A British Empire Medal has been presented to Khadijah Safari who runs women-only kickboxing and martial arts classes in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England.
MK's Safari Health Hub and Safari MMA were founded by Safari to teach women how to defend themselves as hate crime and Islamophobia keep rising.
In 2009, she converted to Islam and pledged to keep her passion for marital arts. When Safari couldn't find a women-only club where she could train, she decided to invest her £5,000 savings in starting her own.
Khadijah has established ten more locations in Milton Keynes, Birmingham, and London in the last ten years, portraying herself as a Muslim woman who practices martial arts.
Her spokesman said:
It was baffling to Khadijah as she had grown up as a ‘British majority’ and was suddenly being seen as an ‘ethnic minority’. She had no idea that women from different cultures were so disconnected from even with the thought of doing sport, let alone actually participating in it.
Safari's gyms had to close due to lockdown in 2020. Khadijah quickly put in place a system that allowed members to take classes online.
Working with local groups, she developed and launched programs such as mental health prevention for women, classes for inactive children and youth from lower socio-economic groups, with a strong focus on BAME communities, and youth programs for those experiencing homelessness or financial difficulties.
Khadijah was awarded British Empire Medal (BEM) in this year’s New Year's Honours List for her hands-on contribution to diversity and inclusion in martial arts.
