Shaista Aziz ( ur, شائستہ قوال; born 1978) is an English journalist, writer, stand-up comedian,
Labour Party politician, councillor for
Rose Hill and
Iffley
Iffley is a village in a designated Conservation Area in Oxfordshire, England. It lies within the boundaries of the city of Oxford, between Cowley and the estates of Rose Hill and Donnington, and in proximity to the River Thames (Isis). A nota ...
in
Oxford City Council, and former international
aid
In international relations, aid (also known as international aid, overseas aid, foreign aid, economic aid or foreign assistance) is – from the perspective of governments – a voluntary transfer of resources from one country to another.
Ai ...
worker of
Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to:
* People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir
* Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley
* Kashmiri language, their language
People with the name
* Kashmiri Saikia Baruah ...
-
Pakistani descent.
Early life
Aziz's father arrived in
Britain from
Kashmir
Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...
,
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
, at the age of 16.
She is her parents' only daughter with two younger brothers.
Aziz was born and brought up in
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
,
and read for a
BA degree in
English literature
English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines E ...
and
Women's studies
Women's studies is an academic field that draws on feminist and interdisciplinary methods to place women's lives and experiences at the center of study, while examining social and cultural constructs of gender; systems of privilege and oppress ...
at university.
[ Shaista Aziz]
Journalism career
Aziz has worked as a
newsroom
A newsroom is the central place where journalists—reporters, editors, and producers, associate producers, news anchors, news designers, photojournalists, videojournalists, associate editor, residence editor, visual text editor, Desk Head, s ...
journalist for
Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera ( ar, الجزيرة, translit-std=DIN, translit=al-jazīrah, , "The Island") is a state-owned Arabic-language international radio and TV broadcaster of Qatar. It is based in Doha and operated by the media conglomerate Al Jazeera ...
's English news website in
Doha
Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the coun ...
,
Qatar
Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it sh ...
,
a
broadcast journalist
Broadcast journalism is the field of news and journals which are broadcast by electronic methods instead of the older methods, such as printed newspapers and posters. It works on radio (via air, cable, and Internet), television (via air, cable, ...
and producer for the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...
and has written for ''
New Internationalist magazine''. As well as media specialist for
Oxfam
Oxfam is a British-founded confederation of 21 independent charitable organizations focusing on the alleviation of global poverty, founded in 1942 and led by Oxfam International.
History
Founded at 17 Broad Street, Oxford, as the Oxford Co ...
,
[ Shaista Aziz] Amnesty International
Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...
,
Save the Children
The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization established in the United Kingdom in 1919 to improve the lives of children through better education, health care, and economic ...
and
Islamic Relief.
She has travelled and worked all over the world from Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Gaza and Yemen to Haiti, Tajikistan, Burma, Russia, Pakistan and Indonesia.
Aziz writes for ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' newspaper,
and is a regular panel guest on
BBC Radio.
In January and February 2011, she wrote a series of scripts for
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...
's ''
Pause for Thought
''Wake Up to Wogan'' (''WUTW'') was the incarnation of ''The Radio 2 Breakfast Show'' that aired each weekday morning from 4 January 1993 to 18 December 2009. It was the most-listened-to radio show in the United Kingdom, and the flagship breakfa ...
'',
In March 2011, she appeared as a guest on
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...
's ''
Woman's Hour
''Woman's Hour'' is a radio magazine programme broadcast in the United Kingdom on the BBC Light Programme, BBC Radio 2, and later BBC Radio 4. It has been on the air since 1946.
History
Created by Norman Collins and originally presented by A ...
''.
In August 2011, she appeared on
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
's ''
4thought.tv''.
In March 2015, Aziz presented the
BBC Three documentary ''A Nation Divided? The Charlie Hebdo Aftermath'', in which she visited France to find out why the country has become so divided, with young Muslims feeling alienated from mainstream society since the
Charlie Hebdo shooting.
On 25 June 2017, Aziz appeared on the BBC programme ''
Sunday Morning Live''.
Stand-up career
Aziz has performed stand up across the UK, including at the
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 dif ...
with the Laughing Cows in August 2010, the Hong Kong International Comedy Festival
and the
Global Peace and Unity Event in October 2010.
Aziz is writing a sitcom and new comedy material reflecting her experiences of travelling the world.
Political career
Aziz is the
Constituency Labour Party Women's Officer for
Oxford East Labour Party. In May 2018, in the
Oxford City Council election, she was elected as councillor for the Rose Hill and Iffley ward.
Aziz is also a member of the Stop Trump coalition, a coalition of organisations and individuals protesting against
U.S. President
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...
's planned
state visit
A state visit is a formal visit by a head of state to a foreign country, at the invitation of the head of state of that foreign country, with the latter also acting as the official host for the duration of the state visit. Speaking for the host ...
to the UK.
Anti-racism online petition
Aziz together with her friends Amna Abdullatif and Huda Jawad, dubbing themselves "The Three Hijabis",
started an online petition calling for racists to be banned from all football matches in England, in the aftermath of racist abuse targeted at three England players –
Marcus Rashford,
Bukayo Saka
Bukayo Ayoyinka T. M. Saka (born 5 September 2001) is an English professional footballer who plays as a right winger for club Arsenal and the England national team. Saka is known for his attacking incisiveness and creativity, and is often cons ...
and
Jadon Sancho
Jadon Malik Sancho (born 25 March 2000) is an English professional footballer who plays as a winger for club Manchester United and the England national team. Widely regarded as one of the best young players in the world, he is known for his ...
– who missed penalties in the
UEFA Euro 2020 Final. Within 48 hours of going live on 12 July 2021, the petition had been signed by more than a million people, Prime Minister
Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as F ...
announced on 14 July that
Football Banning Orders would be amended to ensure that people guilty of online racist abuse would be banned from football matches.
Awards, nominations and recognition
In 2006, Aziz was elected to the
National Union of Journalists Black Members Council.
In May 2010, she reached the final of the Liverpool Comedy Festival Best Newcomer Awards
and won the "King Gong" open mic competition at the Manchester
Comedy Store.
In September 2010, she reached the semi-finals of the
Funny Women
Funny Women is an online and in-person workshop community dedicated to the support of female comedians. It was founded by Lynne Parker in 2002 as a reaction to misogynistic comments from a comedy promoter. Funny Women helps women find their voice, ...
competition.
Personal life
Aziz is a
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
.
In 2004, she began wearing a hijab.
In 2007, she married an Iraqi
trauma
Trauma most often refers to:
*Major trauma, in physical medicine, severe physical injury caused by an external source
*Psychological trauma, a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a severely distressing event
*Traumatic inju ...
and
orthopedic surgeon in a
nikah ceremony in
Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...
.
In March 2010, she and her husband left London and moved to
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
.
References
External links
*
Shaista Azizon ''
theguardian.com
TheGuardian.com, formerly known as Guardian.co.uk and ''Guardian Unlimited'', is a British news and media website owned by the Guardian Media Group. It contains nearly all of the content of the newspapers ''The Guardian'' and ''The Observer'', ...
''
*Aziz, Shaista
How I became a Terror Tourist ''Media Monitors Network''. 22 July 2002
*Aziz, Shaista
Viewpoint: Why I decided to wear the veil ''
BBC News
BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadca ...
''. 12 September 2003
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aziz, Shaista
1978 births
Living people
English Muslims
English people of Pakistani descent
English people of Mirpuri descent
English women journalists
English television journalists
British women television journalists
English columnists
British women columnists
Muslim writers
British Asian writers
Writers of Pakistani descent
21st-century English writers
21st-century English women writers
The Guardian journalists
English women comedians
English stand-up comedians
Muslim female comedians
British comedians of Pakistani descent
Labour Party (UK) councillors
Members of Oxford City Council
Women councillors in England
British politicians of Pakistani descent
British anti-racism activists
People from Oxford