# I’ve Been In Hijab Since I Was 4 Years Old | Sr. Aliya Khabir

**Author:** Yaqeen Institute
**Series:** The Story of Islam in America
**Published:** 2025-09-04
**YouTube:** https://youtu.be/FRSE-tXGCcA
**URL:** https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/story-of-islam-in-america/ive-been-in-hijab-since-i-was-four-years-old-aliya-khabir
**Topics:** History

## Description
Yes, they do stare. Yes, hijab can be tough. But you can be tough, too. The way you show up in your hijab matters. Take the advice of Sr. Aliya Khabir and know your rights and self-worth when dealing with discrimination, particularly in the corporate space. From the streets of Philadelphia came a...

## Transcript
**[0:00]** I've been in hijab since I was four. My mother tells the story, she says I was not arguing with no 12 year old about no khimar. So here you go, four years old. Which I think is great, I think is a great strategy because at four you want to be like Ummi. So you're

**[0:18]** trying on her clothes, you're trying on her shoes, so oh you want to be like me? Here, try this. Try this khimar. So it didn't even occur to me that I would have an issue being in the corporate space as a Muslim. Me walking into my interview with my pinstripe

**[0:37]** abaya, blue navy blue business pinstripe abaya matching khimar purse and boots. I'm ready for business. And I let my resume speak for itself. And it did not occur to me until I was maybe a year into my career outside of college. I had a bunch of internships, went

**[0:57]** to work for a Black Enterprise rated PR and advertising firm, Crawley, Haskins and Rogers, number I think 18 on the Black Enterprise list at that point in the country. And 9/11 happens. My peers that are from immigrant backgrounds were horrified. People don't like

**[1:19]** us anymore. Oh, well, they never liked us anyway, we black. So I'm all right. I understand this oppression. I understand navigating through this kind of hate. I understand navigating through strange eye stares on a SEPTA bus. I understand that. But I'm also from Philadelphia.

**[1:44]** And people understand at that point that sisters are off limits. There is an understanding there. You know, there's a cause for pause there. I come from a Philadelphia born and bred black Muslim community. I'm built for tough. I'm not weak. I'm built for

**[2:03]** the fight. So for me, it was, oh, this happened. This is awful. May Allah give Jannah to the martyrs. But I have to go to work tomorrow. And I went to work. And it wasn't until then

**[2:20]** where I had these friends who would come in and say, Well, I don't know, I feel like people are they are staring at you. Yes, they are. And it's okay. Go to your desk and do your work. To this day, I still get kind of like Facebook inboxes from sisters. I'm a

**[2:38]** convert. I've been working at this place for five years. I just started wearing my hijab. And I got called into HR. Okay, so the first is I'm so sorry, this has happened to you. But you grown, you need to know what your rights are. You need to educate yourself.

**[2:54]** Here's a link to CAIR and you got to stand on it. This is not going to be easy. So I think coming into the corporate world, it was a problem for other people wasn't a problem for me. And I think I made it known that if you want to make it a problem for me, it's

**[3:13]** going to be a legal problem. I'm a publicist, we all gonna be on the news. If you make this a problem. And I think a lot of the times people who are uncomfortable around Muslims and try to make it hard for Muslims in corporate spaces, they understand who they can pick

**[3:30]** with and who they can't. And that's what I really encourage a lot of the girls to do. Like don't play the game. Don't shrivel up immediately before they even say a word to you. You have to establish who you are when you walk in the door from the beginning. When

**[3:48]** the man extends his hand for a handshake. Oh, I am Muslim. We don't shake hands with men, but how are you? That teaches them. And when you are consistent with that, they have no choice but to acquiesce.

## Other Episodes in "The Story of Islam in America"
- [The First Muslim Cowboys? | Imam Khalil Salaam](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/story-of-islam-in-america/the-first-muslim-cowboys-imam-khalil-salaam-philadelphia.md)
- [Was This The First Muslim Town In America?](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/story-of-islam-in-america/was-this-the-first-muslim-town-in-america-philadelphia-sizzle-reel.md)