It's a dance routine like no other, but more importantly, it's one that challenges the way people see Muslim women.
We're Muslim, Don't Panic (WMDP), a dance group led by hip-hop dancer and choreographer Amirah Sackett, is hoping to change common stereotypes of Muslim women. In a recent interview with Bust, the Chicago-based teacher says her dance routines (including one that was filmed for Brother Ali's music video "Mourning in America"), are about flipping the script.
“I wanted to educate others and reflect the beauty that I know and love in Muslim women," she told the magazine. "Yes, there are oppressed women in the Muslim world. Women are oppressed the world over. These are our mutual struggles.”
And now, a video that was originally posted in 2015 is making its rounds on social media sites. The video shows WMDP showing off their amazing talent, with a full dance routine to Brother Ali's "Tight Rope."
We're Muslim, Don't Panic from Amirah Sackett on Vimeo.
In an introductory video posted three years ago, Sackett says she and her two dancers Iman and Khadijah started the group to educate people about hijabs in general.
"Together we have performed all over the Twin Cities educating people about the Muslim style of dress for women known as hijab to increase understanding and tolerance within our city and school systems," she writes on her Vimeo page.
Sackett, along with two other dancers, wear long black niqabs and white sneakers. And as she told the magazine, dancing was used to not only to break these age-old stereotypes of oppression, but also to empower Muslim women and girls who are discriminated against because of their religion.
Watch the full video above.
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