By Hadeel Mohamed, Deputy Head of Clinical Pharmacy, SEL GP Group and PhD researcher, University of Bradford

November marks Islamophobia Awareness Month, providing an invitation to challenge stereotypes, celebrate Muslim contributions, and reshape the narratives that define us. As a Muslim woman in pharmacy, I’ve often been the “only one” in the room. The only woman, the only woman of colour, the only one wearing a headscarf, the only one whose lived experience differed from everyone else’s. Rather than seeing that as a barrier, I saw an opportunity to help rewrite the story of leadership in our profession: one that celebrates diversity, authenticity, and belonging.

Flipping the script on leadership

Across the profession, leadership has often reflected a narrow story about who gets to lead, shaped by historical systems and norms that have not always served everyone equally. Many talented pharmacists from ethnically diverse backgrounds struggle to see themselves reflected in senior roles or to find mentors who understand their experiences.

To help change this, I founded The ENIGMA Mentoring Initiative, a mentoring and leadership development programme for female pharmacy professionals from ethnically diverse backgrounds, not limited to any one faith or cultural group. ENIGMA is about “flipping the script” on leadership by building confidence, visibility, and capability among women who have the talent and ambition to lead but haven’t always had equal access to opportunities.

Through mentoring, peer support, and shared learning, ENIGMA creates a safe space for honest conversations about race, culture, faith, identity, and belonging. It helps participants recognise that their differences are strengths, and that authentic leadership is powerful leadership. ENIGMA doesn’t just support mentees, it also develops allies, equipping mentors and colleagues to challenge bias, advocate for diversity, and help create lasting cultural change.

The complexities of visible faith

Islamophobia Awareness Month is also a reminder that discrimination isn’t always overt. It affects all Muslim professionals, but for those whose faith is more visible, for example, through dress or other outward expressions of faith, it can sometimes take more immediate or obvious forms. Everyone experiences Islamophobia differently, but visibility can add an extra layer of complexity. Sometimes, discrimination appears as quiet exclusion from networks, assumptions about competence, or the pressure to “fit in” to be accepted. These moments can feel isolating, but they can also become catalysts for change.

With ENIGMA, we encourage mentees to step into leadership roles, mentors to rediscover their purpose, and organisations to rethink how they nurture diverse talent. Inclusion isn’t just a moral imperative; it strengthens our profession and the care we provide to patients, helping to narrow the health inequalities gap.

This Islamophobia Awareness Month, I hope we all reflect on how we can “flip the script” in our own spaces by mentoring others, challenging bias, and amplifying voices that are too often overlooked. True inclusion happens when we move beyond symbolic gestures towards sustained cultural change.

Find out more about the ENIGMA mentoring initiative.

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