Reem Kirja

About Reem

By Apsara Chopra 

​

Imagine being a student celebrating various school holidays throughout the school year; you are happy to participate in these celebrations and see how engaged your community is in honoring these holidays. However, at the same time,  you feel sad inside knowing how there is no recognition for the holidays that you celebrate with your family. 

This is exactly how Reem felt in 5th grade during Halloween.

In an interview with Zhive, Reem explained how she loves any type of celebration. She loved seeing how for holidays like Halloween and Christmas, there are parades, school breaks, and so many festivities. She also said that for holidays like Valentine’s Day and Columbus Day, she would learn about the origin of the holidays and the importance behind them. However, she would always wonder why the holidays that her family celebrates, such as the two holiest holidays for Muslims, Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha, were not as widely recognized or celebrated at her school.

This question was the moment that made Reem realize she wanted to make a change in her community. 

The first step Reem took to create change was writing a speech with her friend and presenting their speech at their school’s board meeting. Although she felt overwhelmed at the board meeting, Reem explained how this experience made her realize that she was capable of creating change in her school’s policy. 

She stated, “I realized I had the ability to make change when I attended my first of our Board meetings. It really struck me that no matter what your age is, no matter where you're from, you can make whatever change you want in the community.” Reem’s realization encouraged her to move forward and start The NSE Campaign (The No  School on Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha Campaign).

During her campaign, Reem explained that feelings that arose were like a rollercoaster. She describes how sometimes she felt very good about herself and very motivated, but at other times, she would feel really down and wasn’t sure what to do. She emphasizes that her mother was her constant supporter throughout her campaign journey. Reem states, “the one person that kept going was definitely my mom, and she always made me feel better when I didn't have that in me.”

Reem explains an example of how her mother encouraged and uplifted her spirits. There was a day when Reem decided to check on Facebook to see what people’s ideas were about her campaign so she could use any suggestions to help improve it.  When looking at the replies to one of her interviews, she was very hurt to see hateful comments such as “look at those terrorists  going into our country and trying to change everything” or “You should just go back to your country.” That night Reem said she cried, and when speaking with her mother about this, her perspective changed. 

Reem’s mother told her, “‘you can take this, and you can change it, and you can see why they're saying this, and you can improve your campaign that way. It doesn't always have to be positive. It's not always going to be positive, but you need to be optimistic, and you need to know how to counteract that.’” 

Reem stated that after hearing her mother’s advice, “nothing really pushed me down, no matter what anybody said, and I just kept going.”

Reem was always determined, focused, and motivated throughout her campaign journey. Although her campaign took about 4 years, it's amazing to see the change Reem has created. Students are now able to celebrate Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha with their families! :)

Reem’s advice to people who may be struggling with similar issues is that persistence is key. She explains that you always have to work hard to achieve your goal. She states that “when I was in fifth grade, I thought going to a board meeting was basically good. I didn't have to do anything else. But later I found out that I have to keep working, and I have to persist for my goal to succeed.” She further explains, “You need to understand that it's not a small journey. It's not a small key. It's going to take time, it's going to take risks. And you definitely need to work hard to make sure to achieve and succeed in your goal.”

Reem’s journey of creating change has been very inspiring! It's really incredible how as a 5th grader, Reem wanted to start a campaign to have no school on  Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha and was able to be successful in accomplishing her goal. Now, as a teenager, Reem continues to strive to help increase inclusivity in her community!

At Zhive, we are so proud of Reem, and we absolutely love how incredible she is! We are so excited to see Reem’s journey continuously grow, and we know she is going to accomplish exceptionally great things!  Reem’s bravery, courage, and fearlessness will help her create positive change wherever she goes!