Around the World March 2017

Halima Aden – Fashion model

Halima first made history last November when she competed in a Miss Minnesota contest wearing a hijab and topped it off by sporting a Burkini (Islamic compliant swimwear) at the swimsuit section of the competition. Since then, Halima has been riding high. She signed with IMG Modeling, one of the best modeling agencies in the world. Halima did not stop there, she walked the runway for Kanye West’s season 5 Weezy line wearing her hijab again. Halima’s just landed her first magazine cover and it seems like the future is very bright for this young lady.

Somalia Has a New President, Who Happens to be Liked by Everyone, Is That Even Possible?

Somalia has not had a functioning central government since 1990. On Wednesday, February 8th, the Somali Parliament elected former prime minister, dual US citizen, Mohamed Abdulahi Farmaajo. Farmaajo is not the first Somali president to be elected by parliament but he might as well be the first celebrated president by the people in recent history. He seems to have united the Somalis in the country as well as the ones living around the world. Farmaajo’s popularity can be traced back to when he was the prime minister for then president Sheikh Sharif Ahmed. Right after taking office, Farmaajo made immediate changes to the size of his cabinet, increased the salaries of the national army who successfully took back major territory from Al Shabab, and was eager to fight corruption. After all that good work, he was replaced for not seeing eye to eye with the president. Many saw his removal as a sign of corruption and were eager to see him become president one day. The day is here, Farmaajo is the current president of Somalia and he has a lot of work to do. May Allah help him. Amin

Ahmed M. Ahmed – The Local Rhode Scholar

Ahmed, a graduate of John  Marshall high school in Rochester Minnesota was named a Rhode Scholar in November 2016. Ahmed who currently attends Cornell University relocated to Rochester with his mom and siblings after his parents went through a divorce in Maryland. Ahmed exceled in school knowing that he had to support his Family which led him to Cornell University. He studies Biology and does research in organic and polymer Chemistry. He also mentors African American kids and volunteers for habitat for humanity. Ahmed was one of 32 Rhode scholars that will get a full scholarship to Oxford University to pursue their dreams. Ahmed wants to eventually become a doctor.

3 Sisters Co-Found an Islamic Publishing Company in Canada

Qartuba publishing was founded by 3 sisters who felt that there isn’t enough Muslim books that tackle the everyday Muslim faces in the west. The publishing company was cofounded by Hodan (25), Ilhan (20) and Ayan Ibrahim (23), three sisters with a vision of to create Pro Islamic literature for the young Muslims living in western societies. Some of the topics of their books include: The Health Conscious Muslim, Merchant of Mecca, and Lead like Mohammed.