Since the atrocities of 9/11 and 7/7, Islam has become one of the most scrutinized religious groups in the mainstream media, yet very little is known about the black Muslim experience in the UK. By Keysha Davis

At the start of the new millennium, Muslims occupied very little space on the political terrain, until it was revealed that the bombers who carried out the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the subsequent London bombings were Muslim extremists. Since then, every aspect of Islamic culture has been stripped down, analyzed and demonized in our society. Our day-to-day existence is now filled with such an air of distrust that many fear that Islamophobia has become the new face of racism. In her autobiography Infidel, Somali ex-Muslim turned atheist Ayaan Hirsi Ali speaks candidly about her decision to renounce Islam – in part because of the terrorist attacks, but also due to the various crimes against women committed under the name of Allah. But are Muslim women the passive, obedient and oppressed group they’re portrayed to be? Three women share their experiences of what if feels like to be a black Muslim woman in Britain today.


Sukina Douglas, 25
Growing up, I experimented with many different religions, but nothing really sunk in fully. Then my boyfriend at the time, who is now my husband, travelled to Gambia and saw Islam in the most beautiful way. He met lots of guys were into reggae and stuff, but they were also devout Muslims. When it was time to pray, they were all up in the mosque or lined up on the beach praying to Allah. This really influenced him, and when he returned to England he told me he was thinking of becoming a Muslim. I was really angry with him at the time. I told him Islam was an oppressive religion that restricts women. We stopped talking for a while, but Islam stayed on my conscience. Then I decided to read The Autobiography of Malcolm X and was really taken aback by certain aspects of the religion. But I was still battling it. I remember saying to my friend, “No, this can’t be happening, because I’ve got such strong feelings against Islam.”

Next I started to read the Koran, paying close attention to the bits about women in Islam. I really had to find women in strong positions before I could even consider it
as a way of life for me. To my surprise, I discovered Muslim women soldiers, women scholars and women warriors. I can remember debating Islam with a friend and deciding it made perfect sense for me.

I think Islam has given me a sense of peace, because now I know that everything is written, and that takes a certain pressure away.

Regardless of what we’re going through, we praise Allah; we’re never supposed to moan or express dismay. Islam has also given me a lot of dignity in the sense that I’m a woman, and I respect myself as a woman. I don’t dress a certain way to attract negative attention. If people want to speak to me, they speak to me courteously.

There has been a lot of fuss about women wearing the niqab [full face veil]. It’s not obligatory for any Muslim woman to wear the veil. The key for us is to cover ourselves and dress modestly. I think that, in this country, wearing the niqab actually attracts more attention. However, no one has the right to say that Muslim women shouldn’t wear the veil.

The women I know who do wear it are very passionate about why they wear it. They wear it because they want to remove themselves completely from the gaze of people prying. In a society that claims to be a democracy, it seems that freedoms of speech and expression are only within a certain framework. I think that the problem with the veil in this society is there is a fear of the unknown, and I think there is a fear of Islam in this society because they don’t really get us. So a manifestation of this fear is a woman in a niqab.