Shelina Janmohamed is the bestselling author of “Love in a Headscarf,” a memoir about growing up as a British Muslim woman. “In the 1980s and 1990s, I felt a constant burden to demystify Islam and explain that Muslims are human beings like everyone else,” she writes. “So for a while it felt that it was getting easier to be a Muslim citizen of the global village. For young Muslims today, however, it seems harder than ever.”

Her latest book, “Generation M,” offers a gripping account of what inspires young Muslims, what motivates them, and what their hopes are. 

According to the Pew Research Center on Religion and Public Life, the number of Muslims is expected to increase by 73 percent from 1.6 billion in 2010 to 2.8 billion in 2050. While many populations are ageing, the Muslim population is young and growing. In 2010, 63 percent of the global Muslim population was under 30. That represents 1 billion people, or 14 percent of the global population. The largest number of Muslims lives in Asia – which means that Generation M is not the exclusive prerogative of a single culture or region.

One salient characteristic of Generation M is the idea that religion makes modernity better and modernity makes religion better. Today’s young Muslims look back at their heritage with pride and they believe that religion, modernity and science are not opposed to each other. Generation M represents “an entirely new, fresh and self-empowered phenomenon that is going to change the societies they live in. They see their faith as a tool with which to engage with modernity.”

People in this growing, young, educated and increasingly affluent sector of society are also proud to be Muslim. In fact, second and third-generation immigrant Muslims often have a better knowledge of Islam’s teachings than their parents. Zarqa Nawaz, the creator of the hit Canadian television series, “Little Mosque on the Prairie,” acknowledges that she started wearing the hijab due to a clash with her parents: “The best thing about hijab was that I discovered it on my own, my parents had nothing to do with it, which means that I could beat them at their own game: religion. I wanted so desperately to be different from them. Hijab was the answer.”

Generation M is also aware of its consumer power. Young Muslims want their lives to reflect their Muslim identity – in other words, everything from clothes to music, to travel and food, should express their Islamic values.

According to the author, the Muslim lifestyle sector is being built by young Muslims creating products and services that large corporations have been slow to develop. The value of the Muslim fashion industry has been estimated at $230 billion; Muslim travel at $142 billion and Muslim personal cosmetics and care at over $54 billion. Food and beverages is another thriving sector, with Muslims spending about $1.1 trillion a year, and which is estimated to reach $1.6 trillion by 2020.

Zohra Khaku, the founder of the digital magazine “Halal Gems,” wants to celebrate halal dining. She has a passion for food. “I want halal food to be the highest quality in the next 10 to 15 years. It’s something to be proud of.”

The Halal Gems website includes a restaurant finder, which was the original foundation of the concept, but its success is also due to its glossy content which offers interviews, events and trends on the halal food scene.

The Muslim fashionista is another force to be reckoned with. The global sum spent on clothes and fashion accessories is expected to reach $327 billion by 2020. Muslim fashion has recently become increasingly visible on the high streets.

Reina Lewis, professor at the London College of Fashion and author of the 2015 book “Muslim Fashion,” acknowledges that the needs of Muslim women were met initially by designers and creative entrepreneurs, often women, from within faith communities who realized they couldn’t get what they needed.

“The advent of e-commerce online made start-ups easier and a niche market of modest fashion quickly developed, with a vibrant blogosphere emerging alongside. As social media has developed, aided by the advent of affordable smart phones, designers and bloggers can become tastemakers on an international stage with visually-led platforms such as Instagram transcending language barriers,” says Lewis.

The importance of the Internet cannot be emphasized enough. Muslim fashion blogs and YouTube tutorials have fueled the demand for a Muslim fashion industry and Muslim women are increasingly buying more online. But the Internet is also bringing down barriers and giving rise to the “Digital Ummah”, or community.

Umm Hamza, a blogger explains that being part of the “Digital Ummah” makes her feel a better, more-informed Muslim. I think in an age where knowledge is power, the opportunities the Internet brings mean I become a stronger Muslim,” she says.

Usman, a 30-year-old who lives in Nigeria, also feels the same way: “The Internet has made me a better Muslim. It has given me a sense of belonging to the global Ummah that has helped shaped my life. I get my news from the Internet. It is very important to keep up with news from the Muslim Ummah around the world because it may be your responsibility to defend them in your community.”

“Generation M” also highlights the change affecting Muslim women worldwide due to increased levels of education, employment and also more active public participation. Furthermore, global connectivity among Muslim women’s groups allows sharing experiences and nurturing feelings of solidarity. Social media has also created previously unimaginable spaces for sharing ideas which encourage women to become the producers and consumers of innovation.

When Muslim women find that their needs are not fulfilled, they innovate. This is a fact which characterizes the activities and actions of Generation M women who are empowering themselves through education, work and their faith. They want to create something better for themselves and for those around them.

Ainee Fatima took a photo of herself wearing a leather jacket and aviator glasses. With the caption “Forgot to be oppressed, too busy being awesome,” the image went viral because it captured the essence of Generation M women.

The book ends with Basem Hassan, a photographer and new media artist in the US. His words summarize the essence of Generation M: “I’m part of the birth of a new Muslim cultural identity that’s truly a historical event to witness. I do not see color or ethnicity as a hierarchy, but as an opportunity, the same opportunity that exists in teaching and learning about each other’s religions. This is the true essence of Islam. We skate, we snowboard, we make art, we make music, we fall in love, we slam poetry, we go baggy, we go skinny, we get emo, we get big. But we also pray, we memorize (the) Qur’an, we fast, we give (to) charity, we educate... I hope one day we’ll break the fast together.”

Shelina Janmohamed has written in a compelling way about young Muslims, Generation M, and how they are changing the world.

This book gives you a fresh and insightful perspective on one of the world’s most important driving forces. People of Generation M, empowered and inspired by faith, are the movers and shakers of today and tomorrow.

— [email protected]