I had the incredible opportunity last night to speak at the Ministers’ Muslim Australian Reference Group.
My role was to give feedback on the CRC Youth and Religion Conference, which was held on October 21st at the ParkRoyal Hotel. I was one of the youth speakers there. I really enjoyed hearing the stories of young people from the Egyptian Coptic, Sikh and Hindu faith. I only came in for the afternoon session, and I missed out on the talks given by Catholic, Jewish, Christian youth, as well as another Muslim youth. Interfaith dialogue is so critical in today’s world. Humanising the face of religion makes such a big difference.
Last night, I met the Hon. Victor Dominello MP, Minister for Citizenship and Communities and Aboriginal Affairs. He’s really cool! He spoke a bit about his parents coming in from Italy when they were children, making him a second-generation Italian migrant. It’s heartening to see someone from his background making his way in the world, and helping to generate positive change for the rest of the community.
I can only hope that with the passage of time and positive government support, the Muslim community in Australia will have an easier time co-existing with everyone else.
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Published by Raidah Shah Idil
Raidah Shah Idil is a student counsellor, poet, writer, and creative instructor with a passion for YA (young adult), fantasy, sci-fi and detective fiction. She was born in Singapore and moved to Australia at the age of 12. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (English) and Bachelor of Science (Psychology) from the University of New South Wales in 2005.
After working as a marketing copywriter and studying the Islamic Sciences in Amman, Jordan for nearly two years, she returned to Sydney, got married, then moved to Malaysia. While working as a part-time tutor at Axiom Learning, she works as an online counsellor for Seekershub Global. She has completed her Diploma of Counselling through the Australian Institute of Professional Counsellors. Her full-time job is raising her baby daughter. Everything else is squeezed in between. Literally. Her writing has been published in The Feminist Wire, SISTERS magazine, Daily Life, Lip Mag and Venture Beat. Raidah’s poetry was recently published in the ‘Armed With Only Our Souls’ online DDFS chapbook by New York poet Caits Meissner. Her debut double-featured novel, “Finding Jamilah and the Story of Yusuf” was published by MyLegacy publications in early 2014.
In her spare time (ha), she reads, listens to audiobooks, goes on walks, and is always on the lookout for tasty noodle soup. She currently lives in a green, leafy suburb in Kuala Lumpur with her husband, three small children and mother-in-law.
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Raidah Shah Idil 
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That must have been an exciting and very rewarding experience. You were definitely brave to speak in front of all those people. I get the chills just thinking about it 😉
It was definitely exciting and rewarding! Thanks Maryam!