Category: community leaders

The Muslim Council of Britain finally has a female leader – but there’s a long way to go towards equality

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The Muslim Council of Britain finally has a female leader – but there’s a long way to go towards equality

 By Khadija Khan   A historic occasion has been marked in the British Muslim community. Zara Mohammed, a 29-year-old Glaswegian, became the first woman to be elected as secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB). The news was met with a lot of approval, particularly by women, and seen as a step in the right direction towards inspiring other Muslim women to take leadership roles. It was all going well for Ms Mohammed, with all the complimentary articles about her in the papers. That is until she was asked…

Religious superstitions and the coronavirus pandemic

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Religious superstitions and the coronavirus pandemic

By Khadija Khan In the past, in the absence of scientific explanation, superstitious beliefs and unfounded assumptions about what causes deadliest plagues and contagious diseases led to horrific outcomes – and blame was usually heaped on the actions of minority groups in society for having ‘caused’ it all. Ironically, while anybody can get an infectious disease, it is actually the most vulnerable ones – women for example – who bear the brunt of the devastation in the aftermath of a pandemic. Therefore, religious people today implying the legalisation of abortion…

Amina Lone and the shame of the Labour Party in the UK

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Amina Lone and the shame of the Labour Party in the UK

By Iram Ramzan Dissenters from within Muslim communities are often silenced by being cast as ‘traitors’ or dismissed as not being ‘authentic’ often.  Often, wider society either looks away, or sides with the reactionary forces within our communities because of fear of causing offense. A high-profile female councillor in Manchester has been forced out for being too ‘outspoken’. The Manchester Evening News website reported how in-fighting within Manchester City Council has been blamed for pushing out Hulme councillor Amina Lone after seven years at the town hall. Sedaa readers will…

Imams Online Conference: Excellent Initiatives but Thread of Gender Inequality Marred Progression

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Imams Online Conference: Excellent Initiatives but Thread of Gender Inequality Marred Progression

By Amina Lone   On January 11, Faith Associates and Imams Online hosted a ‘Digital Summit’ at Google UK’s London Event Space which was attended by over 150 attendees. This event’s aim was to bring together a diverse cross-section of Muslims which included senior religious leaders, male and female scholars, community activists, civil society actors, heads of charities, technologists, students and educationalists. Amina Lone went along on the day and shared her thoughts for Sedaa.      I attended a conference. Not extraordinary in itself but this one was held at Google…

Casey pulls no punches but will anything change?

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Casey pulls no punches but will anything change?

By Iram Ramzan This is a cross-post from Integration Hub   A much-awaited report which contains no big surprises received reactions that were entirely predictable. From segregation and misogyny, to the child grooming gangs and Sharia councils, Dame Louise Casey’s lengthy, evidence-based report pulls no punches. Towns and cities with high Muslim populations, such as Oldham, Rochdale, Blackburn and Bradford are mentioned as places of concern. Some of them are areas with large numbers of people who came from Pakistani-administered Kashmir, particularly the rural region of Mirpur. They came to the former…

My issues with the Muslim Council of Britain’s alternative to the Prevent strategy

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My issues with the Muslim Council of Britain’s alternative to the Prevent strategy

By Iram Ramzan   Critics of the Government’s counter-terrorism Prevent strategy often claim that it disproportionately targets and focuses on Muslims, despite the fact that it actually works on countering the far-right too. So what does the Muslim Council of Britain decide to do? It has decided to set up its own programme to target, er, Muslims. In a direct challenge to the government’s ‘controversial’ Prevent scheme, the MCB plans to start the Muslim-run counter-radicalisation scheme next year. The MCB said in a statement: In reflecting the wishes of a cross-section…