Muslims Doing Things

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Ascia Sahar is a content creator Mar 21, 2021

Show notes

When Ascia Sahar was 25, she pitched herself to ABC — and was on the road to her dream job as an anchor. From there, she worked at United States Institute for Peace before taking time off of work to raise her children. But her love for writing and vintage meant that she combined her thoughtful narratives with beautiful content, and Instagram noticed. #Wordsbyascia became an omnipresent hashtag.

Find Ascia on Instagram, or follow her on Clubhouse at iamascia.

Follow the host on Instagram and follow the podcast on Instagram.

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Khalida Brohi has dedicated her life to ending honor killings Mar 14, 2021

Show notes

Khalida Brohi was a teenager when she learned that her cousin Khadija was killed in the name of honor, by Khadija’s own father's brother. Khalida dropped out of medical school and dedicated her life to ending honor killings. She has since founded Sughar Foundation, with the mission of redefining honor through social enterprise. She also founded the insanely Instagrammable Chai Spot in Sedona + NYC. And, Khalida authored a memoir titled I Should Have Honor. Listen to my chat with Khalida!

Find Khalida on Instagram

Follow The Chai Spot on Instagram

Buy Khalida's book, I Should Have Honor

Get involved with Sughar Foundation

Follow me, the host @laylool, on IG!

Marwa Atik co-founded Vela Scarves Mar 07, 2021

Show notes

Marwa (@marwaatik) was 18 when she started to create a new hijab experience, over 12 years ago. Before that for many of us, hijab procurement was a mishmash of H+M or Forever21 neck scarves and masjid basement bazaar finds. But when she started Vela with her sister Tasneem, they focused on color, quality, and even hijab weight for the most comfortable and chic feel. The colors are forecasted and custom made each season (and, imho, unmatched). Vela perfected their classic modal -- and since has unveiled chiffon and jersey fabrics. Listen to Marwa's journey co-founding Vela on today's pod.

Follow Marwa on IG

Follow Vela Scarves on IG

Follow Vela on TikTok

Follow Marwa on YouTube

Follow me, the host @laylool, on IG

Follow the pod on IG

Dr Karim Shaikley is my dad (and the wisest man alive) Feb 28, 2021

Show notes

A few days ago, my dad’s brother Sami died to COVID -- he was one of my dad’s closest friends. My father is the only member of his immediate family to have left Iraq. Only in recent years, with the accessibility of video chatting and reliable wireless networks, he incorporated a new routine to his life: regular video calls with his big brother and other siblings. Before that, due to a crumbling infrastructure, phone calls to Baghdad were limited in duration. I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately — how beautiful it must have been to have tools to communicate the mundane, after five decades. To reach relationship depths that weren't previously accessible. To share art and news. To talk about Kamila's pics on my Instagram (this regularly made the agenda, as my Amu Sami loved Kamila's pics on my Instagram).

My dad moved to America over 50 years ago, to sub-specialize in surgery as a young Iraqi physician. His native country didn’t offer the specialization in training that he endeavored for, so he set sail (literally, on a boat) the the United States. Over the years, he built a practice, ran it, had 6 kids, and more recently has indulged in the fine arts. Listen to a sliver of my dad’s story today on the pod. And keep my uncle in your prayers.

Huda Al-Marashi wrote a memoir about her marriage Feb 21, 2021

Show notes

Huda Al-Marashi wrote her memoir while raising three children. Over a 15 year journey as a stay at home mom throughout her husband's demanding medical education and training, Huda wrote (a lot), figured out the publishing industry, and sold her first book, First Comes Marriage: My Not-So-Typical American Love Story.

Huda's memoir is a tale of the all-too-familiar (but very tight lipped) balance of traditional Iraqi cultural values against American romantic fantasies that many children of Muslim immigrants face in the United States. It's witty, amusing, and incredibly honest -- as Huda narrates her adolescence and young adulthood through a (kinda/mostly) arranged marriage.

Buy Huda's book, First Comes Marriage

Follow Huda on Instagram

Follow Huda on Facebook

Follow the pod and the host @laylool on Instagram.

Alex Fox is Clubhouse famous Feb 14, 2021

Show notes

At this point, you’ve probably heard of Clubhouse. The audio based social network has brought together communities at a unique time in history, when we are all stuck at home. On Clubhouse, realtime panels happen throughout the day in different clubs, which are groups around a common interest. And if you’re on Clubhouse and especially if you’re Muslim, you have probably seen Alex Fox around. Alex’s nascent career in tech has earned her a role in Warby Parker’s product organization — and offline, she has a clothing line with the mission of social justice. But, most recently, Alex has become Clubhouse famous. At a time that most of us are just figuring out what Clubhouse is (many thanks to Elon Musk, stonks, and the Robinhood app).

With a following of over 24,000 of her own — and “clubs” or social spaces with a following of well over 30,000, Alex has built a serious platform in quarantine. Two of her clubs are around Muslim identity — and they are bustling with real time panels that cover a gamut of topics.

While Clubhouse is figuring out how to monetize, Clubhouse influencers are emerging (she has a game show with the founder of Twitch), and Alex is definitely one of them. But it’s a different type of influence — an influence of, mostly, the mind.

Listen to figure out who Alex is, and if you’re patient, to learn how to get a Clubhouse invite of your own.

Connect with Alex on

Instagram

Twitter

Check out her clothing go, Origin of Mind

Reza Aslan always knew he'd be a writer Feb 07, 2021

Show notes

Reza Aslan always knew he would be a writer -- though he may not have always known he would be the author of a New York Times #1 bestseller, a TV host, producer, a scholar, and an Emmy nominee. Reza straddles a very unique intersection, as a scholar of religion with a robust career in entertainment. Listen to my chat with Reza on how he got to that intersection -- and keep an eye out for his sitcom (made with the creator of acclaimed comedy Two and a Half Men), the United States of Al, set to premiere on CBS this April 1st.

Where to find Reza:

Follow Reza on Twitter

Follow Reza on Facebook

Find Reza on his website

Follow me, the host @laylool, on IG, and the pod on Instagram.

Aysha Harun's YouTube career started when she was 15 Jan 31, 2021

Show notes

Aysha Harun (@ayshaharun) is a beauty and lifestyle content creator whose journey began at 15 with her eponymous YouTube channel. Aysha filled a gap in the Black, women of color, hijabi, and Muslim spaces -- all of which were underserved at the time. Nearly 500k YouTube subscribes and 260k Instagram follows later, Aysha’s content has attracted a community that seeks to keep up with her and emulate her lifestyle. Listen to Aysha chat about her journey, the business behind influence, and the changing tide that has shifted towards inclusivity in social media.

Keep up with Aysha:

Subscribe to Aysha's channel on YouTube

Follow Aysha on Instagram

Follow Aysha on TikTok

Follow the host @laylool and about the pod @muslimsdoingthings

Tahereh Mafi has published 12 books in 10 years Jan 24, 2021

Show notes

Author Tahereh Mafi (@tahereh) is an author and a force in the young adult world. Tahereh's first published work, Shatter Me, has been reviewed over 300,000 times on Goodreads. She is no stranger to the New York Times Best Selling Authors list and she is a National Book Award nominee. Recently, Tahereh's fictional novel (peppered with non-fictional anecdotes from her own life) about a hijabi teenager's coming of age was picked up for production on the big screen. Tahereh's newest novel, An Emotion of Great Delight, is set to come out later this year.

Find Tahereh on Instagram or at her website

About me & the pod: Follow the host (@laylool) on Instagram

Follow Muslims Doing Things on Instagram

Dr Reshmaan Hussam teaches Harvard Business School students about social justice (and economics) Jan 17, 2021

Show notes

Dr. Reshmaan Hussam went to MIT for undergrad and grad school to study economics. As a developmental economist, she found herself as Harvard Business School’s first (a pretty confident assumption) hijabi professor. TL;DR -- her goal is to ensure some of the world's future business leaders are well versed in some of the world's greatest injustices. And other stuff. She sits at the intersection of development, behavioral, and health economics.

Listen to Reshma talk about her journey, and how she found herself writing case studies for business school students about Rohingya.

Plugs

Reshma invited listeners to email her directly if you are interested in development or forcibly displaced person space and are looking for direction rhussam@hbs.edu

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