Muslim women at Cabrini University participate in the religion they are passionate about, regardless of attending a Catholic school.
Cabrini University is a Roman Catholic university dedicated to academic excellence, leadership development, social justice and living with purpose. Many students chose to attend Cabrini because of their faith.
While Cabrini is a Catholic university, that was not relevant in Jatara Allen’s decision-making process.
“I just wanted a good education,” Allen said. “And that is what Cabrini provided for me, as well as some great friendships.”
Allen converted to Islam after her mother’s profession of faith. Allen saw the positive impact it had on her mother and knew she wanted to stay with Islam. As she’s grown older, she continues to admire and be inspired by her religion.
“My mom was the one that first took her shahadah and she became a completely different person after. It was like a clean slate for her and she was so happy,” Allen said. “This is only one of the reasons I decided to convert and stay with it. The religion is so peaceful and brings out a different side of you that you never knew was there. While doing research, I found happiness in everything I learned about.”
Allen does face occasional remarks both because of her religious attire and because of her race, but her passion for her faith makes it easy to ignore.
Allen said, “It’s just the ignorance of the people and how they were raised, of course. It doesn’t really affect me anymore because I am used to it. I am also very comfortable with myself and my religion.”
One misconception Allen recognizes that people have about Muslims is the belief that the women are discriminated against. A myth is that Islam oppresses women and forces them into subservient positions in society.
“Some people believe we are oppressed because of the way we dress,” Allen said. But to Allen, her attire is not a sign of oppression but of modesty, dignity and religious faith.
Similarly to the Catholic Bible, the Qur’an, the Islamic sacred book, encourages decency, modesty and chastity.
Verses 24:30-31 of the 102 chapter of the Holy Qur’an, An-Noor read, “Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty: that will make for greater purity for them: And Allah is well acquainted with all that they do. And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty.”
The quote encourages men and women who believe in Allah and the Last Day to act modestly and humbly.
A “hijab,” the Arabic word for “barrier,” is a cover wore to display modesty. This allows Muslim women such as Allen to be judged based on their mind, intellect and personality rather than appearance. But, the hijab is not just for women.
“The hijab is for both men and women,” Allen said. “The purpose of it is to cover our bodies and be modest. Women cover so that men won’t lust over them and because it is only for their husbands and families to see. Vice versa for men.”
Because of how people treated her, Allen once gave up the hijab. But she ultimately found her way back and realized she no longer cares what other people say as long as she is happy.
Allen said, “To me, it means a lot because I had a hard time staying in my hijab. I once uncovered because of what others thought of me. I prayed about it and found my way back to what was really important. From that moment on, I knew I would never take it off because it is a symbol of my religion and shows my strength, being able to cover and be confident in it again.”
