Perspective: Muslim American girls need to see their role models reflected in the spotlight, too
U.S. fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad, who competed at the 2016 Olympics By Saadia Faruqi April 4 Muslim American children have always had a scarcity of role models, but this fact didn’t really make an impression on me until recently. Back from a recent author trip to Chicago, where I’d visited the lovely Anderson’s Bookstore, I handed my daughter her gift. It was an illustrated biography collection with 27 famous women — one for each letter of the alphabet.
This reminds me that, for my daughter at least, a role model is something very specific. A while ago, I asked her and a group of friends what they thought the term meant. They were adamant: someone like them who has grown up to do something awesome. And not necessarily in response to a tragedy, such as getting shot by the Taliban .
There is some good news, though. With two Muslim women now in Congress — Reps. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib — my daughter and other Muslim American girls have two more women they can aspire to be like. There is also Ibtihaj Muhammad, the fencing champion who represented our country in the 2016 Summer Olympics.
That’s when the idea struck me, to introduce my daughter to women who are successful in their work, regardless of whether they are famous. I’ve taken her to meet a local Muslim American woman who started a hair salon in the area and now has a makeup line. I’ve taken her to visit a domestic-violence shelter started by another Muslim American woman I know. We watch videos of Ilhan and Rashida, who she knows on a first-name basis even though she’s never met them.
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