{"id":109694,"date":"2017-11-03T20:14:51","date_gmt":"2017-11-04T00:14:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wanderlust.com\/?p=109694\/"},"modified":"2020-01-14T13:29:39","modified_gmt":"2020-01-14T18:29:39","slug":"run-like-a-hijabi-and-change-the-world-uk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wanderlust.com\/de\/journal\/run-like-a-hijabi-and-change-the-world-uk\/","title":{"rendered":"Run Like a Hijabi\u2014and Change the World"},"content":{"rendered":"

Rahaf Khatib<\/a> has been on the cover of a national magazine, interviewed by major news outlets, and boasts nearly 20K Instagram<\/a> followers. She\u2019s completed 11 marathons, including all six major international races, in New York, Boston, Berlin, Tokyo, Chicago, and London. But it\u2019s not just her achievements that make Rahaf an inspiration for thousands of young women around the country\u2014it\u2019s also that she\u2019s a proud, practicing Muslim who chooses to cover up. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes I go to races, and I\u2019m the only one in a hijab,\u201d she says, which can can be scary. When I told her that I didn\u2019t recall seeing a hijabi at any Wanderlust event I\u2019d been to in the past three years, Rahaf simply responded that \u201cis sad for me to hear.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s what she\u2019s determined to change. <\/span><\/p>\n

Rahaf starting running in earnest in 2012. She\u2019s a stay-at-home mom, and was hungry for \u00a0relationships like the ones she\u2019d find with fellow runners. \u201cRunners are just happy people,\u201d she says. Rahaf is also an ardent yogi who practices about three times a week, mostly as part of her training. \u201cThe running and yoga community are inclusive<\/a>,\u201d she says, \u201cand everyone is welcome no matter who you are. Because in the end, we\u2019re all crossing the same finish lines.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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Rahaf displays her medal for completing all six major international marathons.<\/div><\/div>\n

Creating a Voice<\/h3>\n

It didn\u2019t take long for Rahaf to begin making waves in the running world. Her <\/span>Instagram<\/span><\/a> profile gained followers quickly\u2014after all, particularly in today\u2019s charged world\u2014it\u2019s not common to see a covered woman putting herself in the public eye so boldly, doing something that is traditionally secular. Rahaf cites the Nelson Mandela quote, that just as no one is born hating anyone else, that they must learn to hate, they \u201ccan be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.\u201d With her profile, Rahaf aims to teach people this kind of love. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI try to educate people about Islam<\/a>,\u201d she says. \u201cJust because I cover doesn\u2019t mean that I can\u2019t run or partake in fitness. Even in these tumultuous times, there\u2019s hope for a better more inclusive community,\u201d she says. Instagram is her platform to use running for social change.<\/span><\/p>\n

The running and yoga community are inclusive, and everyone is welcome no matter who you are. Because in the end, we\u2019re all crossing the same finish lines.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Saying that she uses the platform for social causes is more than idle affirmation. In 2017, when preparing for the Boston Marathon, Rahaf <\/span>raised money<\/span><\/a> for refugees from her home country of Syria, totalling more than $16,000. This, of course, was happening concurrently with President Trump\u2019s so-called Muslim Ban<\/a>, which barred people from seven Muslim-majority countries. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe political environment was tense,\u201d Rahaf recalls. \u201cPeople saw the injustice and donated generously. The spirit of the Marathon is about caring and giving back. That was what I was trying to do.\u201d This year, for the London Marathon, she <\/span>raised more than $6,000<\/span><\/a> for brain tumor research, in honor of her Baba (father) who has been diagnosed with the condition. <\/span><\/p>\n

In 2015, Rahaf was a <\/span>finalist<\/span><\/a> in the <\/span>Runner\u2019s World<\/span><\/i> magazine search for a cover model, and was selected alongside a male compatriot, Bobby Gill. Bobby regularly runs races in his underwear to raise money for children\u2019s cancer research\u2014but as a devout Muslim Rahaf didn\u2019t feel comfortable posing next to him. Though it was tough to turn down an opportunity for hijabis in the fitness world to be front and center, she knew she had to hold true to her own principles. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI was devastated,\u201d Rahaf recalls, but less than a year later, \u201cI got a call from <\/span>Women\u2019s Running <\/span><\/i>magazine, who wanted to do a cover shoot <\/span>with me<\/span><\/a>,\u201d Rahaf says. When it was published, Rahaf became the <\/span>first woman<\/span><\/a> in a headscarf to ever be featured on any health or fitness magazine in the world. It was one of the many moments that she felt she was truly doing what she was set on this Earth to do. <\/span><\/p>\n

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Photo by EeatPomegranate Photography<\/div><\/div>\n

Shattering Stereotypes<\/h3>\n

\u201cWhen we don\u2019t see ourselves in our community,\u201d she says, \u201cwe can feel like we don\u2019t belong in the world.\u201d This can not only make a person feel unwelcome, but also keep them from participating at all. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI hope what I\u2019m doing will pave the path for covered Muslim women,\u201d says Rahaf. She says that some women say that they avoid the gym and fitness classes altogether due to fear, but that mentality is slowly changing. \u201cI had a friend tell me she quit running when she covered,\u201d says Rahaf. \u201cBut she\u2019s now slowly getting back at it after she saw my magazine cover.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

In September of last year, Rahaf posted <\/span>an inspiring story<\/span><\/a> on her Instagram profile of a young women named Katie who felt she had to choose between her love of running and her desire to cover. Katie\u2019s family had worried that wearing a hijab would limit her opportunities\u2014something Katie struggled with until she learned about Rahaf. These are the kinds of stories that Rahaf say inspire her to keep going. <\/span><\/p>\n

She calls on this inspiration when she faces (even unintentional) bigotry. Once, in a hot yoga class, she casually remarked to her teacher that it was abnormally hot in the room that day. He responded that it was because she was covered. \u201cI don\u2019t think he intended to hurt me,\u201d she says, though it was hard for her to bite her tongue\u2014she\u2019d been practicing yoga for five years! \u201cI do get looks, but I\u2019m so used to it I chalk it up as curious,\u201d she says. \u201cIt kinda makes me feel strong. Like, \u2018Hey, what\u2019s up, yeah I\u2019m covered and running marathons or practicing yoga in a heated 90-degree room, so what?\u2019 I ignore everyone\u2019s looks and do my thing,\u201d she says. <\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s not only good for fellow Muslims to see Rahaf in the race lineup; it\u2019s also good for non-Muslims to see hijabis as regular people, particularly in our strained sociopolitical climate. Rahaf recalls a recent moment after an informal Pancake 5K in Michigan when a man approached her at the finish line. \u201cHe wasn\u2019t the race director or anything,\u201d Rahaf says, \u201cbut he came up to me to thank me for being there. Breaking stereotypes and prejudices starts by regular people at the local level,\u201d she says.<\/span><\/p>\n

Running for God<\/h3>\n

Though women in hijabs (<\/span>hijabis<\/span><\/i>) are beginning to dot the fitness landscape\u2014in 2016, Ibtihaj Muhammad <\/span>became<\/span><\/a> the first Olympic athlete to compete for the US wearing a hijab, for example\u2014it\u2019s not common or exalted, even within the Muslim community. In fact, says Rahaf, health and wellness are Islamic principles. Three of the <\/span>Five Pillars of Islam<\/span><\/a> have to do with physical health.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe pilgrimage to Mecca\u2014this is very physical!\u201d says Rahaf. Fasting is another physical pillar, as is prayer. Rahaf believes that taking care of oneself, and engaging in sport like running or yoga, is to take good care of oneself; to honor the body for God. What does she say to naysayers who criticize her partaking in these largely secular activities? \u201cI\u2019d say they haven\u2019t read their Qur\u2019an,\u201d she laughs. <\/span><\/p>\n

Yeah I\u2019m covered and running marathons or practicing yoga in a heated 90-degree room, so what? I ignore everyone\u2019s looks and do my thing.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Rahaf is considering getting her fitness certification, and maybe her yoga certification<\/a> as well. But what of the religious iconography in yoga studios? Wouldn\u2019t that offend a practicing Muslim? \u201cIt doesn\u2019t bother me,\u201d says Rahaf. \u201cIf something doesn\u2019t mean anything to you, why would it matter?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

While Rahaf is proud of her role inspiring other Muslim runners and of being a role model for her children, she does sometimes grow weary of the burden that comes with being in the spotlight. \u201cI know they are proud of me when I\u2019m on the news or in a magazine\u2026 [But] I get tired all the time!\u201d she admits. \u201cSometimes of course I wish I didn\u2019t have to be the face of this, that I looked like everyone else, that I could run in shorts and feel the wind on my skin. But this is my faith. I am doing this for my family\u2014and I am also doing this for God.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

And what of other young women she\u2019s inspiring? What\u2019s her advice? \u201cI advise them to hold their head up high,\u201d she says. \u201cHave confidence in yourself and know your worth. Don\u2019t let anyone put you down for what you stand for. To her I say this; you are flag bearer of this peaceful religion no matter what news outlets say. Keep doing good, and emitting that positive energy through a smile. People will see that you are holding on to your hijab, both figuratively and physically, and will appreciate this.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n