Shelina Zahra Janmohamed Explained

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 woman. Her new book titled Generation M: Young Muslims Changing the World^{[1] [2]} was published in August 2016. Generation M, as The Guardian puts it, "is the first detailed portrait" of the influential segment of the world’s "fastest growing religion", Islam.^[3] She is also a blogger: her blog is called Spirit 21.^[4]

Early life and education

Janmohamed was born on 13 April 1974.^[5] She is of East-African and South-Asian origin.^[6] Her parents emigrated from Tanzania in 1964.^[7] She grew up in North London and was educated at Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls, Elstree, subsequently graduating from New College, Oxford.^[8]

Career

Janmohamed is a regular contributor and writer for several news outlets and magazines, including the BBC,^[9] ITV,^[10] The Times, The Guardian,^[11] The National,^[12] The Muslim News,^[13] Emel magazine,^[14] The Independent^[15] and The Telegraph.^[16] focusing on Islam and current affairs. 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.^[8]

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.^[8]

She is serving as a Vice President of Ogilvy Noor, world's first Islamic Branding & marketing consultancy agency.^{[17] [18]}

Personal life

She is married and currently lives in London with her two children.^[8]

Awards and honours

• Janmohamed was named by The Times and the UK Equality and Human Rights Commission 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.^[8]
• In October 2013, she was included in the BBC's 100 Women.^[19]
• In January 2014, Janmohamed was nominated for the Services to Media award at the British Muslim Awards.^[20]
• In October 2014, she was included again in the BBC's 100 Women.^[21]

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 Sajid Javid for dismissing a request made by the Muslim Council of Britain for the Conservative party to carry out an independent inquiry into Islamophobia.^[22] In an article for The National, she wrote:

Further reading

Reviews

• Sufian . Abu . 2014 . Review of Shelina Zahra Janmohamed's Love in a Headscarf . Journal of Islamic Law and Culture . 15 . 1 . 2015-03-24.
• Umar . Zeenat . September 2010 . Love in a Headscarf: Muslim Bridget Jones . Illume Magazine Online . 2014-12-10.
• Alemany Oliver . Mathieu. 2017 . Generation M: young Muslims changing the world . European Journal of Marketing . 51 . 9/10 . 1768–1770. 10.1108/EJM-03-2017-0232.

Notes and References

1. Janmohamed, Shelina (2016). Generation M: Young Muslims Changing the World, p. 256. I.B.Tauris, UK. . |url=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Generation-Young-Muslims-Changing-World/dp/1780769091 |
2. Web site: Meet Shelina Janmohamed, Britain's leading voice on what Muslims want. ArabianBusiness.com. en. 2019-02-25.
3. Web site: Sherwood . Harriet . Meet Generation M: the young, affluent Muslims changing the world . . . 3 September 2016 . 2017-04-28.
4. News: Casciani . Dominic . The battle over mosque reform . . . 29 November 2007 . 2015-03-24.
5. http://www.spirit21.co.uk/2007/04/happy-birthday-to-me/
6. Web site: Listening to a Diasporic British Muslim Woman Writer's Voice: An Interview with Shelina Janmohamed. tuckmagazine.com. 6 July 2016.
7. Barton . L . 8 February 2009 . Hot dates and headscarves . The Guardian . 2015-01-11.
8. News: Kemp . Charlotte . Sense and Serendipity . . 30 May 2009 . 2015-03-24.
9. Web site: BBC Radio 3 - Arts & Ideas, Free Thinking: Shelina Janmohamed. Edward Ardizzone's Art. Jewish identity in fiction. BBC. en-GB. 2019-02-25.
10. Web site: Revealing the generosity of the UK's Muslim community during Ramadan. ITV News. 16 May 2018. en. 2019-02-25.
11. News: Shelina Zahra . Janmohamed . A Muslim woman's journey . . 14 February 2009 . 2015-03-24.
12. Web site: Topics. The National. en. 2019-02-25.
13. Web site: Inspiring Muslim successes. The Muslim News. 2019-02-25.
14. Web site: Rebuilding Islam's Brand Shelina Janmohammed Comments June 2010 emel - the muslim lifestyle magazine. www.emel.com. 2019-02-25.
15. Web site: 8 questions journalists should have asked instead of drinking Boris' tea. 2018-08-14. indy100. 2019-02-25.
16. Web site: Shelina Janmohamed. The Telegraph. 25 February 2019 . en-GB. 2019-02-25.
17. News: Meet our experts. ogilvynoor.com. 1 April 2017.
18. Web site: Shelina Zahra Janmohamed, Britain's leading voice on what Muslims want. 2019-01-09. The Siasat Daily. en-GB. 2019-02-25.
19. Web site: 100 Women: Who took part?. BBC. 22 November 2013.
20. News: British Muslim Awards 2014 winners. Asian Image. 31 January 2014. 1 November 2015.
21. Web site: Who are the 100 Women 2014?. BBC. 26 October 2014.
22. Web site: Denying the discrimination of British Muslims is its own twisted form of Islamophobia. The National. 7 June 2018. en. 2019-02-25.