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About Me Stories

A publication dedicated to bringing out the stories behind the writers themselves. A place of autobiographies. Types of personal stories include introductions, memoirs, self-reflections, and self-love.

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About Me — Safir Boukhalfa

5 min readSep 24, 2024

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The image features an Amazigh person with brown skin, dark curly hair, and a trimmed beard, standing outdoors in a desert setting. They are wearing a navy-blue t-shirt and a black baseball cap. The person holds their sunglasses, which are black with thick frames, on top of their head with their right hand while smiling broadly, showing their teeth. Their eyes are slightly squinted, and they look directly at the camera, radiating warmth and happiness.
Photo of author in the Sahara Desert during a week-long hike

Afro-European and Back Again

I was born in France, but life at home was distinctly Algerian. As an Amazigh person of color, Darja was the language of my family, the way we communicated and connected.

Every time I stepped outside, I was in France, but inside, I was in Algeria.

That constant back and forth between worlds felt natural to me, even as I juggled multiple layers of identity — queer, neurodivergent, Muslim. It shaped who I am today — a person who moves fluidly through different spaces without feeling the need to compromise any part of myself.

At school, I quickly picked up French and English, almost as if it were expected. Or maybe even beyond what was expected as other students struggled so much with the English part. But it wasn’t about fitting in — it was about gaining the tools to navigate the wider world, while still honoring my roots.

The Silence of Malaga

When I moved to Malaga (Spain) for my studies, my experience took an interesting turn. For the first four months, I barely spoke. It wasn’t a language barrier actually — I later came to understand that my autism (that I was so far…

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About Me Stories
About Me Stories

Published in About Me Stories

A publication dedicated to bringing out the stories behind the writers themselves. A place of autobiographies. Types of personal stories include introductions, memoirs, self-reflections, and self-love.

Safir Boukhalfa
Safir Boukhalfa

Written by Safir Boukhalfa

I am a DEI Consultant specializing in neurodiversity, anti-racism, and queer inclusion. Happy coach, writer, advocate and future neuroscientist.

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