Talk to me & blogging while muslim

When I first started blogging, I didn’t really advertise the fact that I am muslim, I mean I didn’t hide it, but I didn’t make it obvious. Although I was not new to blogging, I was new to the world of “mommy blogs”, and i wasn’t quite sure how the mommies would react.

As I got more comfortable with my blog, it slowly evolved into something more personal and reflective of me, and I started to write articles about being a muslim mother, and small articles related to Islam in general. My blog readership continued to grow slowly, and I noticed a shift in my comments – I started getting comments mostly from other muslims and less from other mommy bloggers. This is something that I don’t mind, but has always been on my mind.

A little more than a year ago, I read an article (forgot where I read it now) that basically said that one of the biggest supporters of the Bush administration and his “anti-terrorism” campaign, which sadly translates into an “anti-muslim” campaign by many, were ‘soccer moms’, and I realize this is a huge generalization but I have always wondered what these moms would think of my blog, or more specifically, muslim mommy blogs.

My husband started blogging recently and all of the comments he receives are from other muslims, which I have noticed is sort of a trend among muslim blogs, unless they are political or religious in nature (as these genres seem to generate very diverse traffic). A lot of it, I know, is due to the fact that most personal muslim blogs do cater to a muslim audience, and I imagine it’s the same with other religions as well, but when it comes to a blog like mine that really is a ‘mommy blog’, just authored by a muslim women, I wonder if I would have a better chance of success if I was a non-muslim with this very same blog.

This is not to say that I have no non-muslim readers or commenters, I do, and in fact one of my favorite readers, Cakes, is the wife of a pastor! All of my readers, muslim or not, have been the reason I continue to blog, I love the support, feedback, encouragement, ego-boost, and I completely appreciate all of it! There are times when I do see the ugliness of discrimination though.

If you’re muslim with a personal blog, how diverse is your readership? And if you’re a non-muslim, what do you think the chances are of this blog being read by the ‘soccer moms’ referred to in the article?

{Disclaimer: I am not calling all ‘soccer moms’ Bush supporters or anit-muslim, I am just having a discussion based on an article that indicated this was the trend.}

Thoughts from Surviving

I’ve experienced similar things on my blogs. I think my personal blog is mostly muslim readers but it has pretty much been that way from the beginning even though I didn’t put anything about being muslim on it until recently. Although it probably was easy to figure out when I had a blogroll.  My craft blog however seems to have more non-muslim readers, there is only one reference to being muslim and that is a button on the side for the Crochet Muslimahs group.

Thoughts from crunchy

It is an interesting dilemma is it not?

I think that while most of us are open to diversity etc..we do tend to ‘hang’ with our ‘own’ if that makes any sort of non racist sense.

We gravitate to what we have in common,I guess.

I read your blog as a fun mom blog....your dh’s blog is fun and very insightful.  Any “muslim stuff” I find fascinating and educational as it is a religion and way of life that I don’t know much about.

Not to mention....i think we are all sisters under the sun.

Thoughts from shaz

surviving - well part of it, I think, is the blogs that we frequent. I actually have a really varied list of blogs that I read, and I think that I comment with the same frequency on every type of blog, so i would think that readers of this blog should not be confined to mainly muslims.

crunchy - this is a good point, we actually do tend to hang with our own - it’s not racist, I think it’s about what we can relate to. For example, I read a lot of web design and freelancing blogs, and it’s about interest, for the most part I don’t care about the religious views of the author, but you know that does not hold true for a lot of people, especially when it comes to muslims.

I guess this is what I was trying to get at - how many people can relate, but choose not to read just because it’s a blog belonging to a muslim person - if you know what I mean.

Thoughts from Mona UmIbrahim

i can quickly say that i believe that we have a lot of non-Muslim readers but they choose not to comment. Perhaps they feel like they don’t belong. Come to think of it, i always read blogs and comment on blogs by people who are similar to me, even though i am sure i would benefit from reading a Christian or Jewish women’s blog. But i just don’t have to time to venture into those blogs.

Thoughts from Tasmiya

I have a few non-Muslim readers and I’ve noticed they stay and read and then I don’t know, maybe my blog is too boring or whatever and they move on after a short time. A couple added me to their own blog links and then took me off after a month of so. The people who stick by me are mostly Muslims. I don’t blog much about Islam so I doubt my Muslim readership are there for spiritual enlightenment. I sometimes blog about politics but nothing is very in depth. I have motherhood posts too (albeit I admit lately they’ve been of the complaining type). Maybe my Muslim readers have that sense of sisterhood too much are too kind to drop me!

Thoughts from Mona

yeah, mostly muslim readers though I don’t know why. like you, it’s more of a mommy blog than a ‘islam’ blog. but i think there a lot of non-muslims who read my blog but don’t comment.
i wish they would. growing up, i had friends from all religions and i still do.

Thoughts from Cakes

WooHoo! hey, what a coincidence! You are one of my favorite blogs to read!

I love mothers. Love them.  I love their courage and their wisdom and their humor.  So, I seek out mothers.  I read a pretty decent mix of Christian/Muslim/Jewish/Atheist.

Who leaves comments on my blog varies depending on whether I am writing about faith or infertility or large families or adorable husbands. I comment pretty much everywhere. I can’t keep my mouth shut.

I’m looking at your recent readers and they seem like a pretty good mix. Don’t you think?

Thoughts from Surviving

I read a variety of blogs but I don’t comment very often on most.  Those that read my craft blog are those that I comment on.  So I guess that would explain part of what happens on my blogs.

Thoughts from shaz

Mona, I have a lot of mommy blogs on my list, 90% are non-muslims, so I know that I am getting a nice mix of views in there. I think that you’re right about the commenting thing.

Tasmiya, I like you posts - they appear by surprise and are always cute! It could also just be the nature of blogging, readers change, blogs change, the writing style and topic changes… I notice that with the exception of a few, the readers that I get comments from seem to change every couple months - blog evolution, if you will!

Mona, yes, I too love to have a wide range of opinions, I think its helpful to hear from all points of views on subjects. I went to a hindu primary school and a christian high school, so I have been friends with people of many different religions too.

Hey Cakes, i agree! I really - I also tend to seek out mothers (mothers who have similar struggles mostly, or who I can relate to from a motherhood perspective), and they turn out to be many different religions. And yes, commenting is sometimes content-specific. About the readers, well a lot of those are people that just drop in following links and are not really ‘readers’ as such, but I was actually going with the number of comments I get from muslims as compared to non-muslims, and it’s not a complaint, more of a general discussion. Thanks for reading Cakes!

Thoughts from Amber

I have never hid the fact that I am Mormon.  If people have a problem with it, then they shouldn’t read my blog.  That is the key--to remember this is YOUR forum and you are welcome to do what you please with it!

Thoughts from wayfarer

Funny cause i’ve been thinking exactly the same thing.  I blurk some great craft sites but won’t comment because i’m afraid.  How stupid is that?  I just don’t like getting into religion or politics with anyone anymore.  I’m over it you know.  I’ve been thinking of starting a whole new blog as just me minus the religion and politics but then i feel like i’m hiding something.  Dunno.

Thoughts from shaz

Thanks Amber, thats a great point, and one that I think a lot of us need to remember.

wayfarer - you know it’s funny that you mention that you would feel like you’re hiding something - I got a web design request for a jewish blog, and although I have jewish clients (my very first client was jewish and we are still in touch, 8 years after), I really felt like by not telling her I am muslim meant that I was somehow hiding it. It’s weird for me too - there is no reason to discuss religious preference in such a situation, but I feel like I don’t want to have her start working with me and then it become awkward because she has some discriminatory views of muslims, you know…

I don’t let it stop me from commenting and interacting though, most of the times, people are really great - and the ones that are not, are not worth the stress! hang in there!

Thoughts from Jennifer

Interesting topic.  I’m so culturally stunted having grown up in a white, baptist community for most of my life.  This is why I enjoy reading blogs of others who are unlike me (I’m NOT baptist, although I suppose this is an unimportant sidenote).  I’m ever curious about people who are different from me, their life, their struggles, their achievements.

Thoughts from Mezba

I am not a mommy.

Thoughts from shaz

Jennifer - it’s really nice that you are curious and interested in other cultures, it’s the same with me. Sadly, not everyone feels like this.

Mezba - that’s unfortunate!

Thoughts from Robyn

This is something I think about a lot. I recently added in my header that I’m Muslim because I felt that I was hiding what is a huge part of me. If people met me in person, they would know immediately by my hijab and jilbab. But I didn’t initially really say too much except to maybe mention Ramadan because I didn’t know how comfortable people would be with me and it. I’m at a point where I want to say more, but I don’t want to alienate people. I mostly want people to stop by my blog to see me as people who know me in real life, that I’m pretty silly, that I can be pretty opinionated, that I am Muslim, that I love children, that I love to craft, etc.

Thoughts from Specs

Well..i think they don’t comment because they feel they’ll be retaliated agains or due to the Muslim majority reading a specific blog, they’ll be sorta ‘ganged up’ against. ANd sadly, its true for a lot of blogs. Even though, yours is different.

Thoughts from Yolanda

Very interesting post.  I read a variety of blogs but do have a special place for mothers of color.  Regardless of religion I’m drawn to reading about the lives of other SAHM/WAHM who are from diverse ethnic background.  In real life I’ve always had friends from many different ethnic/religious backgrounds so I guess my real life has translated into my blog life a bit.

Thoughts from shaz

Robyn, just keep doing what you’re doing and those that stick around are worth your time - the ones that leave just because you’re muslim, aren’t really worth it anyways.

Specs, I think you are right!

Yolanda, you made a very good point - I think that if we are open-minded and enjoy diversity in the real world, we do so in the virtual world as well! I think I love having a diverse blogroll too!

Thoughts from Shawna

I just stumbled across this blog posting and wanted to comment. I’m a Muslimah mommy blogger. Most of my readership is my husband’s family. He converted to Islam, but his family is Catholic. They are very accepting of our faith, but I still found myself both consciously and unconsciously editing out Islamic terminology while blogging. Sometimes I feel like my baby blog isn’t the right forum for my faith because it was created to keep distant family members in touch with my son’s growth, but it has morphed into something more in the last two years, and I find myself using Islamic shorthand more and more (iA for inshAllah, etc). It’s weird, but saying mashaAllah is so reflexive for me that I don’t feel like I need to blog it except that I want to give God that credit or to let other Muslims know that, yes, I did think it, don’t freak out.

Anyway, it’s been a source of conflict for me not just on my blog, but when speaking to Muslims and non Muslims, so I found this article and its responses very useful.

Thoughts from shaz

welcome Shawna! I am glad that you found this discussion useful, it is something that many of us struggle with. I tend to stay away from islamic terms on this blog because for a lot of people who don’t know what they mean, it is seen as some sort of secret “terr-orist” language unfortunately, but what you could do is write the same thing in english!