Eleven Years of Silence

Nadia had been a Muslim for over a decade. She had taken her shahada quietly, in the years before she understood how much it would cost her.

She was married young, a new revert with two small children, to a man who used her faith and her unfamiliarity with Australian systems against her. For eleven years, the financial abuse continued. He managed every dollar. She was left with debt in her name, a growing sense of helplessness, and the belief that leaving was simply not possible.

"He took advantage of me as a new revert Muslim, only to get his citizenship," she later wrote to NZF. "After he got it all, the abuse started."

When she finally had the courage to leave, she had tens of thousands of dollars in debt accumulated under her name, two children aged eight and thirteen, and no furniture. He had not let her take anything from the family home.

She had secured a rental property after being rejected by more than thirty applications across the city. The lease was signing on a Tuesday. She needed the bond by Monday.

"I have been rejected for over 30 properties in the last month," she wrote. "I have until Monday to pay for the bond or I will lose the property."

NZF caseworkers reviewed her situation, confirmed the urgency, and arranged bond and rental assistance so she could secure the property. Following assessment, further support was provided for essential furniture, including a refrigerator, washing machine, beds and mattresses for her children. A Ramadan support payment was also provided, as the case coincided with the month of fasting.

Her case was documented under the Zakat categories of Fuqarah (the poor) and Mu’allafatul Qulub (those whose hearts are to be reconciled), acknowledging both her financial need and her status as a woman rebuilding her life as a Muslim.

Your Zakat. Their Right.

Nadia is not the face you expect when you think of domestic violence. She is well-spoken, composed, and making careful decisions about her future. She is also exhausted, in debt, and starting over with two children in an empty house. She is Hidden in Plain Sight, in our communities, in our mosques, in the queue at Centrelink.

Because of local Zakat, she had a home to bring her children to, a bed for them to sleep in, and food in the refrigerator during Ramadan. She did not have to choose between safety and survival.