Shelina Zahra Janmohamed
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Shelina Zahra Janmohamed (born 13 April 1974) is a British writer. She is the author of ''Love in a Headscarf'' (2009), a memoir of growing up as a
British Muslim 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 ...
woman. Her book titled ''Generation M: Young Muslims Changing the World'' was published in August 2016. ''Generation M'', as
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
puts it, "is the first detailed portrait" of the influential segment of the world’s "fastest growing religion", Islam. She is a blogger: her blog is called ''Spirit 21''.


Early life and education

Janmohamed was born on 13 April 1974. She is of East-African and South-Asian origin. Her parents emigrated from
Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...
in 1964. She 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 ...
and was educated at
Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls Haberdashers' Girls' School is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private day school in Elstree, Hertfordshire. It is often referred to as "Habs" (or "Habs Girls" to distinguish it from the neighbouring Haberdashers' Boys' School). The sch ...
,
Elstree Elstree is a large village in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire, England. It is about northwest of central London on the former A5 road, which follows the course of Watling Street. In 2011, its population was 5,110. It forms part of the ...
, subsequently graduating from
New College, Oxford New College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by Bishop William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as New College's feeder school, New College was one of the first col ...
.


Career

Janmohamed is a regular contributor and writer for several news outlets and magazines, including the ''
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
,'' ''
ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: Television TV stations/networks/channels ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network and company, including: **ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network in the United Kingd ...
,'' ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'', ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'', '' The National'', ''
The Muslim News ''The Muslim News'' is a monthly and digital newspaper. Established by Ahmed J. Versi in February 1989, it has grown to become the largest monthly ethnic paper in the UK. It describes itself as, "The only independent monthly Muslim newspaper in t ...
,'' '' Emel'' magazine, ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' and ''
The Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are often names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include: Australia * The Telegraph (Adelaide), ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaid ...
.'' focusing on
Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...
and
current affairs Current affairs may refer to: News * ''Current Affairs'' (magazine) a bimonthly American magazine of culture and politics. * Current affairs (news format), a genre of broadcast journalism * ''Current Affairs'', former name for ''Behind the News' ...
. She has a particular interest in Muslim women and Islam in the West. Her blog, Spirit21, has won several awards, including the Brass Crescent Award for Best Blog. Janmohamed lives in London and has appeared on numerous British television networks. She has travelled with the British Foreign and Commonwealth office to Darfur, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Qatar and Turkey under its programme to build links with British Muslims and encourage dialogue. She is a creator and organizer of social and cultural events for young British Muslims, as part of creating a new British Muslim culture and identity, and the host of the annual ‘ Eid in the Square’ event which is held in Trafalgar Square. She is a trustee of the Windsor Fellowship which encourages minority ethnic students to excel in education and employment. She is serving as a Vice President of Ogilvy Noor, world's first Islamic Branding & marketing consultancy agency.


Personal life

She is married and currently lives in London with her two children.


Awards and honours

* Janmohamed was named by ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'' and the UK
Equality and Human Rights Commission The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is a non-departmental public body in Great Britain, established by the Equality Act 2006 with effect from 1 October 2007. The Commission has responsibility for the promotion and enforcement of e ...
as one of the UK's 100 most influential Muslim women, and most recently she was named as one of the 500 most influential Muslims in the world. * In October 2013, she was included in the
BBC's 100 Women ''100 Women'' is a BBC multi-format series established in 2013. The annual series examines the role of women in the 21st century and has included events in London and Mexico. Announcement of the list is the start of an international "BBC's wome ...
. * In January 2014, Janmohamed was nominated for the Services to Media award at the
British Muslim Awards The British Muslim Awards are an annual award ceremony that honours the success and achievements of British Muslim individuals, groups and businesses. It was established in 2013. Overview The British Muslim Awards was founded by Oceanic Consult ...
. * In October 2014, she was included again in the BBC's 100 Women.


Views

Janmohamed has stated the need for brands to improve their marketing aimed at Muslim consumers, urging them to conduct better research and to work harder at 'humanising' Muslims by treating them the same as they would any other demographic, saying: Janmohamed has criticised the current
Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, more commonly known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom and the head of the Home Office. The position is a Great Office of State, maki ...
Sajid Javid Sir Sajid Javid (; born 5 December 1969) is a British former politician who served as Secretary of State for Health and Social Care from June 2021 to July 2022, having previously served as Home Secretary from 2018 to 2019 and Chancellor of the ...
for dismissing a request made by the
Muslim Council of Britain The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) is an umbrella body of Muslim organisations in the United Kingdom, with over 500 affiliated mosques and organisations. It was formed in 1994 in response to British government's expressed wish for a single r ...
for the Conservative party to carry out an independent inquiry into
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 ...
. In an article for '' The National'', she wrote:


References


Further reading

;Reviews * * *


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Janmohamed, Shelina Zahra 1974 births Living people 21st-century British women writers 21st-century British journalists 21st-century British women journalists 21st-century British memoirists 21st-century Muslims Alumni of New College, Oxford British Asian writers British Muslims British people of Tanzanian descent British women bloggers British women memoirists Journalists from London People educated at Haberdashers' Girls' School Writers from London