A Curious Child in an Academic Home
Aminah was born to a 17-year-old birth mother who made the difficult decision to place her for adoption. She was welcomed into a family in Sheffield by an English professor father and a poet artist mother. Raised in a highly academic but loving environment, young Aminah was a self-described "tomboy" who loved horses, trucks, and buses—far more than dresses or anything considered feminine.
She grew up attending Sunday school and loved the stories of the prophets—Jesus, Moses, and Abraham (peace be upon them). But by the time she was 15, questions began forming. She noticed contradictions in the Bible and asked her teachers for proof. The response? "Just believe in your heart." For a young woman seeking truth and evidence, that wasn't enough. She believed in God but belonged to no religion.
The Attack That Changed Everything
At 16, Aminah left home—rebellious, independent, and living alone. But she fell in with the wrong crowd. One day, she was violently attacked in her own flat. She was beaten, robbed, and her car was stolen. Terrified and unable to return home, she accepted an offer from a Muslim friend to stay at her house.
It was there, in that moment of vulnerability, that she saw one book on the shelf: the Quran, translated into English. Too exhausted to do anything else, she asked if she could read it. Her friend told her to wash her hands first, then open it.
What she found shocked her. "I saw the same stories I had loved as a child in Sunday school," she recalls. "I had been taught in the West that Islam and Christianity were completely separate—that Christians worshipped 'the Lord' and Muslims worshipped 'Allah,' as if they were different gods. But here was the same truth."
She began asking questions. Her friend connected her with a scholar who provided scientific evidence from the Quran that left her speechless. Then came the moment that would seal her fate: she watched The Message, the classic film about the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). In the final scene, Bilal (may Allah be pleased with him) stands atop the Kaaba and gives the adhan (call to prayer) .
"I felt it," she says, her voice trembling at the memory. "A warmth that filled my entire being. It was the sweetness of faith." She turned to her friend and said: "I want to become a Muslim."
Family, Faith, and Finding Her Way
This was before 9/11, a time when multiculturalism in Britain was more accepted. Still, her parents had concerns. Her father thought it was a phase. Her mother worried she would be oppressed or unable to work. But as Aminah grew in her faith, they saw the change: she became calmer, kinder, more grounded. Islam had stabilized her.
But the road wasn't easy. Her biggest challenge? Lack of knowledge and guidance. She was passionate but had no one to teach her how to pray. She asked friends repeatedly, only to be met with "Insha'Allah" and empty promises. Frustrated, she reached a breaking point—and realized she had been asking the wrong source. She turned fully to Allah.
Then, a stranger appeared. A large, mixed-race man spotted her from a phone booth, opened the door, and asked, "Are you Muslim? Wait here." He made a call, then handed her the phone. On the other end was a woman named Tracy.
"Tracy became my teacher," Aminah says. "She taught me how to pray. She taught me the pillars of faith. She taught me about hijab. She was the answer to my dua."
The Funeral That Sealed Her Prayer
Despite learning to pray, Aminah hadn't yet made it a consistent practice. Then came a turning point she would never forget.
A family friend—a kind Muslim man—passed away suddenly. His daughter invited Aminah to the funeral. In the Pakistani tradition, the body lies in an open casket at home before the funeral prayer. Aminah had never seen a dead body before. Nervous but trusting her friend, she looked inside the coffin.
"I swear by Allah," she says, "he was lying there with the most beautiful smile on his face. Light was emanating from him."
In that instant, Allah connected the dots in her heart. She remembered seeing this same man praying quietly by the gas stove in the kitchen. She understood then: this smile was the fruit of his prayer. From that day onward, she never missed a single prayer.
Breaking Barriers: The Only Hijabi Bus Driver
As a child, Aminah loved large vehicles. When she turned 21—the legal age to drive buses in the UK—she decided to apply, despite being a hijabi Muslim woman.
She faced three barriers:
Being young and female in a male-dominated field
Being visibly Muslim in a post-9/11 world
Facing criticism from within the Muslim community for "mixing with men" and working a "haram" job
None of it stopped her. She walked into the bus depot, submitted her application, and trained alongside an all-male cohort. She was the only one who passed her test on the first try.
For years, she was known as Sheffield's only hijabi bus driver—a walking, working symbol that faith and professional life can coexist beautifully.
A Message to Muslims and Non-Muslims Alike
Today, Ustadha Aminah Blake is an educator, speaker, and advocate for authentic Islamic knowledge. She speaks passionately about the struggles of new Muslims and the responsibilities of the wider Ummah.
On Islamophobia:
"Islamophobia is absolutely rising, and media plays a huge role. But Allah says in the Quran: 'Hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided.' We are weak when divided. We must counter negativity with wisdom and beauty. If we sit in silence, negativity fills the void. We are the representatives of Islam. Let's represent it beautifully. "
On Dawah (Inviting to Islam):
"You have to be trustworthy. If you can't build trust—if you aren't the best in character—why would anyone listen to your message? Look at the Prophet Yusuf (AS), or Prophet Muhammad (SAW). Their character came first."
On the Prophet Muhammad (SAW):
"Every time I learn something new about him, I love him more. One story made me cry: near the end of his life, he said, 'I wish to meet my brothers.' His companions said, 'Aren't we your brothers?' He replied, 'You are my companions. My brothers are those who believe in me without having seen me.' That's us."
Her One-Minute Message to the World:
"Set aside your prejudices. Open your hearts. Think about what it would mean to have a sound heart and a peaceful life. So many people have a spiritual void. If you're searching for truth, pray sincerely: 'O God, I don't know if You're there. But if You are, guide me to the truth.'"
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