Our next piece is named after Mariama Kamara who is 25 years old and from Sierra Leone. Growing up her mother was Christian and her father was a Muslim. Mariama was more inclined to the Christian side due to her upbringing and her mother’s strong practices. As she began to mature she felt a growing unrest in her heart and fear of death, which lead her to do her own research on Islam. She knew something was missing in her life, and when she would go to community events she often asked herself, “there had to be more to life than this”. She felt lost until she had watched a video on YouTube about death in Islam. The next day upon watching the video she put on the hijab and never took it off or looked back. When asked what attracted her the most to Islam she explained the structure of it. The fact that heaven did not come easy by just believing but by actually putting in the work such as praying 5 times a day, fasting, and giving charity. She explained that she would describe Islam as “content” the ultimate happiness that everyone is trying to achieve. Mariama explains that the actual convert process was a seamless process as she already had a supportive Muslim best friend who guided her along the way. Without her being her support system to navigate the complex Muslim community struggles and differentiating Islam from cultural practices or even sheltering her from racism within the Islamic community she does not know if she would have continued on the path of Islam or being the Muslim she is today. She explains that she did not say the shahada when she put on the hijab initially because she did not know what the process of being a Muslim was at the time instead she had just put the hijab on and told herself she was Muslim. When asked how she deals with her identities of being a new Muslim and Canadian she explains that she is thankful that being from Sierra Leone and being Muslim was not a foreign entity. In Sierra Leone the Muslim population is more than the Christian population. However, her mother at the time was fearful of her wearing the hijab and identifying as a Muslim and would threaten her to throw away her scarves so she ended up having to put a lock in her room. Her biggest goal surrounded her mother to be guided to Islam and Alhamdiallah 2 years ago her mother reverted to Islam. When asked what her biggest struggle was as a new Muslim she explained that she was fearful of reverting back to old habits and ways of life and that being a Muslim was just a phase. Next year will be her 10 year anniversary of being a Muslim. When asked what the Muslim community can do better when it comes to converts she explained that it would be great if they can be paired up with someone who is knowledgeable and approachable to help with answering questions and connecting them to the community. When asked how she deals with Islamaphobia she explains that while being black she is constantly dealing with racism and that she found dealing with Islamophobia as a similar case. She tries to deal with it by herself, by being as transparent as possible all while educating others about the beauty of Islam and showing them the good characteristics about the religion.
Our faux leather skirt has 6 gold embellished buttons that just elevate it the whole look. We love this fierce piece and everything it represents.
The models are wearing a size small. The tops do not come with the skirt.*
Size Guide:
Small: Waist: 28" Hip: "18" Length: 43.5"
Medium: Waist: 30" Hip: 19" Length: 43.5"
Large: Waist: 32" Hip: 20" Length: 44"
Extra Large: Waist: 34" Hip: 21" Length: 44"
