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My Hijab Signifies My Faith. Why Do Some See It as a Threat? | Recommended Read
I clutched my master’s diploma with pride at my graduation ceremony from Ashland University in Ohio in 2023. I had worked so hard to reach that moment – the late nights, the sacrifices, the pressure of being a first-generation student in a new country. I stood tall in my cap and gown, my beige hijab wrapped around my neck and covering my hair. But a man in the crowd didn’t see a scholar. He looked at me with disgust, circling his finger around his face to mimic my hijab, his eyes narrowing as he looked directly at me. His gesture said what his mouth didn’t: “You don’t belong here.” That moment, though fleeting, shook me. It wasn’t the first – or the last – time I felt unwelcome on a college campus, but it was one of the most public. Two years later, I’m pursuing my doctorate in higher education. I still wear my hijab every day. I still love learning and teaching. But I also carry that feeling with me – the quiet, constant question: Am I safe here? Lately, that question has gotten harder to ignore. Over the last two years of war in Gaza, American campuses have become tense, divided spaces. For visibly Muslim students – especially women like me who wear the hijab – this climate has intensified our vulnerability. While there is no national dataset detailing how many college students wear hijabs, surveys show that about half of the estimated 1.7 million to 2 million Muslim women in the U.S. regularly wear visible expressions of faith, including the hijab. But as tensions have risen over events in the Middle East, so too has backlash against Muslims in America. I’ve seen similar patterns in my own research, which focuses on the experiences of Muslim students in higher education who cover their hair, known as hijabi students, particularly on how their visible religious identity shapes their sense of belonging, participation and academic confidence. Through in-depth interviews, I’ve found that hijabi students are navigating layered forms of exclusion that most campus climate surveys miss entirely. They are experiencing discrimination in classrooms and advising offices that were not designed with them in mind. read the complete article
Islamophobia: Why Sumaiya Balbale Quit Sequoia Capital
Sequoia Capital’s chief operating officer, Sumaiya Balbale, resigned after a series of social media posts by partner Shaun Maguire that she perceived as “Islamophobic”, according to The Financial Times report. Balbale, a practicing Muslim who often speak about the role of identity in her professional journey, left the American venture capital firm in August. Her five-year tenure ended amid rising political friction within Sequoia Capital. Balbale was a one of the most prominent female executives at Sequoia. Her exit sent ripples through Sequoia’s ranks and its wider network of start-ups. Balbale is also a board member at Shake Shack, where she was regarded as a trusted operator and mentor – someone who bridged the firm’s partners and portfolio founders with quiet authority. Maguire is a prominent Sequoia partner known for his outspoken views and close ties to Elon Musk. His remarks sparked controversy in July 2025 after he shared a post on X (formerly Twitter) that New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani “comes from a culture that lies about everything”, and claimed that it was “a virtue to lie if it advances his Islamist agenda”. Balbade raised concerns regarding this issue with senior partners, who decided not to act against Maguire, citing his right to free speech, according to people familiar with the situation, as quoted by FT. She left soon after feeling that her position had become untenable. read the complete article
United Kingdom
Ukip protest banned from London borough with large Muslim population
A Ukip demonstration has been banned from an area with a large Muslim population because of a “realistic prospect of serious disorder”, police say. The event was initially advertised as a march from Whitechapel station in east London, but later revised to be an assembly in the same area. It was originally due to take place on Saturday afternoon, according to the Metropolitan Police. It was part of a series of events across the UK promoted as a “mass deportations tour”, with organisers calling on attendees to “reclaim Whitechapel from the Islamists”, the force said. On Tuesday, police said they had imposed Public Order Act conditions meaning Ukip cannot hold its protest in Whitechapel or anywhere else in the borough of Tower Hamlets. Commander Nick John, who is in charge of the public order policing operation in London this weekend, said: “Tower Hamlets has the largest percentage of Muslim residents anywhere in the UK and the prospect of this protest taking place in the heart of the borough has been the cause of significant concern locally. “It is our assessment that there is a realistic prospect of serious disorder if it was to go ahead in the proposed location. read the complete article
Intelligence on ‘extreme’ Maccabi fans with history of violence led to Villa Park ban
Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters were banned from watching their game against Aston Villa after police intelligence concluded the biggest risk of violence came from extremist fans of the Israeli club. The ban ignited an intense controversy and was criticised by the prime minister, as well as others claiming it was a surrender to antisemitism. The police assessment led to the fixture on 6 November at Villa Park in Birmingham being classed as high risk. The intelligence and risk assessments that led to that conclusion and ban have not been made public. But sources with knowledge of the details of the intelligence and risk assessments have told the Guardian that the Maccabi fans were considered likely to be the perpetrators of trouble. According to sources, police intelligence said: Scores of extreme Maccabi fans with a past history of violence and shouting “racist taunts” were expected to travel to the Birmingham game. Dutch police told their British counterparts that the Maccabi fans had instigated trouble in Amsterdam at a game last year. They had randomly picked Muslims in Amsterdam to attack. That led to reprisal violence with some Dutch Jews attacked. A community impact assessment by West Midlands police recorded that some Jewish people wanted the Maccabi fans banned because of the trouble that might ensue if they attended. read the complete article
Robert Jenrick accused of being ‘anti-British’ as he backs burqa ban
Robert Jenrick has been accused of “anti-British” comments after he suggested he would ban the burqa in Britain. The shadow justice secretary, tipped as a potential successor to the struggling Kemi Badenoch, pointed to Italy where prime minister Giorgia Meloni had recently proposed outlawing the traditional Muslim dress in public places. Labour MP Sam Rushworth hit back, denouncing the comments that put Mr Jenrick at odds with Conservative Party leader Ms Badenoch as “anti-British” and going “against what our nation stands for”. Ms Badenoch has previously rejected the idea of a ban, saying the move “won’t fix the problem of cultural separatism”. Mr Jenrick told his Ring Rob programme on Talk: “I probably would ban the burqa.” He said there were “basic values in this country and we should stand up and defend them”. 4) Gaza genocide: 2 years of Western media stenographing for Israel (International) When we study historical atrocities—the worst crimes committed against human beings—they often raise haunting questions about the people of that era: How could they allow such horrors to happen? We reassure ourselves by saying they did not know, or did not know any better, and promise that we would never allow that to happen. Never again. And yet, the world, and our generation, has watched one of the most well-documented genocides unfold, live-streamed on our devices for two years. We have seen Gaza become a wasteland, parents digging desperately through rubble, hospitals left in ruins, and the mass slaughter of children—what UNICEF describes as a “classroom of children killed, every day,” by Israel. Rather than seeking truth and minimising harm, Western media often acted as stenographers for the narratives of powerful governments, particularly Israel and the US. Instead of interrogating official claims, even as Israel carried out mass killing, starvation, and destruction in Gaza, mainstream media echoed their language—speaking of “collateral damage” and “targeting Hamas”—and repeated government talking points with little scrutiny. Time and again, headlines obscured the perpetrator of attacks, downplayed Palestinian suffering, and cast doubt on Palestinian sources, while validating Israel’s attacks on hospitals, homes and schools by saying they were “targeting Hamas.” In doing so, Western media helped to whitewash Israel’s crimes and the complicity of its allies. But perhaps the gravest offence is the refusal to call what it happening by its name: genocide. read the complete article
'It Makes Me Feel Less Safe As a Jewish Person': Zack Polanski on the UK Government's 'Conflation' of Jews with Israelis
From New York’s Zohran Mamdani to Minnesota’s Omar Fateh, a new wave of activism-driven candidates inspired by progressive ideologies are reshaping local and national politics. In the UK, the new Green Party leader Zack Polanski is emerging as a charismatic, bold, and unapologetic political force. Recognized for his outspoken stance against the genocide in Gaza and his proposal to impose steep taxes on the UK’s wealthiest, Polanski has emerged as a star in British politics — representing the kind of progressive policymaking that’s rattling both Labour and Conservative establishments, and seeing a pronounced rise in the polls, too. On the rise of the far-right and the establishment in the UK now parroting their racist and Islamophobic views, Polanski tells Mehdi: “It’s phenomenally dangerous, and Islamophobia is rife in our society. And I say this as a Jewish man, there’s only been five Jewish leaders of a British political party in the last hundred years, so I obviously take anti-Semitism really seriously.” However, he adds, the UK government and media’s “constant conflation” of British Jews with Israelis “does make me feel less safe as a Jewish person, because I look at what Netanyahu and Gallant do.” read the complete article
International
Gaza genocide: 2 years of Western media stenographing for Israel
When we study historical atrocities—the worst crimes committed against human beings—they often raise haunting questions about the people of that era: How could they allow such horrors to happen? We reassure ourselves by saying they did not know, or did not know any better, and promise that we would never allow that to happen. Never again. And yet, the world, and our generation, has watched one of the most well-documented genocides unfold, live-streamed on our devices for two years. We have seen Gaza become a wasteland, parents digging desperately through rubble, hospitals left in ruins, and the mass slaughter of children—what UNICEF describes as a “classroom of children killed, every day,” by Israel. Rather than seeking truth and minimising harm, Western media often acted as stenographers for the narratives of powerful governments, particularly Israel and the US. Instead of interrogating official claims, even as Israel carried out mass killing, starvation, and destruction in Gaza, mainstream media echoed their language—speaking of “collateral damage” and “targeting Hamas”—and repeated government talking points with little scrutiny. Time and again, headlines obscured the perpetrator of attacks, downplayed Palestinian suffering, and cast doubt on Palestinian sources, while validating Israel’s attacks on hospitals, homes and schools by saying they were “targeting Hamas.” In doing so, Western media helped to whitewash Israel’s crimes and the complicity of its allies. But perhaps the gravest offence is the refusal to call what it happening by its name: genocide. read the complete article