Our Names أسامينا

I ride the Uber today with a driver, his Uber name is Charles. My Uber name is Sarah. 

I overhear him say "Shabaan, Ramadan, InshaAllah" to someone on the phone, he speaks in a West African language, I'm curious and happy.

I smile and ask him about his phone conversation, I figured I can do because we are both African, Muslim, and immigrant, we can do that, he tells me that he is explaining the lunar Muslim calendar for his friend in Africa.

We start talking about Ramadan, immigration, and living as a Muslim in Philadelphia, how much we agree that we love being Muslim in Philly despite all the issues, how our Black Muslim brothers and sisters put the foundation for us to come here and be safe, somehow, in comparison to other places.

I didn't tell him how lovely it is that this week in particular I see so many Black sisters wearing Hijabs and Black and bright pink Abayas, and how that compensates for the Ramadan decorations and lantern and nuts vendors in Cairo whom I miss, the sights that usually tell me that the Holy Month is approaching, my heart jumps on the MFL.

I ask him what his real name is, he says I'm Ismail from Ghana, I tell him my real name is Shimaa and I'm from Cairo. 

 

We change our precious names to protect ourselves from harm and ignorance.

We talk about how much we love and appreciate Ghana and Egypt and start calling each other brother and sister, like all Muslims and many Africans do. I have interactions like this with many of my Uber drivers, Ismail, Younousa, Mohammed, from Algeria to Niger, to Mali, to Albania.

But I also get those weird and awkward reactions once some others see that Sarah is an immigrant visibly Muslim women.

I get them when I walk into a room to be the presenter, doing the professional development, when they didn't expect someone who looks like me to stand in front of the room and lecture, in English.

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During the CAIR - Philadelphia Chapter banquet last weekend, Muslim Comedian Dean Obeidallah was telling jokes about how some Muslims have their own "Starbucks Names", that Mohammad goes by Bob and the like. It instantly made me think of my Uber Name, our Uber names.

I change my name to Sarah on Uber's app to avoid not being picked up because of my name. I know many drivers will see my name and not want to pick an "Alshimaa" up. But nobody will have a problem with picking up a "Sarah" or a "Charles".

I don't change my name in other settings and replace it with "an American name" because it's difficult to pronounce, I love my name, and I also don't care how people pronounce my name, but I'm noticing how everyone is becoming hypersensitive about saying your name correctly which is not of important to me personally.

Besides, what is the point of trying to say my Arabic name "correctly" when you don't want to hear what I have to say or treat me as an equal? As a thought partner? As a professional and a citizen?

You can call me Sponge Bob or Shaimaaaaouaaa, I can take this as long as you will not be biased or disrespectful in how you treat me.

You share these experiences with some people from here who don't understand why your name can be a problem and they think you are weird. I liked that we joked about how people use different names to become invisible, to avoid racism and discrimination, and sometimes even persecution.

You are lucky if that is not a concern of your's, but you gotta do the work to know what others might be experiencing.

 

 

(Our names "Asameena", a song by Legendary Lebanese singer: Fairouz")