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Metro
a day ago
- General
- Metro
I can be myself in the UK - but now I can't go home
'I can now tell you that you are our first ever Miss Trans Global Uganda finalist – congratulations!' As soon as I heard this news in 2022 via Zoom, I screamed with delight. I had made it to the top seven of the global pageant and I couldn't be more proud. 'Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!' I shouted with joy and thanks. As a child, I loved everything about beauty and fashion, but I could never fully express this because I'm a transgender woman from Uganda. Although being trans is not explicitly banned in the country, people like me are essentially in legal limbo and discrimination is widespread. As a result, I felt like my dreams to explore creative arts were suffocated and I was forced to assimilate. I went to a Catholic school, which had a strict dress code. On top of that, I suffered through non-inclusive sex education, anti-LGBTQ+ religious sermons in church, and a derogatory media landscape. I decided I needed to prioritise a roof over my head before anything else. That meant that I sacrificed expressing or exploring my gender identity publicly. In order to find a sense of LGBTQ+ community, I created a fake profile on social media and joined an anonymous private group of similar people who were brave enough to express themselves online. Gradually, we started meeting each other secretly, despite living in the closet. With thousands of members from all over the world, our vibrant LGBTQ+ WhatsApp channel is a hub for all the latest news and important issues that face the LGBTQ+ community. Simply click on this link, select 'Join Chat' and you're in! Don't forget to turn on notifications! I couldn't really cross-dress in public with my new friends because I was scared of being outed, but I also didn't fit into the straight world either. So I felt stuck and unsafe, which impacted my emotional wellbeing. I devoted my time and energy into graduating. After that, I applied for a Commonwealth Shared Scholarship, which is a fully-funded scholarship from the British Government. Two months later, I was delighted to find out that my application was successful, so I moved to the UK in 2021 to study a masters at the University of Bath. Life after I came to the UK was liberating. Compared to Uganda, British cities embrace diversity from all walks of life. I watched TV shows that included trans people like Pose on BBC iPlayer. I also revamped my skincare routine and changed my wardrobe from a masculine to feminine aesthetic. I had the gender marker on legal documents changed and explored the nightlife of LGBTQ+ bars across the UK with a community of people just like me. Amanda was part of Hannah and Jake Graf's 'Trans is Human' campaign, which launched around Trans Day of Visibility (March 31) this year. For more information, visit their Instagram page here. The campaign is supported by Pride Wide, a charity featuring exclusive, investigative, fact-checked LGBTQ+ storytelling. Then in June 2022, I attended my first Pride parade in London and I was completely blown away by everyone proudly celebrating their identities. I was also pleasantly surprised by the support from the state in having police protection, endorsement from the mayor, and various companies marching in comradeship. None of these things would be possible in my home country. It was around this time that I stumbled across a Facebook post about a pageant called Miss Trans Global and was immediately interested in applying. Now that I was in the UK, I finally felt safe enough to be visible and express my true self. I had to send an audition tape talking about myself and why I wanted to compete in the pageant. 'I want to challenge stereotypes about femininity,' I said in the video, 'and I want to represent my country, Uganda.' I also had an interview with a panel of judges. In the lead up to the event, I made sure to learn how to walk confidently, practice public speaking, apply makeup, and show polished etiquette. Refugee Week is the world's largest arts and culture festival celebrating the contributions, creativity and resilience of refugees and people seeking safety. Each year, IMIX – a charity that helps change the way people think and talk about migration – supports Refugee Week Ambassadors. These are people, like Amanda, who came to the UK to rebuild their lives and who now play an important part in our communities. IMIX is proud to work with Metro as a trusted partner in highlighting these voices and shining a light on the many ways refugees help make the UK a better place for everyone. You can read Agnès' story below I followed every rule as an asylum seeker – I was still detained The pageant was intense from the very start – even though it all took place online due to Covid-19 restrictions. For the evening ball gown category, I walked in an elegant rose pink lace long prom dress as the crowds cheered via live streaming platforms like YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram. Throughout it all, I was nervous but also excited, since I was the first to represent Uganda. In the end, I won 'Third Princess Global' and 'Inspirational Queen of the Year', which I was thrilled with. The whole event was so special to me because it was an opportunity to celebrate our unique traits of beauty and gender expression in a world that forces us to live in fear or shame about our bodies. Personally, participating in a beauty pageant helped me find my feminine charm and confidence – something I've taken with me ever since. This newfound confidence helped me be proactive at university and I got elected as the campaign officer for the LGBTQ+ students club in 2022. I also started my medical transition that year, which is exciting, although comes with its own challenges. But being so open about my identity has had its downsides, leading me to getting outed in my home country. My family and friends back at home found out I was transgender through social media, and were initially furious. Some cut ties. Later, a few gradually became more accepting and looked to reconcile. But most people I knew still remain negative about my identity. As a result, it's no longer safe for me to return to Uganda. So I had to apply for asylum and was granted the right to remain in the UK in 2023. Besides that, life for me has been joyful as I have grown more in my career – working in the charity sector where I have co-founded a charity organisation called Minority Inclusion Foundation (which supports LGBTQ+ refugees) and even modelled in magazines, too. More Trending I am also an ambassador for Refugee Week UK 2025, which is the largest arts and culture festival celebrating the contributions, creativity, and resilience of refugees worldwide. From competing as Miss Trans Global Uganda, I learnt to conquer my fears about myself. The pageant changed my life by pushing me out of my comfort zone to a place of growth. It helped me change my geographical location, physical appearance, career and community, but most importantly the relationship I had with myself. This article was originally published April 6, 2025 Do you have a story you'd like to share? Get in touch by emailing Share your views in the comments below. MORE: I went to the world's wettest Pride parade where everyone gets soaked MORE: Stephen Fry's JK Rowling criticism is welcome – but I'm still disappointed MORE: 'I was the first person to survive rabies without a vaccination' Your free newsletter guide to the best London has on offer, from drinks deals to restaurant reviews.
South Wales Argus
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- South Wales Argus
Friendships driving Pulse success for Sophie Kelly
The goal attack believes it is a success built on friendships on and off the court which have instilled a trust and fearlessness that has allowed the squad to conquer all their foes. Pulse sit top of the Netball Super League and know a win on the final day will secure that place, and with it the top seed into the play-off semi-finals. 'The team is full of people who work so hard and we all have the same ambitions,' explained Kelly. 'We are quite a young team but that works to our advantage. We're fearless, so we're not scared to go and try new things. 'It's been really enjoyable. When we go out there, we all make sure we're enjoying our time playing as well as fighting to win and I think that really helps us push on. 'There are so many people in the team I look up to. Zara [Everitt], Liv [Olivia Tchine], everyone has got something which I can look up to so that's really great. 'I've spent a lot of time with Darcie [Everitt] because we share a hotel together and she's now one of my closest friends but I get on really well with everyone. 'We've had lots of social times and I have a great relationship with Liss [Alicia Scholes], which is really lovely because we play goal attack/wing attack together so that helps. 'The vibe of the team does help a lot. We all get each other's jokes, we all feel the same way about certain things so yeah, it's really nice.' The 21-year-old is tasting success in her first season in the capital, having made the switch from Team Bath last year, but is still commuting from the south west. She is currently in the third year of a management degree at the University of Bath but travels to London twice a week, where she stays with Darcie Everitt, who commutes from Loughborough, to train on top of games at the weekend. It is a commitment that has certainly paid dividends. London Pulse have lost just twice this season, securing victory over every team in the league at least once. Such results leave them well-placed to secure a home tie against Loughborough Lightning in the major semi-final, with a direct route to the Grand Final on the line, in what will be Kelly's first appearance in the play-offs. 'It would mean absolutely everything. From the start of the season we have set out to win the league and we fully believe we can so this is just another step on the journey,' she said. 'For me personally, playing at this high level in such competitive games is something I haven't really experienced in the NSL yet, so it's given me so much experience. '[I need to] just focus on what we're doing, our processes, and not put too much pressure on myself knowing that it's a semi-final. 'But at the same time we do have to acknowledge that it is a very important game so it's about calming the nerves and connecting with everyone. When we all come in together, help each other and settle down, that's when we play at our best." That emphasis on team bonds remains strong for Kelly, though her own individual displays have also impressed for Pulse this season as she has drawn on her prowess in sinking shots from range. She boasts a goal tally of 61 so far this season, earning her first full 60-minute for Pulse display during their crucial round 13 win over Manchester Thunder. 'I've always been known for those long shots, so when they introduced the Soft & Gentle Super Shot I was like, 'Oh this is brilliant because I can just shoot like normal and get two points for it,'' said Kelly. 'In our team, all three shooters are strong from long-range which is amazing because even if one person's not having a great day, the other two will come on and put up those long shots. 'Beating Thunder by 10 points goes to show what we can do as a team. We had a bit of a blip in the second quarter but we said it was really important to show that when it does get tight we can still grind out the win. 'When it does get close, we don't just give up, we keep on pushing on. So that was really, really important to focus on.' Kelly's form has been rewarded with a call-up to the England training squad for the Netball World Youth Cup (NWYC) and the Future Roses programme, with the final NWYC squad to be selected and announced in due course. It is another step on an ever-soaring trajectory for the youngster but once again it will be her teammates that remain fundamental to her development. 'It's always great to be selected by England. It shows that your hard work is paying off so it's really, really nice. I love going up and spending time with all the girls from England,' said Kelly. 'Lots of the England connections have been developing for a while because we've been in an academy together for years. 'We always have such a great time and the training is obviously so amazing. It gets you so fit over summer, so that's really good, and I've always wanted to play in the Under-21 World Youth Cup. 'I was born in 2004 so that makes me the oldest age eligible and when I realised I was like, 'Oh my god that is what I have wanted to do since I was about 15.'' To keep up with the latest news, make sure to follow the @NetballSL on X, Instagram and TikTok, Netball Super League on Facebook and LinkedIn, and subscribe to our newsletter. The NSL Grand Final will be held at The O2 on 6 July for the first time ever. Get your tickets to experience live elite netball!
Daily Mirror
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mirror
Putin's war sees one million troops dead & wounded as death toll mounts
Russia has paid a high price for its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine after Ukrainian officials revealed they have lost one million young men and women since the conflict began More than one million Russian servicemen and women have been killed as Vladimir Putin's gruelling war in Ukraine continues to roll on. Forty months of war have earned the despot just 20 per cent of Ukraine's total territory and one million battlefield casualties - which include slain troops and those too seriously injured to continue fighting. Thanks to Ukraine's defiant resistance to its eastern neighbour, Russia has paid a heavy price for its invasion - with the Ukrainian General Staff announcing that one million have been killed since February 24, 2022. The majority of those soldiers (628,000) were slaughtered in the past six months. Experts fear the huge losses are unlikely to deter Putin from his path due to the cult of human sacrifice that seems to run through Russian society. During the Second World War, Russia offered up between 27 and 42 million civilians and soldiers to defeat the invading Nazis. It's likely that Putin sees the current sacrifices as necessary to achieving greatness. University of Bath politics lecturer, Dr Stephen Hall, believes that Putin will continue sending young Russians to the slaughter as the conflict is heading in the right direction. Speaking to The Sun, he said: "Putin believes he's winning the war. The Russian army is moving forward like it or not. He believes that he can outlast the West, that the West is weak." Russia is using a strategy similar to the one used in World War Two - one of "meat assault" - which involves flooding the front line with overwhelming numbers, Dr Hall added. The strategy comes straight out of the playbook of his bloodthirsty Soviet predecessors, like Stalin, who believed in sending "ten men to every rifle" - meaning "you pick up the rifle of a fall soldier. You keep going, you get shot. You're next. Your buddy picks up your rifle." In time, the Soviet army would eventually breach their enemy's frontline. And because the Russian people "know how to suffer", it's easy for Putin to send them to the meat grinder, Dr Hall adds. In many countries, the loss of a million young men and women could cause a breakdown in civil society, but Russians are kept placid because the Kremlin lies to them, according to Dr Hall. He said: "They're simply not going to be told, especially in the poorer areas where Russia is recruiting - like Buryatia and Bashkortostan and elsewhere." It comes as Washington puts pressure on Kyiv and Moscow to bring about an end to the conflict, but Dr Hall says he thinks they're unlikely to build any lasting peace any time soon. Even in the event that Ukraine does concede some of its sovereign territory, Putin will not agree because he feels he's on a sacred mission to defend the motherland against the West. Dr Hall said: 'Putin has been very clear. They're not fighting Ukraine. Ukraine is the battleground. They're fighting the West.' "Ukraine has been forced to fight a war with two hands tied behind its back — a war that NATO would never fight." Putin hopes Ukraine will simply accept whatever Russia offers. This is because Russia is going to keep feeding the war machine with its citizens, and the West is becoming less invested in it. Just yesterday, more than 1,140 Russian soldiers were killed or wounded, which shows just how comfortable the warlord is with sacrificing his own troops. According to the Ukraine's General Staff, the lives of 1,000,340 Russian personnel have been lost since February 2022. As well as the dead, this number also includes those so seriously wounded they could not return to fight.
The National
09-06-2025
- Politics
- The National
Expert gives verdict as BBC bosses plan to win over Reform UK voters
THE BBC is 'taking its cue from Donald Trump' by proposing to alter its drama output in a bid to win the trust of Reform UK voters, an expert on mainstreaming the far-right has said. BBC bosses including director-general Tim Davie have reportedly drawn up plans to win over Reform voters due to a belief their news and drama output is creating 'low trust issues' with supporters of Nigel Farage. Minutes from a meeting of the broadcaster's editorial guidelines and standards committee from March, revealed by The Byline Times, show that BBC News CEO Deborah Turness gave a presentation in which she discussed plans to alter "story selection" and "other types of output, such as drama" to win the trust of Reform voters. Professor Aurelien Mondon, an expert at the University of Bath on the mainstreaming of the far right, said he is concerned the BBC are 'caving in' to a backlash against equality and diversity with these plans, largely spearheaded by US President Trump. READ MORE: LBC spark fury with pro-Israel report on seizure of Madleen Gaza ship Asked about proposals to alter drama output specifically, Mondon told The National: 'This is the most concerning element to me. 'I think what we are seeing here is a pushback against equality and diversity and inclusion and it seems to me the BBC is taking its cue from Donald Trump, quite directly. 'It seems they are caving to this backlash against equality, diversity and inclusion. 'My worry is that they are jumping the gun and we're seeing that not just in the media, we're seeing it in universities as well, we're seeing a pushback in businesses. 'I think people are accepting a new world order without even pushing back. My worry is that this is what this is about, the changing [of] drama programmes.' Farage has repeatedly attacked the BBC, having called it a 'political actor' last year while appearing on GB News. He threatened to boycott the corporation following a Question Time appearance in which he was taken to task by members of the public over repeated instances of Reform candidates being involved in allegations of racism and homophobia. Following the broadcast, Farage said the audience was rigged and that they 'were not ordinary members of the public'. He threatened to not appear on the BBC until the broadcaster apologised. A YouGov poll last September showed less than 20% of Reform UK voters trusted the BBC to tell the truth. However, the same poll also showed more than 50% of people in the UK overall do not trust the BBC to tell the truth. (Image: University of Bath) In revealing plans to alter its coverage to try and win the trust of Reform voters, Mondon said the BBC is misunderstanding its role as a public broadcaster and how popular the party actually is. 'I think they misunderstand their role as a public broadcaster whose mission should be the defence of democracy,' he said. "It should platform a diversity of views, but that does not mean that it should give uncritical space to ideas which are contrary to democratic principle or a threat to some communities. This is deeply counterproductive as the case of the US has shown. 'The other thing I think they wilfully misunderstand is the level of support for Reform. In a way, they've bought into their own hype. 'Much of the media has been hyping the popularity of Reform in the last few months which I think is very problematic. I don't want to downplay the recent opinion polls that have shown Reform could be the most popular party, for example, but I think we need to take this with a grain of salt. "We've seen that in many other democracies the far right rising not because they are popular but because the mainstream parties are failing and losing support mostly to abstention. We have witnessed countless times now that giving uncritical platforms to the far right or disproportionate attention, it only ends up benefitting them." READ MORE: Richard Murphy: What to expect from Rachel Reeves's spending review The BBC has repeatedly been criticised for the extent to which it has platformed Farage and radical right or far right figures in recent years. The Question Time episode criticised by Farage was hastily arranged by the BBC so he could appear after not being involved in a previous edition, while a Panorama interview with Nick Robinson was also rescheduled last year after Farage pulled out at the last minute. Tom Mills, a sociology expert who wrote The BBC: The Myth of a Public Service, said last July said BBC had been 'really bad' at robustly questioning Farage throughout the election because, he claimed, it is more comfortable with an anti-establishment figure on the right than the left. The BBC was also found to have been disproportionately platforming people from right-wing media outlets on Question Time over the past decade by researchers at Cardiff University. They analysed a total of 352 programmes with 1734 guest slots, which were filled by 661 different people. However, while they found that the BBC had 'broadly balanced' appearances from representatives of the UK's main political parties, when it came to members of the media a right-wing bias became evident. The BBC was additionally called out on air in April by former presenter Matthew Stadlen for platforming anti-Muslim 'extremist' Douglas Murray, after he was given an eight-minute interview on Newsnight. The committee which discussed the plans to appeal more to Reform voters in March, included former GB News executive Robbie Gibb, who is also a former director of communications at Number 10 and an outspoken Brexiteer. Mondon has warned the BBC that continuing to hand a platform to Reform UK and far-right figures is a serious threat to democracy that the broadcaster should be seeking to protect. 'You don't need Reform in power to have far right politics in place,' Mondon went on. 'What we're seeing with a Labour government is that a lot of the discourse Reform was pushing is becoming increasingly normalised. The more they are given airtime on legitimate news sources, the worse things are going to get for democracy. 'We should be talking about the climate, education, housing, pensions and the cost of living and all we end up talking about is immigration in ways that are completely disproportionate. 'This is not what most people in the UK care about. This is what our media, our mainstream politicians, have placed high on the agenda to divert attention from the real crises they have no answers to.' The BBC has been approached for comment.
Ya Biladi
05-06-2025
- Science
- Ya Biladi
Morocco adds a new duckbill dinosaur to its roster with the discovery of Taleta taleta
A recent paleontological study has added another piece to the puzzle of hadrosaurid dinosaurs, plant-eating dinosaurs famous for their flat, duck-like snouts, in Morocco with the discovery of a new species. This new piece is Taleta taleta, a duckbill dinosaur believed to have lived in what is now Morocco around 66 million years ago. Two associated jawbones of Taleta taleta were discovered in the Ouled Abdoun Basin, a phosphate sedimentary basin near the city of Khouribga, according to a paper published in Gondwana Research by University of Bath paleontologist Nicholas Longrich and colleagues from Spain, France, and Morocco. This discovery strengthens the evidence that a group of lambeosaurine hadrosaurids, a subgroup of duckbills characterized by hollow crests, successfully dispersed into North Africa from Europe near the end of the Cretaceous, around 66 million years ago. Morocco is now home to at least three known lambeosaurine species: Ajnabia odysseus, Minqaria bata, and the newly identified Taleta taleta. Their coexistence suggests these dinosaurs underwent significant adaptive radiation, rapid diversification to fill different ecological niches, after arriving in Africa. Although Taleta belongs to the same family as the two previously discovered lambeosaurine hadrosaurids, some differences emerge. «Taleta, known from two associated maxillae, differs from Ajnabia and Minqaria by several unique features: a dorsally positioned ectopterygoid ridge, a straight tooth row, large obliquely oriented maxillary tooth crowns, and a prominent primary ridge on the maxillary teeth», the researchers explained. «Remarkably, this specimen cannot be referred to either Ajnabia or Minqaria. Instead, it represents a third genus and species», Longrich emphasized. The discovery also sheds light on the geological context of the Ouled Abdoun Basin phosphates. «The phosphates of the Ouled Abdoun Basin consist of a series of phosphatic sands, marls, and limestones deposited in a shallow marine environment at a time when the North Atlantic extended inland, covering much of present-day Morocco», the researchers concluded.
