My foray into journalism captures stories of diversity activists Lynne E Blackwood

In 2013 I was very lucky to receive a bursary from Disability Arts Online to attend the Personal to Universal Symposium in Salisbury and learn interview journalism techniques. This culminated in conducting interviews of two panel members and writing up the articles for publication.

I was fortunate to interview Hassan Mahamdallie, at the time Senior Diversity Strategy Officer at Arts Council England and instigator of the Creative Case for Diversity, and Jo Verrent, who continues her tireless work in promoting disabled creatives through the Unlimited programme.

I listened to their panel talks, researched and drew up a list of questions. I played at being a ‘real’ journalist and I had a blast. Both interviews went well over the 20 minutes allocated time, and both Hassan and Jo said they had never had such an excellent and enjoyable time being interviewed.

I feel quite proud of those articles, even though I haven’t done much ‘journalism’ since. But the best aspect is having hooked up with two amazing activists who imbued me with strength and hope at a time when self-confidence was lacking.

We are still in contact and follow each other’s activities. That’s the best legacy – belonging to a community and learning from others.”