Career & Faith
1 min
Scientist by Day, Muslim by Design
They said wearing a beard would hold me back in media. I wore it anyway. They took me seriously regardless.
Revert journeys. Identity struggles. Faith found, lost, and found again. Unfiltered voices from your brothers and sisters across the world.
In Egypt, a divorced woman is a tragedy. I decided to be a plot twist instead.
They said wearing a beard would hold me back in media. I wore it anyway. They took me seriously regardless.
They said wearing hijab would hold me back in politics. I wore it anyway. They took me seriously regardless.
At school I was too Muslim. At the mosque I was too Somalia. I spent years feeling like I belonged nowhere.
It wasn't philosophy that pulled me away. It was anger. And it wasn't theology that brought me back. It was beauty.
It wasn't science that pulled me away. It was loneliness. And it wasn't theology that brought me back. It was beauty.
I've answered 'don't you get hungry?' approximately four hundred times. Here's my actual answer.
I've answered 'do you have to pray five times?' approximately four hundred times. Here's my actual answer.
They said wearing my kufi would hold me back in law. I wore it anyway. They took me seriously regardless.
I've answered 'aren't you hot in that?' approximately four hundred times. Here's my actual answer.
Everyone in my buddhist community thought I'd lost my mind. I'd never been more sane.
In UK, everyone assumed I was born Muslim. Actually, I found Islam at 19.
I've answered 'aren't you hot in that?' approximately four hundred times. Here's my actual answer.