ESPN: Refugee to role model: Ramla Ali

 

Michael Rothstein for ESPN relays the story of Ramla Ali, a refugee from Somalia.

Ali, a professional boxer, not long ago walked through a refugee camp in Jordan "hearing stories of separation and pain, of hope and resilience with the belief that one day, a new life would come." Ali was there as an ambassador with UNICEF UK.  Ali wanted to become a voice for refugees by amplifying their stories.

Rothstein writes:

"There are many celebrities who work with UNICEF, but few like Ali. Like the children she met, Ali is a refugee. Throughout her entire life, her parents have dropped hints about the country she desperately wants to one day see but has not returned to since the family left for England when she was a toddler.

Ali's life is like a jigsaw puzzle put together. From boxing to modeling, writing a book and being a humanitarian and a champion for women in London through the nonprofit she started, she has pushed past the limits of what may have seemed possible. [A few weeks ago], when she and Crystal Garcia Nova become the first women to box professionally in Saudi Arabia on the card headlined by the Oleksandr Usyk-Anthony Joshua heavyweight title fight, Ali will once again exceed expectations. And everything Ali has done in her life traces back to the place she comes from, yet has no recollection of.

Somalia." (bold added).

 

KJ