This week marked the beginning of Ramadan, a holiday celebrated by Muslim people all across the globe. Ramadan is a time of year when Muslim people go on a month-long journey of fasting, prayer, and reflection. There are approximately 1.9 followers of the Islamic faith in the world.
A few of your favorite celebrities are also a part of that 1.9 billion celebrating the holiday this year. We’ve got a few for you on this week’s In Case You Didn’t Know.
Muslim Women In Hollywood
Supermodel, Iman Abdulmajid was born to a Muslim family in Somalia. Her original name was actually Zara Mohammed Abdulmajid but changed it to Iman which means “faith” in Arabic.In her memoir, I am Iman, she touches on how her faith and her career contradict each other saying, “Somalia is a moderate Muslim country, but my religion dictates that this is not a profession I should be in…May Allah have mercy on my soul if I have sinned.”
SZA was born to a Muslim family and has said that she still practices Islam. She went to a Muslim prep school every day after traditional schooling. During a TikTok live in 2021 she discussed her experiences growing up in a Muslim household and how she received a lot of hate from the community. She went on to say that after the events of 9/11, she stopped wearing her head covering as a result of bullying.
Janet Jackson was raised in a Jehovah’s Witness household but grew to refrain from organized religion. It wasn’t until she got married to her now ex-husband, Wissam Al Mana in 2012, that she converted to Islam. The two have now divorced but share one child.