Cheeman arrived in Finland from Northern Iraq via Turkey and Russia in 1992, following an arranged marriage to an older man who had already fled to the country due to the war.
– It was a tough experience for a young girl to move to a new country without knowing the language or the culture. At that time, there were no immigration services available, so I learned Finnish and about everyday life in Finland with the help of friends I made through my family and the church.
Cheeman dreamed of having a different life in Finland than what was possible in Iraq. She wanted to study, work, and advance in her career. However, she soon realized that her place in the marriage would be at home, essentially between the fist and the stove. Her first three children were born in the years following her getting married, and Cheeman stayed home to care for them.
Soon, her husband began showing signs of radicalization. Cheeman was not allowed to live as freely as she had hoped.
– I couldn’t go to school or work; I had to stay at home. That’s when the violence also began, Cheeman explains.
Finally, in 2004, Cheeman gathered her courage and filed for divorce, even though she didn’t know how she would manage as an uneducated single mother. To put food on the table, she worked in cafés and also started receiving interpreting assignments. She also dreamed of studying.