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Facing Islamophobia in the UK: Five British Muslim women speak out | Featured Documentary | Al Jazeera English | YouTubeToText
YouTube Transcript: Facing Islamophobia in the UK: Five British Muslim women speak out | Featured Documentary
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Video Transcript
oh [Music]
[Music]
oh oh [Music]
[Music]
oh what does it hurt to learn something
about something you don't know about
people you don't know what does it hurt
to do that Muslims are made to look
villainous on the M stream media an easy
target a Target that nobody ever wants
to defend they always say we want you to
get involved in the we are involved in
the community you just don't see it she
looked at the image and she was like you
don't at all look like a terrorist there
but like it's like what does the
mainly for eggs and for the children as
well cuz my kids don't play with toys at
all it all started off with one or two
now it's become a lot we have rabbits as
well so come come through CL your little
rabbit this rabbit from oh so this is
your one these become very big isn't
chip I was born in London and uh my
mother was a woman that we hijab and at
that time around the 19 uh in 1985 it
was quite rare to see people wearing
hijab at that time in Britain so um as I
was with her in the car once I um
somebody swore at my mom and called told
her to go back to her country so as a
child obviously you get quite confused
you don't understand why would someone
say that to your mom why would they
attack her and tell her to go back to
our country or we are in our country I
mean I didn't know anything else apart from
Britain she was quite upset I asked her
why did why why did they say that to you
and she just said to you know what we
don't we never we will never belong here
this is not our country and they'll
I was born um at the elephant and castle
London my family came in the early
80s parents specifically they came as
students in their 20s um their intention
was never to stay and I think that
that's an experience or narrative that
other immigrant children would have
heard from their parents um so they were
supposed to finish their studies and
head back to Sierra Leon but I think the
convenience of the life out here was
something that held them back and then
also the fact that there was a war
brewing in the early '90s so um they
raised me and my two younger sisters and
actually my experience of thism came
through my love of reading you know the
books that I see that my parents would
leave behind on the house I started to
practice the de I was a teenager and my
parents were very nervous about that um
not only because it was such an Abrupt
change for them to see their eldest
daughter become so observant in faith
but also in terms of the political
context of the time 911 had happened a
few years prior and then we had the 7 s
bombings so to be observant or at least
fully observant visibly observant was
always going to be a concern for any parent
we living in the northwest of London it
was an area called stanmore which is a
very rich area but we lived in a council
estate in that part of the
city and so it was really difficult to
adjust and know actually
how to fit into a society that didn't
you um I was a bookworm I love to read
um and so you know to avoid kind of
conflicts in the playground and comments
from some of those uh children when I
was in primary school I would just sit
in the library and read and you know I
remember the first school that I went to
in London I read everything in the
library and they had to get me more books
I lived in Sweden um till I was 9 years
old both my parents came from Somalia
during the Civil War so when there's a
Civil War in Somalia they fled um and
came as young um young
Professionals in 2003 is when my parents
decided that we're going to move to the
UK we moved to a a town called
Bolton um which till this day I'm like I
don't know out all the places that we
could have Liv in in the UK why did we
move to Bolton I don't understand that
um I grew up like knowing everybody on
my street like in in in in in Sweden I
knew everybody in the community we all
used to go play we used to go play
football together we used to go out eat
together we used to have different like
we used to I was allowed to go to this
piece of people's house so like the
first thing I thought was like oh let me
get to know our neighbors and I lock on
the door and I'm like hi you know we're
like we're we're new
neighbors and it was just like straight
hostility of like like how dare you
knock on our doors and I was like oh um
and that's the first thing my father
told us it was like you have to be
careful about where you go who you go
with um you know who you around and I
was like what um we were the only black
people and the only Muslim people that
lived on that entire Street and I think
there was like a a concerted effort to
make sure that we'd move away from that
street like my father's car had been
broken into and then this time we also
get like eggs thrown out our windows and
my my father's like I know who it is
it's the it's our neighbors it's it's
the ones that are literally opposite our
house like um and they would like cluck
and they would laugh and they would uh
you know say comments and things um and
my father would just fix his windows he
would clean like the the the the the and
he would he wouldn't say he would never
say a negative word about them he would
never say anything um he just say these
people are just ignorant um and the best
thing you could do is leave by example
and but he would you know he would
[Music]
I was invited by um a senior manager in
an organization but because of
defamation purposes um I'm not allowed
to name the actual person it was a lady
um a white lady who uh was interested
upon seeing my CV um about a career in
doing some kind of reporting and
onscreen work presenting so when I went
to network with this lady in the actual
you know office um as soon as she saw me
she became very um you know serious
looking she wasn't friendly wasn't
hospitable she knew I was waiting in the
room to see her but she carried on
having a conversation with her other
colleague for half an hour outside she
was really trying to belittle me she was
trying to say well
you do know that you don't really have
the right look um to be here you know to
be in this industry there's a certain
criteria there certain look we have
especially when if you want to do on
screen work and I was really taking a
back you know for somebody to say that
to your face and feel that it's okay to
discriminate so openly and being in such
a senior
position she would you ever consider
changing your look and she actually kind
of indicated with her gestures that it
was the hijab she actually went like
this changing your look so I knew that
that's what she was referring to and I
just froze I I literally froze and I
didn't know what to say and I couldn't
conversation and this was really hurtful
and it builds on insecurities within you
and I because I was having such a strong
faith and cost my reason for wearing the
hijab was for Allah was for God I said
you know i' rather not have a job in a
certain organization i' rather have my
identity you know without compromising [Music]
[Music]
it it's name
name
patch you can see how he has the patches
he have but this one when every stay
next to him or touch him he starts
running away very fast when are to high
school I for myself I wanted to wear the
hijab now my mom would tell you if she
was here she'll say to you as must
always wanted to wear hijab since she
was 8 years old so my mom took me out to
wear go hijab shopping was lovely time
for being my mother and then when I went
into school that's what I thought yes I
am a different I'm completely different
to everybody else and I used to actually
celebrate that that difference when
people say to me oh what are you I'm
like oh I'm I'm I'm I'm a Muslim I come
from I'm originally from Libya I was
born in London so I was quite happy with
my identity but I don't think everybody
else was happening with my identity
because they saw me I was a confident PL
I was a very outspoken child so I think
they didn't really play well with the
children there and the teachers so I I I
suffered a lot in high school with
because of wearing my
hyen it started off by teasing me they
calling me oh we got a rag on your head
you look like this you look like that I
I didn't really listen to them I was
just going you know when you go past the
corridor you hear these stupid little
remarks some teenage girls who just walk
off but the more I be be quiet the more
it became more intense so I was walking
up to my math building and this is a
school in Northwest London it's called
Dy School Dy girls school at that time
and I was walking I felt someone grabb
my hij jam from the back and I fell down
the stairs as they grabbed me obviously
my hijab came off and then they started
to beat me up they started to punch me
it was a couple of girls and I got
beaten up quite quite severely and when
I went to the Head
teacher they told me that it's oh well
you shouldn't be wearing what you're
wearing on your head if you don't want
any problems and I thought but hold on a
second you're supposed to be protecting
me while I'm at school I'm with my parents
I was fearing for my life I was looking
over my shoulders every time I went into
school because I never knew what would
happen cuz it was it was quite
rough so um I had to fight back
unfortunately I had to learn to defend
myself because the teachers weren't
doing anything the head the head teacher
definitely wasn't doing anything and I
felt like she had a hidden agenda against
against me
me
to show to everybody that I'm not
society and I come home and you know my
shirt will be torn or my scarf would I
have to buy a new scarf cuz it would be torn
torn
up um yeah it was difficult and it came
to a point where somebody took out the
knife on me once and that was hard
because I had to know how to deal with
it I had to know how to defend myself
because I to defend
myself I wouldn't be here today but
alhamd I mean going through those
struggles at
school my mom taught me in times of need
[Music]
the BMP um who were a fascist uh
political party were very active in our
local area um and um really kind of took
it on themselves to make our lives hell
uh and the lives of other minority uh
groups in the local
area one of the things that we used to
get a lot of actually with the British
national party was the the the kids the
boys which they were they were kids they
were kids that went to our school you
know that knew us but still seemed to
you know um be influenced and um uh
radicalized by the Notions that there
was an us and them and that we were
one of the things that really hurt was
one particular um one particular boy who
was part of this group who was really
close to our family like you know we
spent all of our primary school years
together in the same school and I
remember he he'd come from a you know
quite a difficult childhood and um he
was always in our house always you know
and my mom is a very kind of homely mom
um you know dinner on the table when you
got home from school you know packed
lunches um you know very kind of you
know doing activities for us during the
week on a weekend you know we'd go and
get a film and we'd sit down and she'd
have popcorn ready and all of these
kinds of things and and they loved [Music]
[Music]
it it was just really strange and really
hurtful to then on a you know on one
occasion where he followed me home after
I was uh I was coming back from uh High School
School
um and he just followed me home and just
started uh calling me um all sorts of
racist names and he was on his own so it
wasn't like it was being influenced by other
people seeing how people can shift so
drastically to the point where you know
he was saying if I see you out here
again you're going to be dead and you
know that kind of really violent um
me how hate read so quickly um it's just
to me that was I think even now I don't
think I've ever said that to anyone but
it's just you know that hurt I think
significant when I reflect on it now and
I think about the way that people are
radicalized and how easily hate kind of
seeps into systems because of the way
that we talk about people and how we see
them as other that even people that we
[Music]
hate I never actually spoke to anyone
about any of the kind of you know
islamophobic um attacks that I went
through particularly in my teen years
because the moment that you mention that
you've been attacked or verbally abused
what does your family want to do is they
want to protect my family particularly
were very concerned about my safety
because at the time in the in the '90s
in London there was a whole host of
racialized stabbings and killings and
attacks and so on I didn't want it to
impact my ability to move around my area
course I'm a visibly Muslim woman I just
can't progress like my fellow white
colleagues or those who conform to the
ideals of what journalists and TV
presenters or reporters look like I
don't have any of that I don't conform
to the their beauty expectations and nor
do I really want to you know cuz my
purpose is to do good journalism and I
think that it's nothing to do with how
you look obviously have to get
presentable but the hijob should not and
it does not stru how much you can
achieve I went home and I just started
crying you know by my kids were at
school my husband was at work and I
remember my father red me that day to
say how did it go with them so and so
and he was really excited Dr because my
parents are always been really
supportive with my work and anything I
do and I remember I just burst into
tears and I was telling my dad dad you
know look this is what happened she said
that I don't to right look and you know
she was asking whether I'd compromise my
hijab and my dad was you know that she
said to me you done the right thing by
walking away from it and you know stting
that you wouldn't compromise you know
your your Dean or Islam for the sake of
a job and you've done the right thing
and he was just really reassuring me
don't give up that's what the my father
always says to me don't give up you know
keep persevering [Music]
my grandma used to um live with us in in
Sweden until and she moved to the UK
with us um and I
remember this is I've actually never
spoken about this um um she used to go
on walks she was she was very elderly
and like she had arthritis and she was
she had to she had to go regular on on
regular walks um and this is my mother's
uh my father's mother um and these boys
these young these these young um boys
these white boys who would like always
in the park and they would always say
racist and and rud stuff and like but
they wouldn't do anything they would
just you know say things um and we'd
always ignore them she went on a by
herself we came back from mosque and we
were like oh where's Grandma and my mom
was like she went on a walk but she's
not she's not back yet and and my mom
just assume that like she ran into
somebody that she knew and they were
just talking in the park maybe so me and
my siblings went to look for her we took
the route that she usually takes and I
still remember and I was like probably
what 10 years old at the time I still
floor they attacked her but when she was
by herself and they beat her with her
own stick um and nobody had helped her
Al I mean um
so I she made a decision to to leave the
UK actually after after like after the
incident and it was so heartbreaking to
to see somebody so vulnerable like I
her the incident was caued on CCTV the
police ended up finding the young boys
they literally lived in the area we knew
who they were um they found the young
boys that did it and then my grandma
refused to take
um she she basically said these are
young kids and she doesn't want to ruin
their lives um and she forgave them and
therefore they weren't charged and I
remember being so angry um and before we
moved away cuz we moved out of that
house not long after
that I remember the young boys coming to
our houses and apologizing and really
thanking my grandma for not throwing
away their lives you know um and for me
it was like it was it was such
a I think it was such a powerful thing
for her to do to be able to forgive
somebody that has forgive children they
were children they were they were
children they were like 14 year olds
kids who have been have been raised with
hate as Muslims like we are expected to
forgive um we are we do need to be able
to um see the bigger picture and the
impact that c certain decisions and
things that we make have and like for my
grandma she felt that forgiving them was
going to have a bigger impact than
prosecuted we're looking at our
institutions we have to be looking at
things at a macro level like why is it
that many of us come from countries that
are so debt ridden and so impoverished
and yet this is where these places of uh
the countries or the regions where the
wealth of the UK and France came from in
the first place why are they still in
debt or why are they still impoverished
decades after they were able to win
their freedom and independence from
their you know quote unquote Colonial Ms
these are the types of conversations and
behold I will make them of the Sy of
Satan which say they are je and are not
do behold I will make them come and
worship before your feet me flashbacks
to what happened to me you don't know
how to act because we've got children
you're trying to Shield your children
from this crazy person who's trying to
tell you that your religion is no good
and that you're following the wrong
religion and that you're not accepted
I'm not no Christian Pastor back the up
from me bro instead of arguing with him
I tried to calm him down because he was
very Progressive he was swearing and he
was talking down to the children as well
and making them doubt who they are as as
their own identity obviously being a Jewish
Jewish
family and that all didn't sit well with
me and I said to him you know you what
you're doing is wrong you know the
public transport you shouldn't be
talking to people like that you should
allow everyone to practice what faith
they wish to follow you about why Char
man have you SE me wearing chares man
man no it's not it's not my opinion I
mean I was called a a hijabi Muslim hero
when has in in the history of British
media and has a woman be called a a hero especially
with but what disappointed me was there
was only two people probably who spoke
[Music]
up so I became the president of the
national new students upon reflection
probably a role that I wouldn't have
taken on but I felt like I needed to
take on at the time there was so much
like divide within the student movement
there was a lot of like racist and
islamophobic rhetoric um that it was
really important to have somebody that
was able to challenge those um in an
apologetic way we took sustainability
Department out of NS and we made it its
own entity it became a body that didn't
only just work in higher education as an
us does but it worked across the
education sector it became a body that
was student LED um that was like way
more radical and worked on social
justice and climate Justice rather than
planting trees on campuses and and
talking about you know the polar bears U
and plastic straws they were really
talking about systemic issues and
working with grassroot communities and
I'm still doing a lot of work with
climate advocacy I'm a climate Justice
consultant I consult for the UN on green
jobs on like climate Justice based work
on jeez how will you make the world a better
better [Music]
[Music]
place I was able to be accepted for what
I am for me it was significant because
it was the barrier that I overcame in
dispending those stereotypes and
actually achieving my goal which was to
actually achieve that without
compromising my
identity other Muslim women from
countries like um the Middle East and
you know other people who are saying
that wow this is really good to you
achieve this there was a one Muslim lady
from France said they would never have
this on our TV so you we're so happy to
see this happening in Scotland and it
was really touch ing it was really
overwhelming but it was also really
heartbreaking because it just showed
that there people don't have same equal
opportunities in life as a visibly Muslim
wom they were going to spend the weekend
in in London um and meet a friend of
mine there who was Huda and um and then
sha who's the other hijabi uh kind of
came uh down from uh Oxford and so we
planned to just meet for dinner
um but Shyer who's a big uh big football
fan uh was like it's the quarterfinals
you know we can't not watch the
quarterfinals she then uh took a selfie
of us and she tweeted it we called it
the three hijabis because it you know
that's who we are that's you know
visibly that is what we uh look
like she tweeted about the amazing win
against Ukraine that the England team
had uh managed uh to achieve um and uh
talked about you know what you know why
was it that you know there was a whole
kind of inspired group of people
supporting the England team because of
how inclusive they were because of the
taking of the knee because of the
wearing of the rainbow armband all of
these equalities issues and suddenly I
was on BBC and on ITV and God knows
where else talking about what I thought
about the game I remember my mom saying
to me who's a huge Liverpool fan since
when did you become so actively such a
big football fan mom what does it smell
horm I think for me I
always pride myself in in the work that
I do for the community I think that for
me is my greatest joy is knowing that
I'm serving my community in the way that
I do and anything else that I receive is
is a bonus on top of that because now I
have so accolades I've worked in
television I've worked in digital I've
presented reported video produced edited
I can do as much as I need to be able to
do to be considered a multimedia
journalist um I've worked you know in my
home country C in UK and turkey and so
on and yet my trajectory has always been
very difficult particularly because I
would say I'm a Muslim woman and I don't
fit into a culture or Narrative of
Muslim Muslim women that um has been so
foundational to how people view Islam
wly negative won't be problematic but
it's what feeds the machine [Music]
[Music]
unfortunately the final game came we
knew that it was going to turn racist um
uh just based on our own experiences of
you know when you're successful and
you're doing well people love you but
the moment you make a mistake then it's
no longer you are a successful player
you are suddenly a black man you are
suddenly a Muslim woman in the shadow of
their hero hundreds of protesters took
the knee their chance Against Racism at
marus rashford's mural drowning out the
vicious words that were scrolled on the wall
wall [Music]
[Music]
before so before 9:00 we launched the
petition to ban racists from football
and by midafternoon it was like I don't
know like hundreds of thousands of
people had already signed it and and me
and and Huda and Cher you know in the
morning were like even if we get 5,000
signatures it'll be
great you know literally every News
Channel you can think of was invested in
this petition um and it was just growing and
and
growing and within 48 Hours we'd reached
his name is Michelle he met me on the
two three days afterwards and he he
brought me a a bunch of flowers and you
know we just uh spoke about the more
common ground that we have together uh
we didn't go too much into politics
because I think that just ruin
everything to be honest with you I mean
everyone has their own ideas about what
the Palestinian Israeli
conflicted but um at that point I'm just
talking about I we'll just talk about
the society and how how we should you
know we live in Britain and there's
different religions and there's
different races how we should come
together instead of being separated [Music]
when the Manchester Arena bombing
happened it was God less than a year um
that I'd been there with my own children
um at a concert um watching Justin
Bieber of all people um at the time um
and and you know the kind of that
connection not only to Islam but to the
Libyan Community specifically really
really Hur and I think for me it was the
impact that it had on my children
them reading the comments reading
articles um online um and feeling that
actually people hate us for something
that we didn't do that something that we
weren't even involved in was really really
really
hard some of the comments my kids made
at the time um to me about you know I
know why people hate us and I'm like no
we're not this isn't us you know what
happened what this person did is not us
this isn't Who We Are
um but I think for them it just felt
like a real knock um on their own
were I remember just the absolute
shock um how heartbroken we were and I
remember I was I was in manester that
day like I was not far from like the
arena we were like out with some friends
but I just remember being so in shock
and like the whole city just mourning
you know such a heartbreaking um period
anybody and everybody was really really
like broken at the incident and how it
happened um and what had happened and
and how how shocking it was that
something that like can happen so close
to our [Music]
[Music]
homes I was adamant that I was not going
to allow what happened to push me home I
know that there were many families
particularly from Libyan background that
just stopped going out because they were
so fearful of numerous attacks that
happened across the city islamophobic
attacks those that had daughters
particularly would drive them everywhere
back forth you know stopped using public
transport because public transport was
often the place where a lot of the
[Music]
The Daily Mail mentioned my name in an
article about the terrorist attack which
was like the most
bizarre shocking thing and the
connection that they made at the time
was the the bomb like terrorist
essentially he went to the University of
sford at like one point in his life um I
think he was enrolled there maybe for
like a couple of months I don't know but
also the other connection the very OB
vious and islamophobic connection was
that I'm a Muslim woman who was just
about to become president um at that
Union you know I went out to the uh
visuals every day practically um in the
city center in Dean skate in Picadilly
and in St K square and and so on and I
know lots of Muslim groups did the same
for us it was about making sure that we
were paying our respects but also so
unfortunately that you know unless we
were visible people would assume that we
didn't care that it didn't have that
impact on us um when it was [Music]
[Music]
huge multiple articles that followed it
was something like um white hating or um
terrorist sympathizer like the kind of
that they were using was so dangerous
and so like just deceptive in everything
that it was um and like that's what the
daily are learn for right like they the
media like they they portray you how
they want to portray you they package
you how they doesn't matter what's in
the body of the article right they'll
they'll package you and portray it in
the way they want to portray it and I
remember just seeing my face everywhere
up I saw a massive shift in people's
behavior just people not want to sit
next to me on
trains it just took me a bit by surprise
by how people just then reacted to that
incident happened and therefore all of
us are complicit all of us are a
problem I couldn't take public transport
couldn't freely walk around certain
areas I was getting death threats
letters written to me um my social media
was flooded with like death threats I
don't think people recognize or realize
when a an article's written about that
is completely a lie doesn't matter
because the consequences are so severe
like you put somebody's life directly at
risk um I think the worrying thing for
me and and when I reached a point of
like actually this is this is this is
maybe I should step away from this is um
when I put my family directly arist
reporters are locking on my door you
know and my own family are like worried
of like it's something if reporters are
finding your houses and are the people
that threatening to kill you going to
find your houses the kind of letters I
was getting specifically Ally telling me
that they're going to um wipe me and my
family out you know those are that's
worrying um and I think there's there's
a thing of like I can take
responsibility for my actions I am I'm
the activist I've decided to speak out
um and therefore put myself on a public
platform right my family didn't sign up
for that and I think that was a really
worrying thing of like actually this is
unfair like this is my mother's worried
about like you know my little taking my
little brother to school because there's
random people in outside the house my
office had reporters that would come to
the point where the university had to
like arrange drivers and like organize
taxis for me to be able to safely be in
office if you are to look at terrorism
within you know the greater historical
scope you will find that it's rely of a
Muslims or people that look like me or
who are brown or black um and that what
is considered
terrorism um has always been defined by
governments who also have agendas um and
so it's very complicated as well as far
as simplistic this happens within a
context where it's very easy to find
someone to other and we were the [Music]
other it wasn't of who I was it wasn't
about as an individual it was about what
I represented that I was a visibly black
Muslim woman right and therefore it
could have been any other visibly black
Muslim woman on that front page right it
was nothing to do with me I think the
intention of of Articles like this and
like media portraying Us in the in these
lights is to terrify us from from taking
up political spaces H it's to terrify us
from calling out injustices and doing
the work that we do um but in adversly
what they did really give me a platform
they give me a bigger platform I was
just a young girl from sford that nobody
knew um and overnight I was known across the
[Music]
country if you abuse Islam or Muslims
then there's a legitimate case of
freedom of speech and therefore it's
okay put Muslim in an article and
suddenly you know it's going to get uh
Muslims are um you know very well
integrated particularly in the major
cities um because we're working we're
studying we're mixing we're going out
we're socializing and I think Muslim
women particularly have made an even
bigger effort to be constantly
out if they have more programs about
woman or uh or what Islam is about what
we believe in or what we celebrate it
could St them having that sort of
narrow-minded idea about what Islam is
Media I think media is the [Music]
[Music]
key I would say that my generation those
of us who um whose parents or
grandparents came here we you know take
on an unintended role in being a
conscience for this specific Society we
are uh we are the remnants of of that
past that is stubborn and I think that's
part of the reason why unfortunately we
as a community within the Muslim
Community specifically we we we go
through so much difficulty to access the
opportunities that we want because we
really are a reminder of the yester
years but you have to deal with us now
because we're [Music]
[Music]
here never ever had anyone um say
anything on my behalf which is
it's quite sad but I've learned to be
tough I've learned to do things on my
own I've learned
to speak up for myself I don't want to
be seen as a
weak Muslim poor Muslim weak girl that
doesn't that does has that has no voice
no we have a voice we're not weak we're [Music]
strong there's only one hijab wearing MP
is a very important um thing for us to
be able to see and understand that like
um we also belong in those powerful
places and and those spaces of making
change because we're a part of this
community this is our home this isn't
this isn't somewhere that we're we're
we're here
temporarily often as women we limit
ourselves in terms of our career
missions and what we the potential of
what we can achieve and actually even
wider than that as people of color in
general but I think it's a very useful
Point actually to really go back and ask
ourselves and reconsider do I enjoy what
I do do I think what I do is Meaningful
am I proud of what I do and could I be
doing something bigger something more
important in the industry in the media
industry there are some supportive
people I can't generalize that everybody
is Islam a fa but there is a lot of
hidden discrimination that goes on and I
think that lot lot not a lot of people
talk about it um because they're either
worry that they're going to lose a job
or they feel that it could hinder their
chances and for me especially um I
always feel that deep down inside they
want me to change myself in order for me
to progress but for me there's no
question that I would do that cuz I
would never compromise my identity i'
soul it's an imperfect system there are
a lot of factors at play that
unfortunately don't make journalism a
very Rosy craft or Rosy practice um but
despite the fact that it isn't perfect
and we need to continue to um strive to
make it perfect we do the work and
hopefully we'll get to a point where we
won't have to apologize for who we are
[Music]
I am the first visibly Muslim woman uh
to Ever represent uh Manchester City
Council when I was selected to represent
ardwick probably one of the most
deprived parts of the country I remember
this um man who'd come to support me uh
after I won um he had his two daughters
who were two visibly Muslim uh young
women uh with him and and he came up to
me and wanted me to take a picture with
his two daughters because um you know
they he wanted to make make sure that
they could see that a woman women like
them um can do the things that other
can't I think it's um important to try
to connect with everybody not just
Muslim people but anyone from any faith
just to get to know one another because
a lot of these people that are far right
or racist don't have Muslim friends
don't have Muslim neighbors don't
integrate in society I think it should
start in within schools as well because
that that's where most of this kind of
retric happens really I
think politicians who are you know
openly against Muslims and you know have
these kind of issues where they don't
want to even investigate islamophobia
within their countries do help in
creating the intensity of the
islamophobia that exists today and this
is really to bring about a divide [Music]
particularly this generation I feel is
is much more powerfully kind of saying
well here I am and this is who I am and
I think that is very powerful you know
the women that I follow on Tik Tok and
um on Instagram and Twitter and you know
just sharing their opinion about the
world and it you know and that is their
opinion and that's as valid as anyone
else's opinion and I think that's
I do have hope I have hope that things
are going to get better um and that like
I am going to be able to build and fight
for a community that I can raise my
children in and be proud of you know and
that's that's what we strive towards and
that's what we work towards um you
wouldn't give you all to something that
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