For Immediate release 1/19/2020
World Hijab Day (WHD) is an annual event in its 8th year. On February 1st of every year, World Hijab Day Organization asks global citizens of all faiths and backgrounds to wear the Hijab (head-covering) for a day in solidarity with Muslim women worldwide. The motto for World Hijab Day 2020 is “Unity in Diversity” with the hashtag #EmpoweredInHijab.
The overall mission of WHD is to create a more peaceful world where global citizens respect each other. Particularly, WHD focuses on fighting bigotry, discrimination, and prejudice against Muslim women. This is most crucial in these times where Hijab is being banned in some countries while in other countries, Muslim women are being targeted and harassed verbally and physically.
Below are some of the shocking but true headlines:
• Shocking moment hijab-wearing pregnant woman is viciously punched in ‘Islamophobic’ attack (November 2019, The Sun)
• Muslim teen athlete disqualified in Ohio race over hijab (October 2019, BBC)
• Woman’s ribs broken after she is abused and attacked in Ealing for wearing hijab (August 2019, MyLondon)
• Bigoted bus rider hurls slurs — and soda — at Hijab-wearing teen (August 2019, NY Post)
• Hijab-wearing women struggle to find work in Germany (July 2019, TRT World)
Nazma Khan, a New York native, initiated this global movement with the intent of bringing awareness on a subject that’s very dear to her and millions of Muslim women across the globe. While growing up in NYC, she was harassed both physically and emotionally on numerous occasions. The presence of such discrimination heightened around 9/11 because of her human right to wear the hijab. Her purpose was to introduce her pain to others in hopes that no one will ever have to go through the emotional trauma simply because of the love they have for their faith. Consequently, on February 1st, 2013, she asked her fellow sisters of all faiths across the globe to don the hijab for one day. Within eight days, she got responses from women residing in 67 different countries that represented a conglomerate of religious backgrounds, to include Christians, Jewish, Pagans, Wiccans, Rastafarians, Buddhists, Atheists etc. WHD gave an opportunity to citizens worldwide who were not familiar with the Islamic faith to open up dialogues with their Muslim neighbors, co-workers, and friends. Additionally, WHD presented an opportunity for teachers to understand why their Muslim students wear the hijab. It also provided non-Muslim mothers a chance to better understand their daughter’s faith and the decision to wear hijab. The negative perception on hijab allowed people to act upon their fears and hurt innocent women without a real and existing threat. WHD simply presented an opportunity for everyone to learn about hijab and its importance in the Islamic faith without perpetuating the negative generalizations in today’s society.
WHD has many volunteers and ambassadors worldwide. WHD ambassadors come from all walks of life. It’s estimated that people in 190 countries take part in World Hijab Day every year. In addition, WHD has been endorsed by many world renowned individuals including scholars, politicians, and celebrities worldwide. WHD has been covered in mainstream news media including New York Times, BBC, CNN, Al-Jazeera, Huffington Post, etc to name a few. In 2018, World Hijab Day Organization became a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.
There were many milestones since the inception of World Hijab Day. One of them was the recognition of the day by New York State in 2017. The same year, the House of Commons of the U.K. hosted an event marking the day, where Prime Minister Theresa May also attended. The event was organized by Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh, SNP MP for Ochil and South Perthsire. SNP MP Tasmina wrote in THE TIMES:
“Given the current climate, World Hijab Day is even greater importance. We must stand up and clearly say that women have a right to choose what they want to wear-whenever, wherever, and however. World Hijab Day is an event that we should be proud of celebrating, not just for religious tolerance but for women’s rights around the world.”
One of the participants of World Hijab Day stated the following:
“This is my 5th year participating in World Hijab Day. I have many friends from many different religions who cover for a variety of reasons. I love being able to support them and anyone else who chooses to cover. When covering my head, I feel like my true self can come out, like I am complete. My experiences have almost always positive, only with a few non-friendly stares. In our world today we need to work towards understanding one another and our different experiences.”-Cathey (Unitarian Universalist-USA)
We must STAND for Muslim women’s right to cover. There are many ways to show your solidarity:
• Attend the WHD event on Facebook and invite your friends: https://facebook.com/events/s/
• Observe Hijab on Feb. 1st, 2020
• Use the hashtags: #EmpoweredinHijab and #WorldHijabDay to voice your opinion in support of Muslim women’s right to wear the hijab
• Upload your picture on social media wearing the hijab with the hashtags #EmpoweredinHijab and #WorldHijabDay
• Organize a WHD event in your community, school, work place, etc.
• Send emails or letters to local Mosques showing your support
• Write letters to local government officials about protecting Muslim women’s right to cover
• Get your local government officials to proclaim February 1st of every year as World Hijab Day in your town, city, state or country
• Support our mission in fighting hate crime against hijab wearing women through your generous donations using this link: https://worldhijabday.com/store/
For more information or to support our campaign, go to https://worldhijabday.com/store
For media requests, please contact us at info@WorldHijabDay.com