Shaista Aziz

Oxford

Freelance Journalist at Freelance

Director, @THijabis. Anti-Racism, Campaigner. Political commentator. Journalist, Writer, Public Speaker, Trainer, Facilitator. Therapeutic Counsellor.

Articles

Gaza is burning. UK NGOs must abandon failed diplomacy and fight back

1 day ago | aljazeera.com | Nick Dearden |Shaista Aziz

Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz declared last week that "no humanitarian aid will enter Gaza", effectively announcing his government's intention to continue the collective punishment of the Palestinian enclave's battered and besieged civilian population in blatant violation of international humanitarian law.
Anti-racists saved Britain, now it’s time for Keir Starmer to take action

Aug 8, 2024 | aljazeera.com | Shaista Aziz

After this past week’s far-right riots, the British government has a duty to defend multiculturalism and reassure targeted minority communities. Thousands of anti-racists took to the streets across the north and south of England on Wednesday evening, reclaiming our towns and cities back from the far-right rioters who have been terrorising British Muslims, people of colour, refugees and migrants over the past eight devastating days.
What does the success of pro-Gaza independents say about Labour’s victory?

Jul 5, 2024 | aljazeera.com | Shaista Aziz

It is the morning after the night before, and the United Kingdom has a new government. Keir Starmer’s Labour Party has won the general election in a landslide, securing nearly as many seats and as massive a majority as Tony Blair did with his “New Labour” in 1997. However, Starmer’s Labour finally gaining power after 14 years of long and overwhelmingly catastrophic Tory rule is not the full story here. As ever, the small print maters and requires close examination.
White male MPs make mistakes and are mostly forgiven. Not so women of colour like Faiza Shaheen | Shaista Aziz

Jun 2, 2024 | theguardian.com | Shaista Aziz

Watching the painful interview of Faiza Shaheen on Newsnight on Wednesday after her deselection from the Labour party, I was reminded of the wise words of Toni Morrison: “The very serious function of racism is distraction. It keeps you from doing your work. It keeps you explaining, over and over again, your reason for being … None of that is necessary. There will always be one more thing.”And there always is.
Hyphenated: Episode 29

Nov 14, 2023 | hyphenonline.com | Reya El-Salahi |Shaista Aziz

This week, Hyphen assistant editor Husna Rizvi and former Labour councillor Shaista Aziz discuss Suella Braverman’s sacking and former prime minister David Cameron’s return to politics in a surprise UK government reshuffle following London’s largest Palestine solidarity march. The panel is also joined by the NHS Race and Health Observatory’s chief executive Professor Habib Naqvi in a week that saw a record NHS backlog revealed and the ditching of the Mental Health Bill in the King’s speech.
How the Israel-Gaza conflict is dividing Labour – podcast

Nov 1, 2023 | theguardian.com | Nosheen Iqbal with |Shaista Aziz |Nosheen Iqbal

Just a few weeks ago Keir Starmer’s party was projecting an image of unity. Labour was 20 points ahead in the polls, and Starmer had led a successful and smooth party conference. But since the conflict in the Middle East has worsened, and the death toll has risen, that unity has cracked.
Labour has betrayed British Muslims over Gaza – that’s why I resigned from the party | Shaista Aziz

Oct 24, 2023 | theguardian.com | Shaista Aziz

I am one of least 23 Labour councillors who have resigned from the party since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war. At Oxford city council, where I now sit as an independent, eight of us have left. The reason I quit is because the leader of the Labour party, Keir Starmer, horrifyingly endorsed the collective punishment of Palestinians in Gaza.
Decolonizing football will take more than better representation

Aug 10, 2023 | almendron.com | Shaista Aziz

As the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup enters its final knockout stages there is absolutely no doubt that this competition has elevated the women’s game to a different level, capturing the imagination of generations of women and girls who have never seen themselves represented in this way before.
Opinion: This Women’s World Cup has been unlike any other. That’s a great thing

Aug 7, 2023 | cnn.com | Shaista Aziz

Editor’s Note: Shaista Aziz is co-Director of the Three Hijabis and is a Churchill Fellow 2023 researching how to make football more equitable for Muslim women and girls. The views expressed here are her own. Read more opinion on CNN.
Shaista Aziz

Jun 27, 2023 | churchillfellowship.org | Shaista Aziz

Muslim women and Football Follow Biography I am a director of the Three Hijabis, an award-winning, viral, campaigning activist platform working to make football and sport anti-racist and free from violence against women and girls. The Three Hijabis specialise in tackling gendered Islamophobia, develop and carry out anti-oppression training for leaders and work on carrying out systemic change in organisations.