Islamophobia in Australia: I thought Australia was safe until I put on the hijab

After surviving an Islamophobic assault, I share my story and explain how you can use the WriteEZ tool to advocate for meaningful change across Victoria.

I was eighteen when I first put on the hijab

Growing up in Melbourne, I never considered that, without a hijab, I moved through Australia with an invisible cloak of protection. I could blend in and people did not see me as different.

That changed the moment I began wearing the hijab.

Suddenly, I was no longer just myself. Others began projecting their biases onto me. To some, I was a threat. To others, I was a woman who was presumed to be oppressed before I had even spoken a word.

At nineteen, those assumptions became violence

On the 18th of February 2023, my hijab was ripped from my head by a stranger. Amidst a busy shopping centre, the stranger tore away at me, choking me as they violently threw my hijab off. In that moment, I felt scared, alone and a profound sense of injustice.

When I reported the assault to police, they struggled to understand why someone would target me in this way. They seemed surprised when I suggested anti-Muslim hatred had motivated the attack.

That response highlighted just how easily Islamophobia has gone unrecognised.

Unfortunately, I am one of many Australian Muslims who have experienced similar patterns of violence and dismissal.

Islamophobia in Australia is at an all-time high

As the Islamophobia Register Australia’s report identifies, anti-Muslim prejudice saw 309 in-person and 366 online reported incidents in 2023 to 2024. In fact, both statistics are double the average of previous annual reporting periods.

Through increasingly divisive public debate, including those from political figures such as Pauline Hanson, such rhetoric has become increasingly visible and often normalised within Australia’s public discourse.

Since my experience, I have been determined to challenge Islamophobia and racism wherever they appear, and to hold those who perpetuate hatred to account.

But individual resilience is not enough.

You have the power to make a change

As Muslims, we must find innovative ways to organise, advocate and reclaim our sense of belonging and safety. Through initiatives like the Countering Islamophobia Project at www.15march.org, we can make collective socio-political change. Rather than allowing others to define our experiences, we must use every opportunity to document injustice and demand for accountability.

Resilience may help us endure Islamophobia, but only action will help us resist it.

Through the WriteEZ tool established by this project, we can reach out directly to the politicians elected to represent us across federal, state and local government. All you need to do is enter your postcode, personalise an AI-assisted email, and send it to your elected representatives in just a few clicks.

To help guide your message, you can draw on the recommendations outlined in the Special Envoy to Combat Islamophobia’s report, which proposes practical government action such as reviewing counter-terrorism laws, increasing research funding, improving hate crime data collection, expanding community grants, and strengthening legal protections.

Screenshot of the WriteEZ platform, allowing users to contact their elected representatives by entering a Victorian postcode and selecting an advocacy topic.

Representatives can only advocate for issues our communities face if they hear about it. If you are concerned about the rise of Islamophobia, consider sharing your voice with the people elected to represent you. Every conversation and every email is an opportunity to advocate for a safer, more inclusive Australia.

The power is in our hands to make sure that we shed light on the experience of Victorian Muslims.

At eighteen, I thought putting on the hijab was simply an expression of my faith. I never imagined it would also become an act of courage.

My story should not be ordinary and neither should yours.

Demand action now.