Olubunmi Odejimi
A young female lawyer in the United Kingdom has defiled the laws of nature by becoming Britain’s first black blind barrister at just 23-year-old.
When life throws lemons at you, make lemonades is exactly what Jessikah Inaba did by refusing to remain in darkness for the rest of her life. Born with an eye condition called bilateral microphthalmia, where a baby’s eyes are smaller than usual, Jessikah took the mandate to walk into the light.
Jessikah Inabah currently lives in Camden but grew up in southeast London with her parents and siblings. She spent her primary school years in local mainstream schools and completed her secondary education at a school in Surrey, all of which had units to support pupils with visual impairments.
The blind barrister launched her career in law by getting a degree in Law in September 2017 at the university of law, London. Following that, she pursued a masters in 2019 alongside a professional training course.
It took seven months for the university to obtain one of her two key study texts so she could read on her computer, and five months for the other. This didn’t stop her as she completed her entire course using Braille and also has her friends as well as her tutors to thank, for helping to fill in the gaps.
Braille can be read on a special screen that usually gives one line at a time, or from specially printed books.
In court, Jessikah uses a tiny electronic machine with a Braille keyboard which has one key for each dot and a small screen where symbols pop up. This means she can keep her ears free to listen and can read and edit easily just by using her hands.
According to reports and interviews granted by Jessikah, she is now planning to apply for a pupillage – where newly qualified barristers get their first placement in chambers .
If Jessikah could do it with all the challenges facing her, what is stopping you from achieving that dream or goal today?
