In the Ottawa community, it's a challenge to meet someone who does not know Khadija Haffajee. She is seen as a pioneering figure in the nation’s capital, as well as on a global scale as a lecturer, educator, mentor and social activist. But not everyone knows the unique backstory on how a South African woman ended up holding such a public role in Canada.

Montreal-based Syrian Canadian journalist Oussayma Canbarieh has made multiple documentaries exploring the challenges faced by Muslims navigating their identity within North American societies. In particular, her ground-breaking web series for Radio Canada International, “Me, The Muslim Next Door”, follows the lives of seven young Muslim Canadians in Montreal and Toronto. Oussayma was awarded the Lys de la Diversité Prize for web-journalism in 2013.

On February 17th, the Ottawa Hijab Solidarity Day was held at City Hall. The City for All Women Initiative (CAWI) partnered with the Ottawa Coalition to End Violence Against Women, the Ottawa Local Immigration Partnership (OLIP), and the Coalition of Community Health and Resource Centres to hold the event.

Vancouver-based writer Rahat Kurd has recently published a collection of poetry entitled Cosmophilia. Her collection explores her personal journey as a Kashmiri Muslim Canadian woman grappling with faith, identity, history, family and the traumatic and ever present legacy of the partition of India and Pakistan. She will be in Ottawa on March 29th and in Toronto on April 9th reading from her collection. Muslim Link interviewed her about her writing.

The City for All Women Initiative (CAWI), in partnership with the Coalition of Community Health and Resource Centres, the Ottawa Local Immigration Partnership (OLIP), and the Ottawa Coalition to End Violence against Women (OCTEVAW), are holding Ottawa Hijab Solidarity Day on Thursday, February 25th, from 4pm to 6pm at the City of Ottawa, Councillors’ Lounge, Second Floor.

Modest Muslimah is crowdfunding to make their programs accessible to all young Muslim women. Muslim Link spoke with Nayaelah Abdussamad Sedeke about how she has created a space to empower and inspire Muslim women in Ottawa. A student at the University of Ottawa and an aspiring entrepreneur, Nayaelah co-founded Modest Muslimah to fill a social gap she and her sister identified.

What do women who wear the niqab and women who choose to go topless in Canada have in common? Both make a lot of people very uncomfortable. Both have had their rights upheld by Canadian courts. And, both may be overreacting against real or perceived attitudes towards female sexuality.

There has been a great deal of controversy raised as the right of Zunera Ishaq to wear the niqab during her citizenship ceremony has become an election issue. Muslim Link received this letter to the editor in response to politician's statements and media coverage of this issue.

When one thinks of the word “hijabi”, it is not often followed by the word motorcyclist. Except that in my case, it is.

Camp Inspyred is back for another year, offering young Muslim women from Ottawa a unique camping experience. Registration for the Camp is currently full but fundraising is ongoing in order to ensure that campers who require financial assistance to attend the camp can be covered. Muslim Link interviewed the Camp Inspyred team about their vision, their fundraising, and their plans to further develop their initiative in the future.