A Walk Into The Gardens Of My Mind

Terrorism, war, poverty and the ongoing numerous battles our fellow species are experiencing all over the world are very often motivating factors for us wanting to change the world. You know, you wake up one morning, thinking 'I'd like to make a positive change in the world, I want to reduce the amount of poor people in my country, I'm going to start donating more'. Well, I don't know about you, but I've had this thought plenty of times. But with all the horror that is going on around in the world and being sidetracked by these worldly issues, one can easily forget that if we do not make swift and smooth efforts to save our planet, then we won't even have scope to address these issues and solve them. What is the good in being politically active if were not going to have a planet to survive in soon? Seriously, though. I am now 22 years of age, and  I remember how concerned I was at the age of about 12 in regards to climate change and global warming. Onl

After receiving much critical backlash for his previous plans to make £12bn welfare cuts, George Osborne has now completely scraped the idea of cuts to tax credits. There are no rates of cuts, in release of his Autumn statement, he was reported by Channel 4 News as saying, "I've listened to the concerns, I hear and understand them and because I've been able to announce an improvement in the public finances, the simplest thing to do, is not to face these changes, but to avoid them altogether" , to which he received an uproar in The House Of Commons.                                                         Picture : from the Daily Mirror As much as Osborne done a good job in surprising the public, without knowing entirely the effect this decision has had, he has uplifted the burden from many hearts. Though some may say London's economy is booming with the emergence of more business capital and the touristic industry, many Londoners face poverty. However this pove

After watching what was a very eye-opening, but more harrowing Channel 4 documentary on British ISIS supporters, I am left stick to my stomach and curious to know more. 'The British Women Supporters Unveiled' has been successful in what seems to me the first breakthrough in educating the masses on how some people, namely women in London can be fast-tracked on the process of radicalization. In the documentary, a Muslim woman called Aisha unravels her one-year journey of keeping up with online ISIS recruiters on Twitter and then eventually meeting up with London recruiters at stalls and study circles. What was particularly disturbing to me was that these ISIS supporters are in the very heart of London, the city I grew up in, the city in which I travel to and back. How ironic is it that Westerners fear such people, but we are probably brushing past these people on a daily, not knowing they are disillusioned radicals with ulterior motives? That is not to say I am promoting su

This morning on my way to university today, as I waited on the platform in Bank station, tears gushed down from my eyes as I reflected on the injustices within the world we live in. I couldn't help but only imagine what it must have been like for those families who have lost their loved ones due to the terrorist attacks in Paris on the 13th of November. I then started reflecting how all over the world, people are dying due to inequality, people dying because of poverty, war and other grievances . It pained me knowing that the West has become fixated on sympathizing with Paris, but dismissing incidents elsewhere. On a side note, I felt a sense of fear whilst on public transport today, as although I didn't wear any obvious Islamic attire, I was very conscious of the fact that I was Muslim. It was comforting seeing a Muslim man with a big beard, leaning up against the wall in the station looking quite relaxed . I thought if he isn't bothered, why should I be ? But I was bot

How can an educated woman like yourself not see the beauty of Islam?! Let me start off by saying I am not defending Islam just because I am a Muslim, but because people like Ayan Hirsi Ali are the catalyst to creating 'a clash of civilizations' as described by Samuel Huntington. Her one-sided and delusional perspective on Islam has led people to believe that Islam has deprived the lives of many, when in actual fact it has fulfilled them. I have just finished reading her book 'NOMAD' , which explicitly describes Ali's journey from Islam, to the Netherlands and then to her final destination, America. Tears, suffering and strength are the core themes explored within the personal memoir, in contextualization of Somali clan culture, a mis-interpreted Islam, freedom vs oppression and activism and empowerment. Despite her vicious remarks about Islam, I salute her stoic nature and her willingness to ensure women are emancipated from patriarchy and its branched out inj