Hijabs and Holsters: Muslim Women Are Exercising The Second Amendment

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Jun 12, 2019

Myisha McGahee-Wooten is a Muslim woman that is packing heat.

Along with her traditional Islamic garb, she carries a Glock 19.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that she decided to start carrying after being robbed at gunpoint back in 2015. For her, carrying a firearm makes her feel safer.

McGahee-Wooten has been licensed to carry for three years and now lives in Germantown, Pennsylvania, where she runs an Instagram business called Muslimah Concealed Carry. This business encourages Muslim women to exercise their Second Amendment rights, while also teaching gun safety.

Aliya Khabir, a communications consultant who is another Muslim that is licensed to carry, praised McGahee-Wooten’s ability to handle firearms:

She’s responsible in the way that she does it.

Khabir also complimented the Muslim gun activist for her knowledge about gun laws, “She gives out information about the law in each state and what you should know about a firearm prior to purchasing one.”

The Muslim Second Amendment activist has never needed to use her weapon for self-defense purposes. But if faced with a situation where her life is in danger, she is ready to defend herself.

McGahee-Wooten has never had to fire her weapon in self-defense. But she’s ready should the situation arise.

I’m standing up against somebody hurting me or somebody else. I’m standing up against somebody taking my life. I’m being brave and protecting myself.

From a national perspective, Pennsylvania gun laws are not the best. It is currently ranked in 32nd place for most gun-friendly states according to Guns & Ammo magazine. Pennsylvania is notorious for its weak preemption laws which allow cities like Pittsburgh and Philadelphia to enact anti-gun ordinances that fly in the face of the state’s constitution.

However, Pennsylvania-based groups like Muslimah Concealed Carry and Black Guns Matter have emerged in response to the state’s increasingly anti-gun behavior. Minorities are starting to realize that gun control does not make their communities safer.