If you didn't know already, I'm a scouser born and bred, and I'm proud. I was born in Oxford Street Hospital (before it was knocked down and the Women's was created) on Tuesday 19th October 1993 in the early hours. I've lived in different areas of South Liverpool my entire my life before moving up to Newcastle for uni. I've always been proud of where I come from but my feelings started to change when I moved away. Why?
Everyone who moved into my student accommodation were from different areas of the UK and elsewhere. Luckily, the lad in the room next to me in my flat was also from Liverpool so I didn't feel singled out. I started to notice "I had an accent" when speaking to others and they would either look at me like I was an alien or I was speaking a complete different language. Let me start off here: I don't have a strong accent. Place me in town and you will notice that I don't have a thick accent, nor do I pronounce words exactly the same way. My Nan and Dad don't have a strong accent, and although mine is slightly stronger, I still don't sound really scouse. So why where people looking at me like I don't speak English?
My sister Sofia and I, and my boyfriend Andy who is from Derbyshire.
I'm not just talking about 18 year olds moving to uni, I'm talking about adults. I once had a job offer over the phone, and when they hearing me say 'Hello, yes this is Laura" they said "I can tell you're from Liverpool" and proceeded to assume I wouldn't be able to take the job over the summer. I couldn't accept as I didn't have a place to stay since our tenancy began in the September last year. But why did the person feel the need to announce where I was from? They could have simply said "This job is for the summer, would that be okay?"
Ignorance is bliss they say. No it isn't. Why should I be judged based on where I was born. I didn't have a choice where I was born. My parents are both from Liverpool, as are all of my close family. That doesn't mean I should be discriminated against. People shouldn't make comments based on ludicrous 70's style Harry Enfield jokes, telling me to "calm down" when I don't believe I have ever told people to calm down in that tone of voice. Why do people make sarcastic jokes to be 'careful' in case I steal something, because stereotypically 'all scousers are thieves'? I can feel myself getting wound up as I write this because I would never judge anyone based on their age, gender, race or colour so why am I judged because I'm a scouser?!
My best friend Robyn aka Twinny & I, primary school and now. Do we look scouse?
It's not funny. It's not mature. It's essentially bullying if it is repeated and if you've seen some of my older posts, you'll know how much bullying has affected me and how much I detest bullies. I get assumptions based on me too, like am I going to wear rollers during the day before my night out, have I got 'Scouse Brows' and what colour tan am I going to wear. I own rollers, but I've never used them because they make my hair static. I have eyebrows funnily enough and technically they are scouse. I've seen photos of girls all over the world filling in their eyebrows with what looks like a sharpie, don't assume that is a scouse thing. I wear fake tan the odd time a year, but don't like it because I actually like being pale. Assumptions rebutted. I love wearing natural looking false eyelashes, and have reviewed thicker lashes before because trying new products is fun.
I've always thought that I'd like to start YouTube, but when speaking to my lovely friend Jemma who is also from Merseyside, it made me realise that this discrimination will only continue on the internet, with bigger, meaner trolls. She said about a week ago "I hate that I have that tagging along me every time I open my mouth" because she feels that people will assume she sounds chavvy based on where she comes from. She feels like some Southern English people she knows, see her as 'rough' which is exactly how I feel when I talk to people who aren't from Merseyside. Now do you see a pattern here, another person feeling judged by others and made to feel like she shouldn't be proud of her roots. Who has the right to judge us? Nobody does.
Sorry for the long post! I've been holding this in for about two years and decided it is my time to speak out. No matter where you come from, I won't judge your accent just because it isn't the same as mine, so I don't expect to be judged in the same way.
Have any of you experienced this?
