The Unspoken Reality of Everyday Islamophobia
On an ordinary summer afternoon in Chatham, Rabina Khan experienced the kind of casual racism that has become frighteningly familiar to many Muslim women across Britain. While walking along Chatham High Street, a group of children no older than ten shouted at her: 'Got a bomb under your mop?'
The blatant nature of the abuse left her stunned, yet she chose not to respond. 'Partly because I didn't want to give them the satisfaction of a reaction, but also because I know that when you're a visibly Muslim woman, a comeback can be filled with risk,' she explains.
What troubled her most was the reaction of those around her - or rather, the lack of it. People continued walking past, seemingly oblivious. This incident represents a broader pattern of Islamophobia that has become woven into the fabric of daily life for Muslim women in Britain.
A Lifetime of Discrimination
Khan's first encounter with Islamophobia occurred when she was just eight years old. Standing in a supermarket queue with her mother, whose sari was pulled over her head, they watched in confusion as the cashier lifted a packet of pork sausages from their basket. They didn't eat pork, and the staff knew this.
The mystery was solved when a shop assistant who had been stacking shelves wandered over. 'Immediately, the two of them started sniggering as they looked at us,' Khan recalls. 'This was no mistake. It was a message. A shop assistant slipped it in.'
This early lesson that her family was seen as 'other' was reinforced throughout her life. At fourteen, during the period when Margaret Thatcher allowed US planes to use British airspace to bomb Libya, a bus driver closed the doors in her face and told her to 'Go back to Libya.'
When she automatically responded, 'I'm not from Libya,' it changed nothing. The bus pulled away as someone else at the stop shouted: 'Kick her a bomb' - a phrase that didn't even make sense.
The Pattern of Abuse and Bystander Silence
Another disturbing incident occurred on a London train when two young men sitting opposite her began muttering about 'f***ing Islamists' while looking directly at her hijab. 'They're taking over,' one said.
What made these experiences particularly painful was the silence of bystanders. 'No one intervened or came to my defence,' Khan notes. 'A few passengers looked on awkwardly, but most pretended they didn't hear.'
This pattern of abuse isn't unique to Khan. According to official 2024 data for England and Wales, 45% of all recorded religious hate crime was directed at Muslims. Even more strikingly, approximately 85% of those targeted were Muslim women in public spaces - on trains, in shops, on university campuses.
Intergenerational Impact and Institutional Responsibility
The problem extends across generations. Khan's daughter, who works in the NHS, frequently encounters patients who cannot hide their prejudice. They approach her reception desk, look her over, smirk, and walk away, asking to speak to someone else.
Her teenage niece faced a different kind of discrimination when a classmate tried to 'protect' her by telling someone else she 'wasn't really Muslim.' Defiantly, her niece responded: 'But I am a Muslim.'
Khan argues that responsibility for addressing Islamophobia extends beyond individuals. 'The media must stop treating Muslimness as shorthand for danger,' she insists. Schools need to take Islamophobia as seriously as any other form of bullying, while public transport must implement meaningful policies to address abuse when it occurs.
Workplaces too must examine why certain employees are constantly overlooked, interrupted, or passed over for opportunities.
A Call to Action During Islamophobia Awareness Month
As another Islamophobia Awareness Month draws to a close each November, Khan urges people not to stand by in silence when they witness racially motivated abuse. 'When you do nothing, this type of behaviour becomes even more entrenched in our society,' she warns.
Islamophobia Awareness Month is a nationwide campaign supported by organizations like Muslim Engagement and Development (MEND). It aims to raise awareness about Islamophobia while celebrating the contributions of the British Muslim community through discussions, lectures, exhibitions, and other educational activities.
Khan's message is clear: We need to create an environment where individuals feel they can speak up when they're victims of racism without fearing for their personal safety. Only then can we work toward a future where such prejudiced mindsets are universally recognised for what they are: ignorant and unacceptable.
The incident on Chatham High Street affected her deeply, particularly because the Islamophobic comments came from children. She didn't tell anyone about it at the time, but she shares it now to highlight why awareness and action matter. 'The perpetuating of racist, discriminatory ideology is unacceptable, and we all have a role to play in stamping it out.'
