Hijabi Librarians

by Mahasin and Ariana; addendums with Hadeal

Toolkit for Evaluating Muslims in KidLit – updated 2024 (PDF)

In 2019, the Cooperative Children’s Book Center at the University of Wisconsin (CCBC) received 3,717 children’s and young adult books from publishers. Of those books 45 (1.2%) were “tagged” with a Muslim diversity subject, but were not evaluated for quality or accuracy of representation. In 2022 CBCC received 3,454 children’s and young adult books from publishers, representation of Muslims remained around 1 percent.

When looking at Muslim representation in media, children’s literature is often the first exposure that children have to Muslims and Islam. When creating opportunities for understanding it is important to be deliberate in combating tropes and stereotypes that deal in disinformation, fear-mongering, and histories rooted in orientalism (as coined by scholar Edward Said), colonialism and white supremacy.

This guide, updated November 2024, is divided into three parts:

• Part I of this guide identifies resources for learning more about Muslim Americans while providing context for media representation
• Part II offers guiding questions for reflection and analysis of collections and individual works. 
• Part III provides best practices in programming, partnering, and considerations when programming about, for, and including Muslims and Islamic celebrations.

Part I: Recommended Resources

Muslims in Story: Expanding Multicultural Understanding Through Children’s and Young Adult Literature

When considering collection development of books featuring Muslim characters, Gauri Manglik and Sadaf Siddique’s (of Kitaab World) Muslims in Story: Expanding Multicultural Understanding Through Children’s and Young Adult Literature (2018) is a comprehensive guide to selecting books, essential for libraries.

Muslims in Story provides an overview of Muslims in America, Islamophobia and its impact, and how literature can be used to promote long-term systemic change. The second part provides book lists and programming ideas, with books categorized by theme. The appendices include frequently asked questions, suggested guidelines for book evaluation, a timeline of Muslims in America, a glossary of terms, and additional resources. 

The Pew Research Center

The Pew Research Center has conducted extensive research on Muslim Americans and Muslims Around the World. Understanding the global distribution of Muslims gives a broader context on general perceptions, illustrating that Muslims are present all over the world, speak many different languages, and are comprised of individuals from many different cultures, ethnicities, and races. We specifically suggest these two Pew reports:

• Mapping the Global Muslim Population (2009)
• The Future of the Global Muslim Population (2011)

Institute for Social Policy and Understanding’s American Muslims 101 

Understanding who Muslims and Muslim Americans are, how they practice Islam, and what challenges their communities face, are important components to knowing and serving Muslim populations, and in bringing a critical lens to evaluating books featuring Muslim characters. The Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU) is a valuable tool. It provides current statistics and infographics about Muslim Americans and issues affecting them.

The Riz Test

Like the Bechdel–Wallace test on women in movies and media, the Riz Test identifies problems in representation, bias, and lazy storytelling that depicts Muslims as simplistic, and lacking dimension and humanity. Named for actor Riz Ahmed’s 2017 speech to the House of Commons in the United Kingdom, which addressed diversity on screen, and identified stereotypes and tropes associated with Muslims in the media. 

The Test: 

If the film/show stars at least one character who is identifiably Muslim (by ethnicity, language or clothing) – is the character… 

1. Talking about, the victim of, or the perpetrator of terrorism? 
2. Presented as irrationally angry? 
3. Presented as superstitious, culturally backwards or anti-modern? 
4. Presented as a threat to a Western way of life? 
5. If the character is male, is he presented as misogynistic? or if female, is she presented as oppressed by her male counterparts? 

If the answer for any of the above is Yes, then the film/ TV show fails the test.

When credence is given to Muslims consulting on media as part of the creative process, from sensitivity readers, bloggers, #ownvoice reviews, and organizations such as the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) Hollywood Bureau, stories become more nuanced and a better reflection of the diversity that exists within the Muslim community. MPAC Hollywood also has their own Obeidi-Alsultany test looking at Muslim representation in media with guidance towards building complexity in Muslim representation in characters and storylines.

The Obeidi-Alsultany Test:

1. The project that includes a Muslim character(s) does not reproduce or reinvent old tropes but rather explores new stories and contexts.
2. The project that includes Muslim character(s) has a Muslim-identifying writer on staff to ensure that Muslim cultures, religion, characters and storylines are being portrayed accurately and authentically.
3. The Muslim character(s) is not solely defined by their religion. Religion can be part of the character’s backstory but should not be their entire story. Muslim culture and faith should be accurately delineated.
4. The Muslim character(s) has a strong presence and the character(s) is essential to the story arc and has a rich and clearly defined backstory.
5. The Muslim character(s) is portrayed with diverse backgrounds and identities.

Additional Framework and Tools to Consider

Naming stereotypes allows for the deconstruction of bigotry and actively combating harm. Part II of our toolkit lists guiding questions that disrupt common tropes by looking at collections holistically and at individual works.

Similarly, tools like Jewel Davis’ guide to fantasy worlds establish a framework for evaluating “elements of racial and ethnic diversity in speculative fiction and media.” Matthew Salesses’, Korean American fiction writer, essayist, and Assistant Professor of Creative Writing in the MFA/PhD program at Oklahoma State University, book Craft in the Real World: Rethinking Fiction Writing and Workshopping, interrogates how the structure of the writing workshop and literary canon is informed by the “white gaze,” specifically that of white male writers, and how these structures affect what is considered valid literary progression and storytelling. His article 25 Essential Notes on Craft can be found on Lithub.

The Teaching for Change: Social Justice Books’ Guide for Selecting Anti-Bias Children’s Books by Louise Derman-Sparks, prompts viewers to look for stereotypes, question normalized biases, commonly used language, and power dynamics between groups of people in illustrations, storylines and relationships. HarperCollins: Shake Up Your Shelves has additional guiding questions, written by educator and scholar of children’s literature, Autumn Allen, and tools for collection evaluation, audit, and retiring problematic books. Another metric tool evaluators may find useful is EdTrust’s Tool for Representational Balance in Books, which helps users, through its four domains and ten criteria, analyze how people, cultures, and topics are represented within a text, particularly in relation to agency, power, and perspectives.

Part II: Guiding Questions for Individual Works and Overall Collections

Librarians and educators must take a holistic look at their collections to determine what trends of representation exist therein, and in consideration of publishing trends, collections should not perpetuate a single narrative or experience. Yet, it is simplistic to view books as simply “good” or “bad”, much like the characters that are depicted within them. When doing reader’s advisory and recommending books, librarians must be mindful that just because Muslims are present in a work, does not mean that the work will speak to every Muslim’s experience. 

It is important that all Muslims, particularly those whose voices are less often heard, are able to write their own stories, and that publishers expand the number of books and voices being published. Authentic, intersectional stories, even those stories that might be considered controversial, or don’t present Muslims in the best light, represent the complexity of the Muslim experience. Still, the power of stories to affect the lives of Muslims necessitates thoughtful reflection. As one individual cannot speak for an entire community, one book cannot and will not represent one group of Muslims. We hope that this toolkit will be used to further thoughtful conversations about representation of Muslims and Islam in children’s and young adult literature.

Question for Overall Collection Development:

• How many books about Muslims in your collection are written by Muslim authors?
• Visually, is there only one type of identity marker for Muslims? Is this identity marker the headscarf? Is it only referred to as “hijab”?
• Is there gender diversity? Are Muslim boys and men visible or erased?
• Do Muslims only show up in one type of narrative? Is there a dominant narrative?
• Is the diversity of the Muslim community demonstrated? Does one group dominate? Are any Muslims from multiple heritage backgrounds? Does your collection have books by and about Black Muslims? Who are the Muslims in your biography section?
• Are stories intersectional? Are there Muslims from different heritage backgrounds interacting? How are different aspects of a character’s identity (i.e. ethnicity, race, sexuality, gender identity, ability) explored?
• Are all of your books published by mainstream publishers? Many Muslim voices have little or no representation in mainstream publishing.
• Are all of your books told from a Sunni perspective or erase non-Sunni practices and communities? Are Shi’a communities and other Muslim minority communities represented and named?
• How many of your books feature Muslims as background or side characters as opposed to protagonists? Do they have any speaking lines or agency in action? Are racial and/or ethnic identities specified or ambiguous?
• Who are the love interests? Are love interests only white and/or non-Muslim? Are love interests only from racial or ethnic in-groups? Are character features/points of attraction Eurocentric?

Questions to ask when evaluating Muslim representation in an individual book:

• Does the work reflect an understanding of Islam’s own intellectual tradition? Are topics viewed from a Christian gaze of spirituality, cultural, or faith practices or vis-a-vis secular humanist norms? What sources are centered and how does this affect the reader’s understanding of Islam and Muslims?
• How is the “West” represented? Is the U.S. the savior nation? Does the book triumph an unquestioned American exceptionalism narrative?
• Do characters and depicted communities have agency, or are they portrayed as victims of forces beyond their control?
• Does the work reflect an understanding of the complex history of predominantly Muslim countries? Example: Are Muslim countries depicted as being impoverished, juxtaposed with Western nations being modern and functional?
• How is religiosity portrayed? Is there nuance when it comes to the practice of Islam? Does the narrative set up a false moral binary between religious and less practicing or secular characters? Is religious practice used to indicate negative and/or archaic views?
• Are Muslim characters multi-dimensional?
• Does the work conflate culture with Islam or universalize a particular Muslim experience or heritage? For example, are Arab and/or South Asian cultural practices presented as universal norms for all Muslims? Does the text imply that Muslim cultures are all the same?
• Beyond sharing Muslim identity or heritage, does the author’s own lived experience speak to other parts of a character’s identity? Is the author’s religious identity being conflated with cultural and/or ethnic heritage?
• Where appropriate, is there backmatter that explains and differentiates religious practices, especially where they are unique to particular cultures? Are cultural and religious concepts presented and explained in a way that is developmentally appropriate?

Part III: Programming Considerations

A new addition to our toolkit, Part III recognizes the need to examine practices in libraries, public-facing and related to Muslim staff, and provides best practices in programming, partnering, and considerations when programming about, for, and including Muslims and Islamic celebrations. 

Holidays

The Islamic calendar is a non-adjusted lunar calendar, meaning that holidays move, falling about ten days earlier each Gregorian year. Some institutions may want to celebrate interfaith activities around Christmas time, but this is not always appropriate. In 2025 the month of Ramadan is projected to fall from February 28th to March 30th, when the last time it fell around this time was 1993. An interesting occurrence will happen in 2030, when Ramadan will fall twice during a Gregorian calendar year, in January and again in December. Another point to note about the lunar calendar is the different methods of determining when holidays fall. The start of Ramadan, as well as the two Eids —Eid ul-Fitr and Eid ul-Adha— vary. Some communities determine the start and end dates using calculation while others use moon sighting. Both should be considered valid interpretations for honoring time-off requests and in consideration of Muslim-inclusive programming.

Consider major Muslim celebrations when scheduling public-facing library programs, as timing may effect program attendance.  In terms of staffing, celebrations and observances may require additional attention to scheduling needs. This includes planning ahead and being aware of conflicts around professional development and conference attendance. Ramadan, a month where Muslims abstain from food and drink from dawn to sunset, is considered a time of spiritual renewal and self-discipline on many levels. Along with meeting legal requirements in many areas, accommodations to ensure Muslim staff is not scheduled for outreach on hot weather days and honoring time-off requests are ways to show Muslim staff support and foster morale.

Other possible communal celebrations include Mawlid and Ashura, the later for Sunnis is an auspicious day of optional fasting and for Shi’as a day of mourning the martyrdom of the grandson of the Prophet Muhmmad (peace be upon him), Husayn ibn Ali. 

Practices

Muslim congregational prayer service is midday Friday, known as Jummah prayer. The five daily compulsory prayers fall at different points of the day: dawn (Fajr), midday (Dhuhr), late afternoon (‘Asr), just after sunset (Maghrib), and evening (Ish’a). In some seasons, it is possible that four of these prayers will be observed during library hours. Jummah is also a time to avoid scheduling a Muslim storytime, programming, or outreach geared towards your Muslim community members.

If your library has a formal meeting room process it may not be accessible or easy for patrons seeking a quiet place to pray. If at home or at the masjid, Muslims may take a more substantial amount of time for prayer, but often when out in public spaces it can be more minimal, perhaps 5-10 minutes at most. Having a small, clean area or alcove to use for this short time is much appreciated.

Though there is a wide variety in observance of dress, head coverings are commonly seen for women and men, and hijab can look very different from woman to woman, in many different cultures and ages. Making assumptions about what hijab looks like can be misleading, as sometimes observance of hijab can be a hoodie. This should be taken into consideration when enforcing policies and protocols and in trainings with library security teams.

Dietary restrictions also vary widely, but generally Muslims do not consume pork or alcohol, and many only eat halal or zabihah. When serving food in programs it is important to check ingredients. The main ingredient to look for is gelatin, particularly porcine. Though some Muslims will partake of kosher products, buying halal products is more inclusive for Muslims. Please note that halal products can still be derived from animal products, and may not be vegetarian or vegan-friendly.

Books Displays and Programming

When promoting holidays, heritage months, and other events through book displays refer to the previous toolkit sections on cultural conflation. Are the books that you have on display actually about or feature Muslims prominently? Do they represent a wide spectrum of Muslim communities, family structures, individual stories and groups, nonfiction and fiction? It is important to ensure that you have enough content to have a meaningful display, and if you do not, seek more books to fill this need. Consider how it can pair or be supplemented with programming. When choosing books for storytime, include a variety of types of stories about the Muslim community i.e. general narratives that celebrate elements of Islam, joyful and broad community joy, as well as books with characters from specific cultural backgrounds.

Displays for heritage months should be confirmed to align with the heritage, and be broadly inclusive of the spectrum of that heritage. Is the Arab Heritage month display inclusive of Arabs from different countries of origin and faith backgrounds, including Islam? Does the Asian Pacific Heritage Month display include books with Asian Muslim characters? The absence of Muslims in this display or the conflation of one heritage with another can do just as much in reinforcing stereotypes and erasure. 

We know that many libraries are facing censorship in the form of direct book bans, challenges, and soft-banning. While bans and challenges often originate from external forces, soft-bans, when libraries anticipate controversy and either take books off the shelf display, or don’t order them at all, are also damaging. Additionally, there are instances of patrons hiding or taking books to prevent others from reading them. If possible, additional funds should be allocated in order to ensure multiple copies of books or replacements.

For more practices we refer you to ALA and the Freedom to Read Foundation. In the article “Quiet Censorship” published by the ALSC Blogger and Intellectual Freedom Committee member Judy Ehrenstein, a children’s librarian with Montgomery County Public Library, Ehrenstein soberly reminds us, “Preserving our jobs and serving our young readers has become a challenge. But maybe have a talk with yourself every so often and check to see if your decisions serve your young readers best, or just you.” 

Partnerships & Outreach

When planning outreach and programming for adults and youth, consider reaching out to local mosques/masjids. Many mosques have youth centers or youth programming. School outreach should include Islamic schools and child care centers for: programming, storytimes, teacher resources, curriculum book requests, rotating collections, research help, as well as larger programs like summer reading.

Masjids and local non-profit organizations are also potential partners for informational programs you may offer to your broader community. Successful examples of library programs like “Meet Your Muslim Neighbor,” “New Americans,” or other holiday programs may be used as models. When considering speakers for interfaith programs, educational programs specifically about Muslim, or professional development in cultural competency for staff, organizations like the Islamic Networks Group (ING) can speak on many subjects, historical or contemporary, and give context to current events. 

Additionally, even while certain programs are designed especially for Muslim families and communities, it is equally crucial to think about including and interacting with Muslim communities for the regular programs that the library has to offer. 

Concluding Thoughts

By applying critical and thoughtful evaluation using the information and guiding questions provided in this toolkit, library professionals, book professionals, and educators can make a tremendous impact on the lives of Muslims and help us all move forward together in a broadly inclusive society.