Visit https://go.a1connect.com.au/pod-mmm-e5 if you're a migrant or a business looking to support migrant workers.

Aminata’s Story: Survival, Belonging, and Motherhood in Sierra Leone and Australia

In the Migration Matters podcast, Aminata shares her experience of the Sierra Leone civil war, describing how rebels separated her from her father, her kidnapping and repeated rape, and how her faith and her father’s love sustained her until her release through a peace exchange and evacuation after the UN identified ongoing danger. Now living in Australia, she reflects on stereotypes and assumptions faced by refugees and Black Africans, and argues that inclusion is belonging, representation matters, and people should be judged by character and integrity. She explains how her early experiences shaped her commitment to give back, and outlines her work as founder and CEO of the Aminata Maternal Foundation, focused on ending infant and maternal mortality, highlighting Sierra Leone’s extreme childbirth risks and urging community action and support.

00:00 A Moment of Terror
00:09 Podcast Series Intro
00:40 Meet the Speaker
01:47 War in Sierra Leone
03:41 Kidnapped and Surviving
04:48 Release and Forgiveness
06:58 New Life in Australia
07:58 Stereotypes and Curiosity
10:38 Belonging and Representation
12:05 Maternal Health Mission
14:51 Call to Action and Hope

Visit https://go.a1connect.com.au/pod-mmm-e6 if you're a migrant or a business looking to support migrant workers.

Oksana Koriakova: From Armed Robbery to a New Life in Australia

Oksana Koriakova recounts preparing to travel to Australia for a six month English course when three armed men broke into her home, assaulted her and her mother, and stole bundles of money she was taking for the trip; police arrived, her mother was treated at hospital, and despite the criminal case (two robbers later receiving eight year sentences), she secured tickets to Moscow and flew on to Sydney, arriving on 13 September. She describes the first six months as the hardest of her life, homesick, broke, with little English, using dictionaries, post it notes, and living with Australians to learn. After planning to return home, a conversation led her to an immigration lawyer, permanent residency, and starting businesses, including an award winning corporate gifts company, followed by a second company she has run for 21 years, crediting Australia for the life she created.

00:00 Armed Robbery Shock
00:10 Podcast Series Intro
00:51 Bon Voyage Morning
02:27 Masked Men Break In
04:24 Aftermath And Hospital
05:41 Fighting To Fly Out
06:41 Goodbye To Dad
07:11 Landing In Sydney
08:32 Hardest Six Months
09:17 Learning English Hacks
10:29 Avoiding Russian Bubble
11:54 Funny English Mistakes
12:36 Decision To Stay
13:56 Starting A Business
15:11 Success And Gratitude
15:48 Closing Quote

Rugare Gomo: Finding Freedom, Power, and Love in Australia

In the Migration Matters podcast limited series, Rugare Gomo, originally from Zimbabwe, shares how moving to Australia 23 years ago for education and opportunity became a freedom journey of healing and self-discovery. He acknowledges the sacrifices of the women in his family and describes growing up being told he did not belong, then arriving in Australia with low self-esteem and limiting beliefs shaped by race, sexuality, and social expectations. He recounts pivotal moments of acceptance and advocacy, from a classmate affirming that black is beautiful, to Margaret Kennedy encouraging him to use his voice to pursue university and later challenge employment barriers as a non-citizen, leading him to become an Australian qualified lawyer and one of the first Black and African lawyers in his firm. He credits Australia with resilience, power as a self-expressed gay African Zimbabwean Australian, and love, and closes with a poem honoring Australia and acknowledging Traditional Owners.

00:00 Resilience and Love
00:09 Podcast Introduction
00:40 Meet Aro Gomo
01:04 Roots and Belonging
02:26 Freedom Journey Begins
03:34 Finding Confidence
05:16 Doors to University
06:18 Breaking into Law
08:39 Gifts from Australia
09:43 Book and Poem Setup
10:14 Poem to Australia
12:19 Closing Thanks