Going to sea to honour my son

Yayi Bayam Diouf's son was a fisherman, until poor catches drove him to pursue a new life in Europe. But on the hazardous crossing from Senegal to the Canary Islands, his boat went down in a storm, and Yayi was left with no body to bury. To feel close to her son, and to honour his wishes as a fisherman, she decided to go fishing herself. First she had to fight her community's patriarchal rules, which forbade women from fishing. Photo: Yayi Bayam Diouf with a photo of her son Alioune Credit: Finbarr O'Reilly - Alamy Get in touch: [email protected]