Every book on my bookshelf has one thing in common; they all have one line that is underlined inside of it. The line that I choose to underline is the line that jumps out to me the most because it resonates with me or captures the heart of the book. The line I decided to underline this month comes from the memoir We Have Always Been Hereby Samra Habib:

Study Questions for Samra Habib’s We Have Always Been Here: A Queer Muslim Memoir From the beginning of the memoir to the end, what does “home” mean, and what does it look like? What does it smell like to Samra? Who and what is “queer”? Samra Habib is a writer, photographer and activist, whose memoir We Were Always Here: a Queer Muslim Memoir depicts her experience being forced to run away from her home in Lahore and starting a new life in Canada. Samra Habib is a journalist, photographer and activist based in Toronto. CBC Books named Habib a writer to watch in 2019. We Have Always Been Here is her first book. Why Samra Habib wrote a memoir.

Download matrox port devices driver. “Jaan, it helps to find solace in the larger universe, especially when your internal world isn’t hospitable,” she said hoping that the advice would stick. “Sometimes that is how you come back to yourself.”

This quote comes from an exchange about the power of reading books between Samra and her mother. This line captures the essence of the memoir because it is Samara’s response to what her mother said.

Samra was born in Pakistan, where at the age of eight, she and her family fled due to facing prosecution from the government for being Ahmadi Muslim. In Canada, she remained a dutiful daughter in public to the point at the age of 13 she was engaged to her first cousin, and by the age of 16, she married him. However, in private, she read feminist books, played with her fashion, took her hijab off at school, and began to question her feelings towards women. Before she graduated high school, Samra divorced her husband and ran away from home to find herself outside her family.

The period that follows is the beginning of Samra’s journey into exploring her sexuality while meanwhile no longer practicing Islam as she felt abandoned by her faith. Over two decades, Samra is exposed to various people who identify as being Queer, who not only become life-long friends but help her gain the courage to accept her place in the community herself. This would not always go smoothly as she will find herself married to another man at the age of 20, but in her 30s, she begins dating women that would (of course) lead to a few broken hearts.

After Samra comes to terms with being Queer she starts to crave the community that Islam gave her growing up and that she left after leaving home. At this point, her parents are in her life again after making amends over her first marriage, helping her divorce her second husband, and accepting her being Queer. A friend recommended that Samra attend an Islam service where they accepted LGBTQ+ members, and the service leaders are a gay couple themselves. It is within this inclusive version of Islam that Samra finds herself comforted by her religion and to feel safe within it too.

Once her return to Islam is complete, Samra begins searching for other Muslims who identify as Queer. This would become a photo project that gives a voice to Queer Muslims and a face as to the varying degrees of them. She would provide lectures throughout the world on this topic, and her photo series “Just Me and Allah” would be featured in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. We Have Always Been Here is her first book.

The front cover of the book states that it is a ‘Queer Muslim Memoir.’ Both Queer and Muslim are two identities that tend to be separated, meaning you can be one- Queer or Muslim- but you cannot be both. This memoir questions this separation and is an exploration of Samra, finding her identity within both of these places. Throughout her story, we are faced with the hardships that Samra went through to get to her most authentic self. Her trials are full of grace for herself as this memoir is a love letter to her younger self, but it also shows grace to those who were not always on her side. This memoir was recently voted Canada's Best Read for this year, and I can not argue with that, as this book will stick around with you months after you finish it. I have read this book twice and each time I felt nothing by love towards the author for writing such a profoundly moving memoir that will touch any reader that picks it up regardless of their race, religion, or sexuality.

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Join us for a celebration of We Have Always Been Here with Samra Habib and Sanah Ahsan

Samra Habib’s story is a memoir of hope, faith and love. It starts with growing up as part of a threatened minority sect in Pakistan. It then follows her arrival in Canada as a refugee, before escaping an arranged marriage at sixteen. When she realized she was queer, it was yet another way she felt like an outsider.

It's a journey that takes her to the far reaches of the globe to uncover a truth that was within her all along. It shows how Muslims can embrace queer sexuality, and families can embrace change. A triumphant story of forgiveness and freedom, We Have Always Been Here: A Queer Muslim Memoir is a rallying cry for anyone who has ever felt alone. It's a testament to the power of fearlessly inhabiting one’s truest self.

Biographies

Samra Habib

Samra Habib is a writer, photographer, and activist. As a journalist she’s covered topics ranging from fashion trends and Muslim dating apps to the rise of Islamophobia in the US. Her portraits have been exhibited at the V&A in London. She works with LGBTQ organizations, raising awareness of issues that impact queer Muslims around the world.

Sanah Ahsan

Sanah Ahsan is a Queer Pakistani Muslim Womxn, Trainee Clinical Psychologist, Spoken Word Artist, Channel 4 Reporter and TEDx Speaker. She is currently conducting research to deconstruct whiteness within clinical psychology, whilst developing community projects promoting further dialogue around QTIPOC and spaces for queer muslim womxn. Sanah works with the WOW Festival with her talk ‘Women of Colour and Mental Health’ discussing how do gender and race affect mental health care and why do women of colour often go unheard. Sanah recently won the Outspoken Prize 2019.

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5 March 2020 at 19.00–20.00