“7/7 changed my life” – Article from Waltham Forest Guardian

This is an article from the Waltham Forest Guardian – I was interviewed on my reflections 5 years after the July 7 bombings.

the Article was written by Ryan McCarthy and can be found here

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THE horror of the 7/7 London bombings prompted a young muslim to dedicate his life to promoting a positive image of Islam in Waltham Forest and beyond.

Nadeem Javaid was a 20-year-old student who woke up expecting to collect exam results on the tragic day five years ago this week.

But the devout Muslim received a text telling him the Tube network was down as he was about to leave his Walthamstow home.

Mr Javaid and his family, like millions of others, spent the day glued to the TV screens as it emerged that the coordinated attacks had killed 52 people and injured almost 800.

“On that day Islam was further hijacked by a minority who did not represent the true values of Islam,” he said. Read the rest of this entry »

The Great British Ramadan

Yumm

One of the greatest achievements that Islam has had is the ability to adapt to and co-exist in communities that traditionally are not Islamic. The early companions of the Prophet (saw) never imposed a new culture into a community but would bring in the beautiful aspects of Islam and live alongside the cultures they found. Now we are not talking about things that compromise the commandments of the Almighty but about becoming active members of the community we live in, showing that Islam is a way of life that is not difficult or a burden on people but beautiful and flourishing.

The same is true today – we are young British Muslims who have an identity of being British and yet hold dearly our beliefs – nothing can show this more so then the blessed month of Ramadan. As the moon is sighted to signify the beginning of Ramadan, our attitudes change and we make more of an effort to concentrate on our spirituality while continuing to get on with our normal British lives; we must go to work and yet we must try and get the most and best out of this month and we can do this like the companions who migrated to cities far from their original homes.
Read the rest of this entry »