South student combats religious intolerance, granted interfaith award

FAITHFUL FRIENDS: Celebrating after being awarded with the North Shore Interfaith Leadership Award, junior Saarah Bhaiji (second from right) smiles with her fellow award winners. She looks to combat religious intolerance from within Souths community.

Photo courtesy of Saarah Bhaiji

FAITHFUL FRIENDS: Celebrating after being awarded with the North Shore Interfaith Leadership Award, junior Saarah Bhaiji (second from right) smiles with her fellow award winners. She looks to combat religious intolerance from within South’s community.

Spencer Colbeck, staff reporter

It’s 2016, and the fear of terrorism is growing every day. While the fear of the violence associated with terrorist acts causes mass paranoia, one group of citizens must fear not only attacks, but racial profiling and discrimination.

Muslim student Saarah Bhaiji is a junior at GBS, and although she claims she has never been a victim of discrimination at South, she has become increasingly weary of racial profiling. Bhaiji believes events in other places have encouraged her to spread the truth about Muslim beliefs and values.

“There’s such a difference in what the media shows, and what actual muslims [stand for],” Bhaiji said. “It’s so different, like my parents don’t let me even kill a bug, how am I supposed to be a terrorist? It’s just showing people that this is different.”

According to Bhaiji, the isolation she felt as a result of religious-based prejudice has led her to take on leadership positions inside and outside South. Bhaiji was elected student body treasurer for the 2016-2017 school year, is serving as a co-president of the GBS Muslim Students Association (MSA), is a key member of her mosque and is a Muslim youth group leader.

“[Youth group leaders] plan events for the youth in our community, [such as] events for Ramadan, working with Sunday schools, and making sure it’s not a chore for people to come,” Bhaiji said. “The youth group I work with is dedicated to Muslim girls, ages 12 through 25, and it [brings] Muslim girls in the area together, just so you can hang out.”

According to Bhaiji, her involvement in extracurriculars take a lot of time out of her schedule. She notes that this year has been her most involved year to date.

Serving alongside Bhaiji as a co-president of the GBS Muslim Students Association is junior Shahnoor Shahzad. According to Shahzad, she has seen leadership qualities in Bhaiji since the day they first met.

“I actually met [Bhaiji] on the first day of sixth grade,” Shahzad said. “She’s always been a super friendly person. The leadership qualities have always been within her, but have progressed throughout middle school. She would get to know everyone, and treat everyone the same.”

The positive view towards Bhaiji’s accomplishments have also been recognized by the community, and in a recent ceremony, Bhaiji was named a winner of the North Shore Interfaith Leadership Award. According to the Muslim Community Center’s website, the award recognizes young adults in the North Shore who show strong leadership qualities. According to Bhaiji, she was one of two nominees selected by her mosque.

“I learned maybe 2 days before, and I had to write a speech,” Bhaiji said. “It was crazy.”

In addition to the award, Bhaiji was recognized in a recent article published by the Chicago Tribune. The article cites Bhaiji as a trailblazer, fighting stereotypes in a world fueled by paranoia and suspicion.

Bhaiji hopes that by breaking stereotypes and prejudice, at the end of the day, people can see her for who she is.

“Just meet me,” Bhaiji said.