Catherine Heseltine (born 1978) is a British

activist Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...

. She was elected as the CEO of

Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK The Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK (MPACUK) is a London-based United Kingdom, British Muslim Advocacy group, lobby and civil liberties group founded to address what it perceived as the under-representation of Muslims in British politics. The ...

, a Muslim pressure group that opposes

Zionism Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...

and

Islamophobia Islamophobia is the irrational fear of, hostility towards, or hatred against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general. Islamophobia is primarily a form of religious or cultural bigotry; and people who harbour such sentiments often stereot ...

. She has appeared regularly in newspapers and on television discussing issues impacting the British Muslim community as well as encouraging

British Muslims Islam is the second-largest religion in the United Kingdom, with results from the 2021 Census recording just under four million Muslims, or 6.0% of the total population in the United Kingdom. London has the largest population and greatest p ...

to get involved in mainstream politics and to engage with the community.

Early life

Heseltine grew up in

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames and the City of London. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshi ...

. In 1998, at age 20, she married Syed Hossein whom she met at

sixth form In the education systems of Barbados, England, Jamaica, Northern Ireland, Trinidad and Tobago, Wales, and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepa ...

. They married while both were at university and she

converted to Islam Reversion to Islam, also known within Islam as reversion, is adopting Islam as a religion or faith. Conversion requires a formal statement of the '' shahādah'', the credo of Islam, whereby the prospective convert must state that "there is none w ...

. The marriage broke down and resulted in a divorce after seven years.Interview at SingleMuslim.com: "From Worlds Apart to 'Banglish' Wedding"
. Retrieved 2010-12-26.

Career

On ''

GMTV GMTV (an initialism for Good Morning Television), now legally known as ''ITV Breakfast, ITV Breakfast Broadcasting Limited'', was the name of the national ITV (TV network), ITV breakfast television contractor/licensee, broadcasting in the Uni ...

'', while discussing the controversy around comments made by

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

about ''shariah'' law and its implications on divorce, Heseltine said "I wanted the divorce, and it was a very simple process. It was actually a lot easier for me to get an Islamic divorce than the expensive, and somewhat time-consuming process through the

English courts The Courts of England and Wales, supported administratively by His Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service, are the Civil law (common law), civil and Criminal law, criminal courts responsible for the administration of justice in England and Wales ...

".
Heseltine on GMTV]. Retrieved 2010-12-26. She had assumed the name Hossein until her divorce.

Personal life

On 9 August 2010, Heseltine married Muhammad Ali, a Bangladeshi who moved to Manchester with his family when he was three years old. They have two children.

Involvement with MPACUK

With her work at

MPACUK The Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK (MPACUK) is a London-based United Kingdom, British Muslim Advocacy group, lobby and civil liberties group founded to address what it perceived as the under-representation of Muslims in British politics. The ...

, Heseltine was ranked by '' Time Out'' at position 17 in London's 100 top movers and shakers 2006. Heseltine used to be a nursery teacher until elected as the CEO of

in 2010. Heseltine joined MPACUK because she believed it would help in "empowering Muslims in mainstream politics and media, dealing with Islamophobia" and lead campaign against "discrimination against women in

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

poverty Poverty is a state or condition in which an individual lacks the financial resources and essentials for a basic standard of living. Poverty can have diverse Biophysical environmen ...

and the situation in

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Heseltine, Catherine 1978 births Activists against Islamophobia British anti-Zionists Date of birth missing (living people) Living people English Muslims British activists English women activists British Muslim activists Converts to Islam People from Chelsea, London