ILLINOIS – A hijabi American Muslim has made history in the US after she was hired as a full-time TV news reporter on a mainstream television news station, according to the western Illinois station.

“I didn’t kind of have anyone who looked like me on TV, so I never really thought it was a possibility,” Tahera Rahman told Local 4 News in a feature about her promotion.

Tahera’s passion for TV news started years ago. After years of rejection from news stations across the nation, Tahera decided to put TV reporting on hold and took a job as a news producer behind the scenes at the Local 4 news station in the Quad Cities.

“She would come in on the weekend and that’s her day off but she really wanted this,” Taylor said.

Tahera continued to work on her reporting skills during her free time.

“I was like, someday, someone is going to notice the work I’m putting in and give me a chance,” Tahera said.

Local 4 News reported that the family of Rahman, who obtained a Bachelor’s degree in journalism from Loyola University of Chicago, drove a few hours from Chicago to the Quad Cities to watch her report her first segment.

In January 2016, Noor Tagouri become the first-ever hijabi anchor on commercial television in America.

Ginella Massa, a news reporter for CityNews in Toronto, anchored her first newscast in Canada in November 2016, becoming the first hijabi Muslim to achieve this significant milestone.