Rissa Seidou: A Story of Resilience and Empathy

Anna Gullberg's Review of 'Sommar i P1' with Rissa Seidou

Some people simply amaze us with their ability to endure hardships and emerge not as a lesser version of themselves, but as a much better and stronger one.

Seidou is such a unique individual. Fleeing her homeland, becoming a mother to a severely disabled child, facing racism within the police force and society at large, living amidst gang wars, constantly helping the weakest and smallest yet never quite being enough. And still, she remains in good spirits, filled with empathy. There is so much she has experienced, all to be shared in a single summer talk, and she does not seek to make herself important—she is driven by her mission. She hopes to occasionally shed the armor she wears. I ponder the burden of being the perfect immigrant, and how it feels to be the one who must constantly fight to earn a place in society, not just exist like everyone else.