Published on May 13, 2013

#MyJihad is proud to have a team that will be riding for this year’s May 26th, Bike the Drive in Chicago!  Our individual entry fees support their city-wide jihad for better walking, biking and transit in Chicagoland which keeps pollution down and promotes healthy living.

In light of the devastating tornadoes that have ravaged Oklahoma, #MyJihad has shifted gears in our own fundraising efforts:  We are teaming up with Islamic Relief USA, a reputable and experienced organization that sends out response teams to get vital resources to survivors as quickly and efficiently as possible.  Sponsor a #MyJihad team member ($1/mile) and 100% of the proceeds will go towards sending #MyJihad volunteers to aid in disaster relief in Oklahoma immediately.

TO SPONSOR:  Simply scroll to the bottom of the homepage at www.myjihad.org where it says “Sponsor an Ad“ and click on the orange “DONATE“ button.  Select CHICAGO and enter your donation amount (see sponsor amounts below).  Once you submit it, you will have the option to leave a comment.  Type in the team member you are sponsoring.  We will “compete” against each other to see who can get the most sponsors/donations, but all donations to any of the riders below will go to the Oklahoma City relief effort.

Meet the members of the #MyJihad Bike Team & pick one (or more!) to sponsor & leave a comment below:

Team #Ahmed: 36, founder of the #MyJihad campaign, planning to ride the entire 30 mile stretch of Lakeshore Drive. Despite his very busy schedule, Ahmed is making time to participate in this great event.  Come out and support Ahmed in his ride as early as 7AM on May 26th, or if you can’t make it in person, support his ride!  Sponsor #Ahmed

Team #Angie: 35, mother trying to get back into shape after having 4 children! Riding for health and for the #MyJihad campaign, as MyJihad is to get healthy and get more energy to be there for my kids through their own struggles.  Many may know I lost one son, but trying my best to get strong and stay strong for the rest!  I plan to ride the whole 30 miles inshaAllah, even with newly acquired outdoor allergies!  SUPPORT ME in my ride and MyJihad, by sponsoring me!  Sponsor #Angie

Team #Yasmina: I’m 40 something! I’m an avid bike rider. I ride regularly and have all my original knee and hip joints unlike other members of the #MyJihad team. (ahem- Bentley!) I am a mother of 2, and I’ll admit, I’m not as quick on my feet as I once was and have to make more frequent pit stops than when I was in my twenties- but I’m an “in-it-for-the-long-haul” type of person- so sponsor me. I plan to ride the entire 30 miles even if they have to drag me over the finish line! Sponsor #Yasmina

Team #Bentley: New Bike $372, New Helmet $32 helping foster relations and education in an effort to build peace… PRICELESS! Wouldn’t miss this opportunity for the world… I’m just your average, middle-aged American from Naperville, IL who loves what the #MyJihad Team is doing and want to support it in any way I can. For people that can’t join us to Bike the Drive for #MyJiihad, I hope they will consider a small donation to help get this message out. P.S. Old White Guys Rule!  Sponsor #Bentley

Team #Saleha: After three drafts, two consultations, and a little slacking at work, this bio came into being!!! Being funny or writing is no fun job but biking sure is total fun… it brings the kid out in me. I laugh without reason and start talking to myself. Whether it be in the streets of India or on Route 41 – wheels bring out my inner happy monster. So watch out, here I come with “Pepper” – my bike, my buddy!!! Lets go Occupy Lakeshore Drive!!!  Sponsor #Saleha

Team #Ummehani:   I haven’t owned a bike since high school, although I did bike a lot as a kid (since we lived without a car in Singapore) so hoping that balancing skills will come back to me.  Or else, riders must watch out for the clumsy girl falling on her side.  Also, not sure how hijab and helmet will work together, so more nervous than biking, I’m nervous about wearing the helmet with hijab. #MyJihad: Determined to find a way though!  Sponsor #Ummehani

Comment below stating who you are sponsoring!  #MyJihad thanks you for your support!

April 11, 2013

Born and raised in Chicago, I took for granted my family history. My father was a Pomak from the tiny mountain village of Arda- in the southernmost region of Bulgaria, bordering Greece. Communism oppressed my family’s ability to practice Islam. They changed our family name in an attempt to wash away our identity. My grandfather was killed from stepping on a land mine leftover from war. He was just steps away from the border where he was planning an escape to freedom for the entire family. My father did escape communism eventually by running across the border. A moment he never regretted, but that stole 20 years away from seeing his family again.

My mother is a Catholic Croat whose family hailed from Stolac in Herzogovina. She was born in a refugee camp in Linz, Austria in the 1940s. Born right after her father was killed in war. He never got to hold her.

Painful family history is respected and understood but not talked about too much. What does talking about it do except remind us of loss, hardship, injustice?

Fast forward to the current. I am a self-proclaimed soccer mom living in the Chicago suburbs, trying to manage my own health insurance business and take care of my family. I’m also a volunteer and Board Member for a new public education campaign literally sweeping the globe called, #MyJihad whose tag line is: “taking back Islam from Muslim extremists and anti-Muslim extremists alike.”

My involvement in the campaign was a very natural process after the idea was sparked by Ahmed Rehab, Executive Director of CAIR-Chicago (Council on American Islamic Relations). I am joined in this grass roots effort by other moms as well as students and people of all faiths- who are tired of the worn out “isms” in the media’s portrayal of Muslims. Terrorism—- Islamism —- Jihadism—- Tired of letting haters define who we are- define Muslims and Islam in Western media and in the world.

Jihad is an Arabic word that means struggle. It does not mean holy war as the Merriam-Webster dictionary proclaims. Aggressive coercion or war is Un-Islamic. Jihad as a physical struggle has strict, moral codes of conduct meaning it’s only in self-defense. So the extremist viewpoints on all sides have been speaking for Islam. Until now.

Is it just too boring to talk about the similarities Islam has with Christianity? With Judaism?

Does it simply not sell enough newspapers to talk about how Muslims share their mosques with Christians and Christians share their churches with Muslims?

Why doesn’t the western media put out realistic stories of the 1.6 billion Muslims in the world? Muslims who struggle every day to become better people by following the path of Allah, helping others, in hopes of achieving heaven in the afterlife?

The #MyJihad campaign allowed me an outlet to express my views and to share my personal struggles. It is a movement that belongs to the world. Anyone can share a post, a photo, a video, a blog- expressing what jihad means to them on #MyJihad‘s facebook page which has a following of 8,000 and growing, Twitter, or website: http://www.myjihad.org. #MyJihad has been covered in worldwide media in countries across the globe and in major news outlets like the New York Times, Huffington Post, Al-Jazeera, and more.

As a result of my volunteerism, I was honored to be asked to give a TED talk on the #MyJihad campaign. Giving a TED talk does not mean simply showing a few powerpoint slides and trying to sell an idea. It means sharing yourself- your story- with the world. Sharing your story is how you create understanding. It was at this time I realized what motivated me to be an activist for Islam. My motivation and passion were locked up inside the stories of my parents and their struggles. It was my Balkan heritage that involved oppression of my Muslim faith and even, loss of life of my Catholic grandfather for our nationality. It was not allowing my father to die in vain, nor both my grandfathers. It was not allowing my mother’s orphan refugee beginnings to be forgotten and unheard.

So I shared my father’s story of escaping communism for the love of his faith when I gave my TED talk on March 16, 2013. And I will continue to share my perspectives on my new website, yasminareality.com where I am no longer hiding the pain of my heritage. I’m now sharing my heritage in hopes that it can bring further understanding about what it means to be human with dignity and rights to be yourself and practice your faith- regardless of others that want you to play by a different set of rules.

#MyJihad is to be myself. And to invite others to join me in sharing their truths. What’s yours?

Published in: The Balkan Chronicle

“MyJihad”, la campagna dei musulmani moderati

07 – 03 – 2013Redazione

“La mia jihad è mantenermi in forma malgrado una giornata occupata. Qual è la vostra?”, si legge su un cartellone pubblicitario con la foto di una signora con il velo che solleva pesi. Sugli autobus di Chicago è in corso una guerra a colpi di avvisi pubblicitari. Secondo il New York Times, al centro della contesa c’è la parola “jihad” che significa “lotta”. Per combattere la sua associazione con la “guerra santa” del terrorismo islamico, un’organizzazione di musulmani americani ha voluto promuovere un’interpretazione più moderata del concetto.

Ma la campagna “MyJihad” non è piaciuta a Pamela Geller, leader del gruppo filo-israeliano American Freedom Defense Initiative. Il suo annuncio di risposta mostra Osama Bin Laden e la frase “Uccidere ebrei ci avvicina a Dio”, attribuita alla rete televisiva di Hamas. Sotto c’è scritto: “questa è la sua jihad. E la vostra?”.

L’organizzazione della Geller era già ricorsa a settembre ad un tribunale per costringere la metropolitana di New York ad accettare dei cartelli con il seguente messaggio: “In ogni guerra fra la civiltà e i selvaggi, difendete l’uomo civilizzato. Sostenete Israele. Sconfiggete la jihad”. Proprio allora Ahmed Rehab, direttore del Council of American-Islamic Relations di Chicago, aveva pensato che era tempo per i musulmani di promuovere una interpretazione più pacifica del proprio credo.

Published in: formiche

An advertisement for the MyJihad campaign in Washington, D.C.

WASHINGTON — Ever since Osama bin Laden used the word “jihad” to describe the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, the ancient Arabic word has been saddled with its darkest possible meaning. In the decade since, “jihad” has come into widespread use by non-Muslims and Muslims alike as shorthand for Islamic war against the West. Ahmed Rehab says his jihad is to take that word back. With his own money and donations from supporters, the director of the Chicago office of the Council on Arab Islamic Relations has launched an ad campaign that promotes a lesser-known meaning — one he says is to “struggle to get to a better place, to improve one’s life and the lives of others, to do what’s right and not what’s easy.” The ads, which are displayed on buses and trains in Chicago, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., feature images of smiling Muslim-Americans. “My jihad is to stay fit despite my busy schedule,” says a

hijab-wearing woman holding a dumbbell. “My jihad is to march on despite losing my son,” says a mother holding a framed photograph of a child. “My jihad is to never settle short of my best effort,” says a bearded businessman.

The ads reflect Rehab’s understanding of the word, which he learned from his grandmother — a woman who was paralyzed and bedridden for much of his childhood.

“When I asked her, ‘How do you deal with this?’ She simply said, ‘My son, it’s my jihad,’” he remembers. “And this was so powerful as I grew up because it was an acknowledgment from her that it’s a test, a barrier, a challenge.”

‘Taking Back Islam’

Rehab says his campaign is aimed both at Muslims who have all but surrendered the word to extremists and non-Muslims who are unaware that “religious war” is only one narrow definition. The campaign’s slogan is, “Taking back Islam from Muslim and anti-Muslim extremists alike.”

He laments the fact that moderate Muslims “have been sitting out the debate” and allowed it to be hijacked by two extremes who have defined how the West should see Islam and how Muslims should see the West.

“To us, it’s time we fought against the dumbing down of the conversation,” he says. “There is no inherent schism, there is no inherent conflict, and here am I, as living witness to this — an American Muslim who very much loves America and very much practices my faith and actually sees jihad as something I would do to make America a better place.”

Ahmed al-Rahim, an assistant professor of Islamic Studies at the University of Virginia, says the Muslim extremists the ad campaign refers to are jihadi Salafis — Sunni Muslims who believe violence is justified to achieve their political objectives.

This subgroup “takes a particular puritanical interpretation of Islam — and they emphasize the jihad that is here, the holy war aspect,” he says. “They are emphasizing the violent, war-like nature of the term, as it’s used [today], and for them, that is also an attempt to reclaim what they think is the original meaning.”

Counter Campaign

In that sense, he adds, “there is a kind of jihad for reclaiming or redefining the term ‘jihad’ among Muslims.”

The other group of extremists is represented by people like Pamela Geller, who eagerly embraces the word’s most violent meaning.

Geller, who leads an anti-Islamic group called the American Freedom Defense Initiative, even promoted it in controversial ads she ran in New York City last year and this year in Chicago, in response to the “My Jihad” campaign.

Rehab and his supporters, she says, “are sanitizing and whitewashing ‘jihad’ and, in effect, disarming the American people in what is clearly the greatest national security threat that this nation faces.”

Geller insists that her group “doesn’t editorialize” to make its point because it doesn’t have to. “Our ad campaign that uses the texts and the teachings of Islam to justify violence and supremacism uses actual quotes by Islamic supremacists and jihadists,” she says, “including the prime minister of Turkey, [former Al-Qaeda-leader] Osama bin Laden, and the Times Square bomber” Faisal Shahzad.

But Jamal Elias, a professor of Islamic thought at the University of Pennsylvania, says — strictly grammatically speaking — the ads err because they reduce the meaning of “jihad” to one definition, when it actually has many.

“It’s defined in several different ways. It’s a term that actually means ‘struggle’ or ‘striving,’ and the longer term is actually ‘striving in the path of God,’” he explains. “So in a most literal sense, it is not — as people sometimes wrongly assume — an explicit reference to some form of violence, whether justified or unjustified. It’s a very loose definition which can fit a lot of things within it.”

In a political context, he admits, the word is widely understood to mean some form of armed activity. But he adds that “generally when Muslims have used the term — and this is historically true — they’ve frequently used it as a struggle for self-improvement at a personal level.”

Al-Rahim says plenty of medieval Islamic legal texts refer to jihad as a religiously sanctioned, or holy, war, but he also points out that the Koran tells how the Prophet Muhammad once told his fighters after a battle that they had “achieved the minor jihad.”

When his followers asked why their battle against infidels and pagans was only minor, al-Rahim says Muhammad replied, “The greater jihad is that against the lower self, or the purging of the self or the soul of evil intention, a kind of spiritual struggle.”

Rehab’s campaign  — which he plans to take abroad — may have begun with a disagreement over a word, but it’s landed him squarely in the larger debate over who speaks for Islam.

It’s a role he sounds happy to take on. “It is a huge loss to humanity if we live on believing that these extremists are the only voices,” he says. “In fact they’re not. In fact, they’re a minority.”

Published in: Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty

Wearing hijab has meant a lot to me, especially given that I have been wearing it since I was 10 years old. What would make me stop? What would make me continue? Yes, of course Allah is why I continue, but what if I’m numb to life and religion? Hijab became part of my life, tradition and everyday being. What would make me stop? Why are these questions and thoughts of taking hijab off? Is it the devil or is it me? Never would I, and even if I wanted to, I could never have the will power to take it off. It is me, it is a part of me, but I have been trying to make Hijab who I am and what I want to be in life. Since I was 10 I’ve had many role models, not only my mother, but my sister, cousins, my Islamic school, teachers and majority of my friends. Islamic Foundation was a big part of the reason why I wore it in the first place, and I felt it was time even though I was only 10 years old. Who would ever think when I was 10, I would come to make one of the biggest decisions for the rest of my life. Growing up, finally having more of my own identity in college and coming from an Islamic school and straight into college I never realized how hijab actually forced me into the spotlight. I went to private university where the majority of my classmates were white Caucasian. I stood out everywhere I was, worse than a sore thumb. There was very few like me there, however, I did not want to be portrayed as one of those Muslims. How ironic is it for me, as a Hijabi, to see another sister and not wanted to be associated with her. You might wonder why. I am not one to judge anyone and I leave that to God and God alone. I wanted to be represented as an “American”.

I was born and raised here and fashion is something that I am interested in. Growing up and becoming who I am today is with my Hijab and will be until death Insha’Allah. I will tell you this, it is hard. People may think it’s easy, but for me it’s not. First I do not like the attention, but I cannot escape that now, nor will I ever. I will still be looked as different or a minority.Growing up I never saw anyone really care about fashion or how they dressed or in other terms my style. As my interest in fashion developed, my ideas of role models changed with it. My mom, sister family, school and friends are not my role models anymore when it comes to hijab. I felt lost, because I felt as if I was trapped between two worlds that didn’t understand me. Dressing nice and be able to wear fashionable clothes is something I care a lot about, and perhaps I shouldn’t. But that might possibly be #myjihad.

I felt that I was yearning, wondering, and confused all at once. I tried to wear jilbab or wear a skirt but I can’t, nor will anyone understand why not. I tried wearing my scarf in different styles that may have worked for me, but it still didn’t click. I wasn’t aware that it didn’t click until later on. People would see me and never say anything, but finally I was approached and confronted. “Are you planning on taking off your hijab?” I was upset and hurt at the same time for so many reasons. How can she think that? Is this what everyone is thinking? Is this really the next phase before taking it off? Am I going to take it off? Millions of questions came through my head, and I kept questioning myself. What is the problem? Why is hijab a problem? Should this be an issue? I didn’t understand what it was, but continued on with my life and search. Later, I joined Instagram, and I am not an internet person. I don’t really like social networking and I told myself that I would not join anything else, but after long debate I joined. All I had to do was post pictures and follow people; seems simple enough. Not too many questions or comments just positive reinforcement. I now I am addicted to Instagram. I log on twice a day and started following motivational quotes, which has become my main focus and source of inspiration and strength. Then I came across Ascia, and she had tons of followers. She has a website called, Hybrid Headpiece. She lives in the Middle East, and she models clothes. At first, I didn’t want to follow her because I felt it was too showy, but I followed her anyway because I’m not one to judge. I began looking at her pictures and her outfits and realized it’s exactly type of clothes I wear and the fashion that I like, and most importantly she was wearing hijab! This finally clicked with me. It finally made me see another side of hijab that I hadn’t seen before.  The side that says not only a way that looks good and fashionable, but I’m able to see a manifestation of what we believe in.  It was finally an inspiration. I was able to have a person in my life that I can relate to, who dresses the way I want to. Never in a million years did I think I would have someone inspire me especially on the internet. But it did, and I truly believe God has opened my eyes and told me to never lose hope or faith. Thank God, I haven’t lost faith and God willing I’ll never lose faith. And, for now I am pleased, happy and finally content with the word Hijab.

LISTEN HERE

KBOO Radio: Air Cascadia presents: “What’s Your Jihad” Day