Self-employed Shabnam, 43, lives in West Yorkshire with her husband Nadeem, 44, and their four children. Here, she tells her story...
I was busy making TikTok videos with my 10-year-old daughter last month when my 17-year-old son Qais – who is obsessed with politics – came running into the bedroom. “Mum!” he cried. “Have you seen the news?” The Tory MP Nusrat Ghani had just made claims she was sacked as a minister in 2020 because of her faith.
My initial reaction was not of shock or anger. In fact, I was resigned, because Muslim women like me hear stories like this all too often.
Nusrat Ghani, the Conservative MP for Wealden, claimed that when she asked for an explanation about her sacking, a Government whip told her “Muslimness was raised as an issue” during discussions about the reshuffle, and her status as a “Muslim woman… was making colleagues uncomfortable”.
Read more on ok.co.uk