted”. His singles describe Italy today; through sharp rhymes and critiques he ironically recounts about police, racism and fake news.
Victoire Bouna Gouloubi, 37 years old, is a Chef native of the Democratic Republic of Congo. She was just about twenty years old when she first arrived in Italy to study Law however, after not long she decided to dedicate her-self to her passion: cooking. She studied at length the Italian cuisine nonetheless, her interest for this profession began in Africa: “ I was the eighth of nineteen siblings, everyday my sisters and I took turns to cook for the whole family. In Africa my passion was born, in Italy it became my profession”. Currently she works and lives in Milan where she is able to express her-self through the flavours of the Italian culinary culture while always staying true to the scents of her land, Africa.
Padre Matthieu Silue, 40 years old, is a priest native of the Ivory Coast. Born in a Muslim family and after a lengthy academic journey, a philosophy and theology degree, he decides to wear the cassock. Regardless of the numerous difficulties faced, like his family’s opposition, Matthieu attains his wish and in 2010 arrives in Italy where he is appointed to the parish of Santa Croce in Milan.
Fatima Koanda, 27 years old, is an Italian model. Her family moved to Italy in the early 1980s to seek greater stability and security. Her father is a native of Burkina Faso and the mother of the Ivory Coast. Fatima was born in Bergamo where very soon the people noticed her beauty and began to parade and pose for photo shoots in the area. After that she moved to Milan to make her life and play the role of model in a professional manner, her dream is to become a top model.
Luloloko Mays, 40 years old, is an artisan originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo; initially a painter who with time grew closer to other artistic realities like fashion and dressmaking. He arrived in Italy in the year 2000 thanks to a scholarship promoted by the Italian Embassy that enabled him to move to Florence and start the Fine Art Academy there. The cultural ambience together with the artisanal mastery present in Florence allowed his artistic talents as a painter to develop and embrace the world of fashion. Luloloko has been living and working in Florence for twenty years now, he feels like an old foreigner that knows the ins and outs of the city. His competences and personal vison in the worlds of art and fashion enabled him to feel integrated.
Angelica Pesarini, 40 years old, is a sociology professor at the New York University of Florence. Born in Rome her cultural heritage is tied to the former Italian colonization in Eritrea and Somalia. After achieving her specialisation in London she is currently studying anthropology at the Sapienza University of Rome. Angelica is the first black professor of sociology in Italy and indeed the only one teaching a course on race: “Black Italia”.
Paolo Barros, 29 years old, is a 5 Star council member for the IX Borough of Rome with Guinean and Cape Verdean origins. Born and raised in Rome and has always been a civil rights activist, he manged to attain Italian citizenship after an exhausting bureaucratic battle. Indeed, choosing a political career was motivated by the desire to feel represented as well as his previous experience as worker for social causes. Paolo believes that cultural differences may be overcome by focusing on the aspects shared and not the ones that underline the differences.
Afra Kane, 24 years old and a soul/ R’n’B singer as well as a classical pianist, born in Vicenza to Nigerian parents. She started her musical studies at the age of ten and her passion for music lead her to study classical piano for fifteen years as well as attending various conservatories around Europe. Indeed, she is an independent artist, without a record label or a manger; she defines her-self as a nomad artist, a hybrid of diverse cultures as well as different stylistic and musical influences.
Christopher Luigi Kanku Veggetti, 40 years old, is an artist native of the Democratic Republic of Congo. He arrived in Italy when he was only a little boy and was later adopted, at ten years old, by a family living in the Brianza region. He studied graphic design however, his artistic journey actually began with a competition with his sister for winning best painting: "I painted a scarecrow while she had painted a horse. We took the paintings to a local artist's boutique who showed interest for my piece". Christopher has not cut ties with his African roots. Indeed, guided by his original and never banal outlook, he is to this day involved with the community of his country of origin on a personal as well as political and cultural level.
Leonard Bundu, 44 years old, former boxing campion native of Sierra Leone and now a naturalised Italian that goes by the nick-name “the Florentine of Africa”. Leonard is a six years running European campion of the Welter Weights demonstrating his abilities regardless of the numerous obstacles faced such as older age and the Italian crisis of the “minor” sports. He arrived in Florence at a young age and by chance stumbled across a boxing gym close to home: “I thought it would be a great way to make friends; I first came in here when I was 16 and I never left!”.
Rosanna Sparapano, 36 years old, is an actress with Italian and Congolese origins. Born in Kinshasa however moved to Milan when still a little girl with her parents, who unfortunately passed shortly after. Raised by her paternal uncle, her passion for theatre bloomed by chance; at thirteen years old she replaces the protagonist of a comedy and from that instance on theatre became her aspiration. In 2002 she completes the first step into her professional journey by graduating from the “Piccolo Teatro di Milano”.
Rinda Ferede Nigusse, a twenty-three year old make-up artist with Ethiopian origins. Rinda was born in Tripoli, Libya, nonetheless, shortly after the family was forced to flee due to the Ethiopian and Eritrean conflict. Indeed, when Rinda was just 11 months, her mother was deceived into joining a prostitution ring once she realised and refused to join, she was killed. Ultimately in 2001, acknowledging the dangers of Libya her father decides to flee to Italy with Rinda on a boat crossing the Mediterranean Sea. Now, Rinda lives in Milan with her father and Renata, her legal guardian until she turned of aged.
Evelyne Sarah Afaawua Nkrumah, 31 years old, of Ganese origin, was born in France but moved with her family to Italy as a child. Evelyne, is the pioneer of the "Natural Hair Movement" in Italy, in fact in 2014, after an identity crisis linked to the loss of its origins, it founded the portal Nappy Italia, the first portal in Italian dedicated to the care of curly hair and that will be the end result of his inner search.
Francois Desire Baize, 39 years old is a farmer from Burkina Faso. Francois has lived in Massa Carrara since 2015, where he opened a farm engaged mainly in the production of wine and oil. Since the opening of his company, Francois tries to plant an African tree with multiple beneficial properties, the Moringa, also called "the tree of miracles" in the Carrara area; after several unsuccessful attempts this year he succeeds and wins the "Oscar green 2019" prize called by Coldiretti in the category "Natura amica".
Madi Sakande, 47 years old, native of Burkina Faso, has been living in Italy for the past twenty-two years; he started by picking tomatoes in the province of Foggia and then winds up as a sales assistant for Fendi in Bologna. Later in the years he takes over a prominent company of the area, that was in financial difficulty due to the crisis. Ultimately, succeeding in turning it into one of the most innovative companies in the refrigerating business lead him to be awarded Foreign Entrepreneur of the year 2016.
Michelle Francine Ngnmo is of Cameroonian origin, she arrived in Italy at a very young age and swiftly approached the world of communications. Ruth Akutu Maccarthy, is of Ghanaian origins and graduated in Obstetrics at the University of Bicocca. In 2015, driven by their passion for African fashion, they founded Afro Fashion, a foundation that promotes impactful intercultural initiatives particularly, by focusing on young fashion designers that are able to express, through their creations, Africa’s fast paced changes.
Soumaila Diawara, 31 years old, poet and civil rights activist native of Mali. After having graduated in Legal Studies and Politics in Bamako, he is appointed as the communications chief for the SADI party (Solidarieté Africaine pour la Démocratie et l’Indépendance). In 2012, together with other colleagues, he is forced to flee Mali as they have been unjustly accused of harassing the President of the Legislative Assembly. Soumaila arrives in Rome in 2013, after crossing the Mediterranean Sea, and is granted international political asylum. His poetry takes its form from his feelings of anger and hope which arise from his experience and dream to bring justice back to his land.