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Muslim identity, history, discrimination and faith were the topics of conversation during a panel discussion on Feb. 29 hosted by Menlo School in Atherton that was hosted by junior Saniya Ahmed and United Menlo Muslim Alliance (UMMA).
The event, entitled “What It’s Like Being Muslim in America,” opened with a presentation by Farid Senzai, a professor of political science and international relations at Santa Clara University. He provided an overview of Muslim immigration to the United States and how the current community of 5 million Muslims has integrated into American society.
After his presentation on Muslim immigration to the U.S., Senzai explained that the Muslim American while many do well, are also struggling with wide economic disparities, high rates of alcohol abuse, suicide and divorce. Senzai adds that 40% of the community makes below the average income of less than $30,000 a year, compared to 32% of the U.S. population as a whole, according to a 2017 study by Pew Research.
“Muslims are no different than your neighbors and no different than the people you go to school with. Ultimately, Muslims want to be just like everyone else,” said Senzai, to close out his presentation.
Next, was a panel discussion with Anas Osman, vice president of strategy and operations at Google, and Dr. Aaliya Yaqub, an internal medicine physician. As Muslim Americans in the workforce, they recounted their personal experiences with Islamaphobia and anti-Muslim sentiments.
When asked how they deal with the rise in anti-Muslim sentiments after 9/11, Dr. Yaqub responded: “What I personally struggle with is, how do I convey to people that I’m the norm?”
“The reality of the situation is that you have to learn not to apologize for other people because the vast majority of terrorism is not committed by Muslims,” Dr. Yaqub said.
Osman, although not having experienced direct Islamophobia, added to the conversation that members of his team have experienced familial loss in the recent bombings in the Middle East but personally felt it was too risky to share the information with their coworkers.
“This is a really insidious part of diversity, equity, inclusion and justice,” Osman said. “The exclusion through silencing and the inability to express yourself is extremely widespread.”
By emphasizing the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion workshops, Dr. Yaqub points out that people are happier, healthier and productive in workplaces that allow them to voice their opinions and be included.
Following the panel discussion, East Palo Alto Mayor Antonio López spoke to the audience about his multifaceted journey in converting to Islam and his path from a Menlo School student to mayor.
López learned more about the Islamic religion during his college years at Duke University. Growing up in East Palo Alto in a Mexican and Catholic family, his announcement of converting to Islam was met with shock by his family members, who thought he was recruited by the terrorist organization the Islamic State group, also known as ISIS.
Although he laughs at that moment now, he reflects on how much of the world misconceives the Middle East and the Islamic religion.
‘Sometimes we’re at family dinners, sometimes we hear things that are anti-Semitic or Islamophobic. It’s your responsibility to make a space to change the paradigm and to change the culture.’
East Palo Alto Mayor Antonio López
“Sometimes we’re at family dinners, sometimes we hear things that are anti-Semitic or Islamophobic. It’s your responsibility to make a space to change the paradigm and to change the culture,” said López.
Naiel Chaudry, a Mountain View High School student and the first Muslim, Pakistani-American winner of Food Network’s Kids Baking Championship, spoke on his experiences as a Muslim youth on television and media.
As a child who aspired to become an actor, he reflected on how the media’s only representation of Muslim people in movies like The Jungle Book and Aladdin, were often framed as barbaric.
“I couldn’t understand why Muslims on TV always had to be villains,” said Chaudry. “As I grew older and started middle school, I realized that if I wanted my younger cousins to grow up watching normal kids who looked like them on TV, something had to change.”
‘As I grew older and started middle school, I realized that if I wanted my younger cousins to grow up watching normal kids who looked like them on TV, something had to change.’
Naiel Chaudry, a Mountain View High School student and the first Muslim, Pakistani-American winner of Food Network’s Kids Baking Championship
During the pandemic, Chaudry and his sister took up baking as a hobby which quickly turned into a three year business, an invitation to audition for Food Network’s Kids Baking Championship and eventually winning the competition.
“Although the $25,000 cash prize was a really nice addition to winning, the feeling of being able to represent little kids was priceless,” said Chaudry.
Finally, Stanford Law professor Shirin Sinnar spoke on her experiences as a Muslim lawyer who has worked on cases involving discrimination hate crime as well as the recent silencing of activists.
“The First Amendment is what protects our right to speak out and yet, we are also seeing that many people … want to speak out against what is happening in Gaza and the starvation that’s taking place and the mass atrocities there, are finding that they can’t,” pointed out Sinnar.
She encouraged the audience to take responsibility in upholding the nation’s values of being able to settle differences through “peaceful political processes,” to criticize the government and debate with one another.
At the end of the event, Saniya Ahmed thanked the speakers, audience members and those who contributed to the forum.
“During this time I feel like there’s such a heated conversation and a lot of misconceptions surrounding religion,” said Ahmed after the panel discussion. “This event was towards presenting the truth and addressing misconceptions that are often surrounded in America since 9/11, before that, and especially now with Palestine and Israel.”
