ROUTES INTO WORK
many talented people who end up
just wasting their lives.”
Refusing to give in to despair, while
on remand, he took his A-levels. “I
used to pray every day that if this
doesn’t break me, it will surely make
me,” he says. “I was the first person
ever to do A-levels in Feltham Young
Offenders Institution. And I passed
them. And that was what helped me
to get through. I definitely knew that
this would not be the end of my story.”
Pursuit of social justice
Halfway through his trial, Imafidon was
acquitted of murder and cleared
of all other charges by the direction
of the judge. Remarkably, he was
released having drawn resilience and
positivity from his experience rather
than anger and bitterness. “As I look
back, a lot of lessons I learnt in prison,
I still hold with me today,” he
acknowledges.
Since then, he has achieved a
degree in law (winning a tuition-free
scholarship to study at private
university BPP through the Amos
Bursary) and is devoting much of his
life to pursuing social justice. Following
his time at Feltham, he wrote The
Kenny Report, which looked at gangs
and serious youth violence, and how
government policy has a part to play
in what happens in marginalised
communities. He launched it in the
House of Commons in 2012 and was
proud to hear it referenced by
academics and politicians.
“That was a big turning moment
in changing my story and the narrative
about me,” he says, explaining that it
paved the way for further reports,
including one with a team of 24 young
authors, representing the biggest
piece of youth-led research ever
done in the UK.
Having taken back control of his
own future, Imafidon is now helping
to rewrite the narrative around young
black people in the UK. “In terms of
society’s view of young black men,
it’s very much driven by the negative
stereotypes they see in the media – of
crime and hoodies – and that needs
to change,” he asserts. “There are so
many young black men – and women
– doing exceptional things, despite
their circumstances.”
The Kenny Report: How do politics
and economics affect gangs and
serious youth violence across the UK?
bit.ly/KennyReport
ABOUT BECOMINGX
BecomingX launches in early 2020. For a
taster of their content, watch the
promotional film of CEO and founder
Paul Gurney’s interview with Kenny
Imafidon at bit.ly//KennyImafidonVideo
FUTURE TALENTED // 29