Ashley has been a Muslim for almost two years now. How did world hijab day lead her to Islam? Here is her amazing story!

Ashley grew up in the USA in Arkansas, which is a Southern state in the “Bible Belt” region. Christianity is very big and many people go to church. They are in a predominantly white area and don’t learn that much about other religions or cultures.

When she went to college, this is when she was exposed to different cultures and even people of colour. She joined a program where they join American students with international students. She was paired with a partner in grad school originally from Saudi Arabia and they became really good friends.

They didn’t talk about religion a lot. She asked a couple of questions but the topic of religion was never a big issue. Her friend left after she had graduated.

The following year, Ashley was in grad school and the night before World Hijab Day she decided to take part in World Hijab Day! She had a good day and got a lot of positive feedback especially from Muslims.

She became an ambassador for World Hijab Day and in 2018 she wanted to hold her own event. She connected with the local mosque and held a meeting there. A man gave her two copies of the Quran and just before the meeting started he said “You know the way that the media portrays our religion, it’s just the most misunderstood religion.” This really stuck with her and she wanted to learn more.

She decided to take part in a 30 day hijab challenge and then she decided that she would fast Ramadan as well. As she was learning more she felt a change happening to her. She eventually ask her friend to teach her how to pray. By the end of Ramadan she was falling in love with the religion.

On the last day of Ramadan she knew she was ready to take her Shahadah!