Samira Rahman

"I don’t know anyone who grew up in Sweden with a foreign background who hasn’t experienced some form of bicultural stress."

My name is Samira Rahman, and I am the founder and president of We Listen In, an organization dedicated to improving mental health support for multicultural women in Sweden. I was born and raised in Stockholm, but both of my parents are from Bangladesh. While I loved growing up in Sweden, I faced challenges navigating between different cultures.
Today, a third of Sweden’s population has a foreign background, meaning many people share the experience of living between cultures—a phenomenon often referred to as "in-between-ship."

In my life, this expresses itself as the feeling of not being "Swedish enough" in Swedish spaces and not "Bengali enough" with family. We identified two common types of stress in multicultural populations. The first is minority stress, experienced by those in minority groups. The second, which we are pioneering in Sweden, is bicultural stress, which arises from navigating between different cultures. The greater the cultural differences, the more intense the stress.

When I follow Swedish norms, I often go against Bengali cultural values, and when I align with Bengali culture, I tend to do the opposite of what’s expected in Swedish society. For instance, drinking alcohol is common in Sweden but not acceptable in Bengali culture, leading to conflicts between the two. This experience of navigating different cultures created stress for me and many of my friends. We founded We Listen In because we wished for a space where we could feel empowered as multicultural women. Since such a space didn’t exist, we decided to create what we needed back then.

At We Listen In, we offer a variety of programs, including workshops, events, retreats, and internships. We have also provided mentorship, tailoring our activities to meet the diverse needs of our members. The name "We Listen In" reflects the importance of collective empowerment. Research shows that when minority groups come together, it can be incredibly healing, helping people realize they aren’t alone in their challenges. Personally, I’ve had members share how the community gave them the courage to ask for promotions, change careers, or pursue education. Hearing these stories is often emotional for me.

It’s the emotional challenges that we face as multicultural women that drive me to keep building a supportive space where multicultural women feel understood and empowered. My hope is for We Listen In to become the primary forum where multicultural women can improve their mental health and feel truly seen. Despite the hardships, we also prioritize having fun through our events. For us, creating joy is essential, and if something stops being fun, we simply won’t do it.

This project is funded by the European Union.