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The Documentary: The Web Sheikh and the Muslim Mums

Muslim Mums

29/03/2017 GMT

The Web Sheikh and the Muslim Mums

BBC World Service - The Documentary, The Web Sheikh and the Muslim Mums

Muslim mums discuss their fears of extremist Islam influencing their children

A group of Muslim mums discuss fears that extremist Islam may be infecting the minds of their children.

All mums worry about their children, but for the parents of young Muslims, there is an added worry: what sort of faith messages are being preached to their children? BBC World Service journalist Shaimaa Khalil meets a group of Muslim mums in London to talk about the everyday fears of parents who worry that extreme interpretations of Islam, often via online preachers, may be infecting the minds of their sons and daughters.

Young Muslims commonly learn about their faith from preachers in the community and online. Many preach positive values, but some drift dangerously close to fundamentalism, and beyond. These messages can be reinforced through the tangled grapevine of social media.

How much do mums know about the messages being preached to their children?


This programme brings together five Muslim mums to discuss the hate messages their children are exposed to.

They follow the story of a young man who was on the verge of becoming a Jihadi fighter. The mums listen as he talks honestly about his experience and then consider what they've heard - relating his story to the stories of their own young, impressionable children.

They also hear the story of a young woman who began practicing Islam at a young age. Even though her journey to faith was peaceful, her parents worried about where this journey may lead.

The mums learn an enormous amount from the stories of these young people. They discuss whether Imams are out of touch with young Muslims, and whether there has been a collective failure to engage in conversations about extremism. They discuss the legitimate anger many young British Muslims feel as they experience day-to-day Islamphobia and learn about the suffering of Muslims overseas.  Crucially, they discuss how parents can put these issues into context for their children.

(Photo: The Mums.  Credit: BBC)

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