Co-founder of Our Table / Activist / Chef
(We sat down with Ellie in her office on 30 July 2019)
What’s your story?
My name is Ellie Kisyombe and I was born and raised in Malawi and I moved over here to Ireland a few years ago. The first few months I had to find my feet because I was in a very dark place and it was a hard situation, and I also left my children back home, so I had to think of my family and that. Then I started my asylum process. As I was getting along the system, I found my feet and I started volunteering to help my fellow asylum seekers living in Direct Provision and all that. From there I lived with many different people who had their own difficulties – some of them had no English communication, they had their own cultural languages. I did my research and tried to connect myself with Irish sisters to get them to come and help them learn English. I went out and spread the message of Direct Provision, talked about migrants and the struggles of migrant people who are in this country, you know trying to break the cultural barriers. Then, I met Michelle Damode and we co-founded Our Table and through that we set up pop up cafes around Dublin and then around Ireland and we started cooking … and now the whole country knows me!
Can you tell us more of the insights around why you set up OurTable?
Well it was a response to the ban on asylum seekers being able to cook their own cultural meal, and not only their own cultural meal, but not being given the chance to prepare their own meals. As you know like, we as mothers from the cultural backgrounds from which we’re coming, children learn more about familyhood by seeing their parents and mothers cooking for them and passing down this cultural culinary skill – and even knowing the food from where your parents are coming from is being able to understand yourself. So, food is political. There is more to food. You can’t have a healthy family without healthy food on the table. And even in Direct Provision, their cooking process is this mass industrial cooking and most of their food is processed, there’s no fresh food or healthy food. And one thing I’ve learned of recently is that in Direct Provision they don’t have a standard menu – like what hospitals and schools might have. Direct Provision doesn’t even have that. You know, these are crucial things, these people in DP are being treated different to every other person. So, this was the start of Our Table. It was a response to that and not only that but when you’re in DP you live long periods in there where you’re unable to be active and not even able to go out. You know, mental health in these places are big problems. Some people have lived in DP for five and half years so you can imagine, you become unemployable and you get a low self-esteem. So, this is what we looked at when we started Our Table. So, when they come out, they can integrate in breaking bread and start a conversation. You know, these people have gone through trauma, and really tough stuff – you know they’ve seen family killed in front of them, tortured – these are traumatic situations and they tell you these stories. But then they have this food from home, and they start talking about this food and you know, you can eat food with anyone – even with your enemies – it really breaks that barrier. And also, asylum seekers are not allowed to work. When I started Our Table I was not taking a wage. The people working around me who had the right papers could get paid but I could not. We’re trying to expand now and looking at how we can get funding and how we can employ more people. There is a need to try and bring these different cultures in Ireland together and break those barriers.
Nollaig na mBan 2020
The power of sharing and breaking bread. And the healing of food.
Yes! Food is great. Like I’ve enjoyed every minute of running this project.
Have you any childhood memories that helped define who you are?
I was born into a loving family and we were very close. We have very loving parents who wanted the best for us, and I think that’s why I’m a people person. Something I love most about myself, something I encourage, is just ‘be you.’ The flaws, the goodies, just put it on the table! Be who you are. I’m vulnerable but I’m strong too.
Had you any role models?
I have Michelle Obama; I have Darina Allen. She is a very strong women, a very successful and strong businesswoman. Oprah Winfrey. Really incredible women. And Sinead Burke – I love the spirit and the ‘yeah, I’m here guys!’ Amazing. And I’m my father’s daughter. My mam and aunt were also great inspirations. My mam was a great cook. If she was here she’d be the likes of Darina Allen, and then my aunt took over when my mam died and she kind of modernised everything.
And when you say you’re your father’s daughter, what do you mean by that?
Well I’m the like of my father. Anyone who knows my father will tell you I have every character that my father had – he was smart, strong, intelligent and he was an entrepreneur. He had a big agricultural investment company. So, he was a huge guy in that, and he was also a property developer.
So, he was very supportive of you growing up, was he?
Yeah, he was. Unfortunately, I had kids when I was really young so that kind of made him to be a little bit harder on me – in a way that he wanted to make me more masculine if that makes sense. Like where I came from there was no feminism or being feminist or stuff like that. Men and women had their own roles. Men were powerful, providers and go-getters and women were supportive and cooking for the family and that. So, my father raised me more masculine and he raised me like my brothers.
Have you seen many differences between Irish women and Malawi women?
Well we are go-getters. We have to work extra hard for everything.
And what can Irish women learn from Malawi women?
We are very strong. Capable. And also, don’t undermine yourself – you carry the power. Even though people try to put us under, we are the women who hold up the village.
We have a really strong heritage in Ireland – our tribal stories and mythology and that – which is a strong influence on us growing up. Are there particular tribal stories or heritage stories from Malawi that you want to tell us about?
Well, I’m a very mixed person. My father comes from Northern Malawi and they are very educated people and they have a culture of having maids and stuff. They all go to school, they’re go-getters. My mum is centre and southern Malawi. And where she comes from women are women – they’re a tool kind of, they marry and give babies and they sit at home. My mam had a bit of character from that – she was very, very quiet. And then she also came from the centre, the central women are below their men, but they are farmers. So, they go to the garden a lot. My characters are from the North – because from where my mother came from, women don’t behave the way I behave!
Isn’t it amazing that your mum came from that background but was a great entrepreneur? Who supported her in that?
My father. My father had money. He had multiple wives – that’s usual that way. He married three times. But he was a huge support to all of us, to all of us children too. I’m also very close to my mum’s family. My grandmother had 13 kids and every one of them got educated. We were linked to one of the white people – you know the white people who came to Malawi – our family was connected to one of them and in the 70’s he wanted to take my mam to the States to get educated but my granda was scared he was like ‘don’t take my child, she will never come back.’
Other than food, have you other ways you’re bringing your culture to Ireland?
Well I’m a woman full of ideas and what I’m trying to do is break this cultural barrier. That’s one thing I’m looking at – you get scared at things you don’t know, and I think Irish people are scared because they don’t know how spectacular it would be to mix these cultures. I have a project upcoming – I can’t talk about it – but I hope it would help break that barrier.
You ran for election recently. Tell us about that.
Yeah so it was a very great experience – I have no regrets. There was good and bad, but I don’t focus on the bad. That’s just me. It was really great on the ground – everyone was very supportive. This is my constituency; so, it’s hard to get people in the North Dublin inner city to go out and vote. They are working class and they feel like there is nothing for them. But it was good that they allowed me in their space and they talked to me; they were saying, you know, ‘I’ve been voting for this party and they never even come on my door and give me five minutes – but you, black woman, coming and chatting to me – I’ll give you my vote.’
Yeah, you must really be inspiring the younger generation, those who are still in Direct Provision now…
Yeah, people want to now engage. I’ve seen a lot of things come behind Our Table, you know, people are inspired to do things. I feel now that I shouldn’t undermine myself. I am a role model and when you are a role model you really have to figure out how to pass your legacy, how to pass your treasure. You know, I want to live here, raise my kids here, and grandkids here and I am going to die here. When I was running for election, I met people who were nasty to me that were like ‘oh she just wants to use the Irish passport...’ but you know I want to prove them wrong. I’m not here to prove anyone wrong but I just want to tell them that you know what, my mind was here. I came to Ireland at a time when there was nothing for people like me. I’ve made something for people like me. And this is what I’m going to continue – I’m going to do something for everyone.
What did it feel like to get your Irish residency?
I’m just so happy, at first there were tears, you know! It was just like … this is real, and then it’s like … I’m home! It’s a good feeling. It’s never been easy for all these years, and just not knowing what’s going to happen. And it came at a time when I didn’t even expect it, because like the whole crew – even my legal team – they weren’t sure, they had already spoke to me and were like ‘Ellie this is a high profile case and we don’t know what direction it’s gonna go.’ So, yeah!
How’d you celebrate?
Well Paddy’s day is going on and I had this group of girlfriends and they and their partners did a barbeque summer lunch for me and we had a great time.
What’s the process going forward from your Irish residency?
It would be me now, I’ve got many years just to be a good citizen, to work and to contribute to the economy and not be involved in crimes. And then I think it’s three and a half or five years – I have to sit down with my residency officer - but then I’d be a full Irish citizen. But for me, I’m already home – this was the piece of paper I was waiting for and the rest is just a bonus.
If we were sitting here a year from now celebrating what a great year you’ve had – what would it be that you did?
A year from now? Even now my mind is running crazy, I’m trying to stop myself! A year from now we would be celebrating my stability and that project I can’t talk about! And forming a country that would be beneficial and meaningful for all of us
OurTable are currently fundraising so that they can cook wholesome food for people living in Direct Provision over Refugee Week (15 - 21 June 2020). You can donate here..