Call me Miss A.M. because, well, that's what everyone calls me both at work and at home. My name is Ayaana Malik and I'm a young Black woman of Somali descent living in the City of Calgary, Alberta. I recently graduated from the University of Alberta with a Master's degree in business administration. Presently I work as a manager for Magyar Auto Body, overseeing our locations in the cities of Calgary, Edmonton and Red Deer. We have sixteen locations in all of provincial Alberta. Considering how anti-immigrant most people in this province are, I'm lucky to be the face of Magyar Auto Body. The owner, Rutherford Magyar is a Hungarian immigrant and a fellow Muslim, I think that's why he hired me.
When my parents, Mohammed and Khadija Malik left their hometown of Mogadishu, the Capital of Somalia, for the town of Calgary, Alberta, they came to Western Canada with their many hopes and dreams. Leaving your homeland due to war and famine isn't an easy thing to do. Many Somali families came to Canada in the 1980s and early 1990s and many didn't do so well. The differences in culture, religion and politics are among the many reasons why many Somali newcomers to Canada don't do so well. I am happy to say that my family and I are among the exceptions.
My dad worked hard to adapt to life in Western Canada. He learned English and French, got a job as a security guard and went to the University of Calgary where he earned his accounting degree. He began working for the Canadian Revenue Agency in the auditing division seven and a half years after he first set foot in the Confederation of Canada. Not bad for a guy from a third world country, eh? People often act surprised when I tell them that my dad is a high-ranking executive with the infamous tax agency that oversees all of Canada. They often wonder how a Somali man could have risen so far in Canadian society. When will they stop underestimating the Black man? I swear they've learned nothing since the days of Barack Obama!
As for my mother, Khadija Malik, she went to Mount Royal University where she studied Nursing and now works for the Foothills Medical Center near downtown Calgary. It wasn't easy for my parents, that's for sure. The province of Alberta is the most racist place in all of Canada, next to rural Quebec of course. My parents had to adapt to this harsh, hostile land as African immigrants and as Muslims. My mother tearfully told me that she stopped wearing the hijab when she realized that people refused to hire her once they found out about her religion. Several times she got hired after going to an interview sans hijab, started wearing the hijab at work and got terminated shortly after. She got a lawyer and sued but to no avail. Western Canada isn't friendly to people of African descent, especially if they practice a foreign religion.
I think that's part of the reason why I was raised basically secular. My family is Muslim, but we're definitely not the most religious people around. My mother walks around in jeans and T-shirts when she's not at work and she doesn't wear the hijab. I've never worn it in my life. Honestly, I don't care to. I am Muslim but I don't think items of clothing such as the hijab or the burka are the only indicators that a woman is from the Muslim faith. There's more than one way to be pious and serve the Most High, I think.
I pray to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The One True God worshipped by Jews, Christians and Muslims throughout the world. Islam is my faith but my culture is one hundred percent Canadian. I love riding horses and shooting guns like most young people in the Calgary metropolitan area. I look forward to the Calgary Stampede every damn summer. I love walking around with my cowboy hat and boots. I'm a proud native of Calgary and I love my hometown. I've never been to Somalia. My parents clan was decimated by rival clans by the time they were evacuated from Mogadishu by the humanitarian efforts of the Canadian government. As far as I know, I've got no relatives left back there. Canada is my country. My home. It's my life.
A lot of young Somalis I meet tell me that I am too westernized because I like to wear short skirts and show off my body. I tell them that they've got no right to judge me. I stand five foot eleven inches tall while barefoot, and I'm curvy and deliciously big-bottomed, though my chest is less than voluminous. Alright, I'm practically flat-chested, alright? Who cares? I've got a cute face, curvy body and a nice round ass. My skin is dark brown, I have shoulder-length curly Black hair and almond-shaped light brown eyes. People are always telling me that I look like Hollywood starlet Raven Simone, and I take offense at that. I'm taller than her, and I'm not that light-skinned. Also, I'm way hotter than this bitch so it's whatever. I know I'm hot and sometimes, I don't mind flaunting it.