Playboy Magazine Features Its First Hijabi

Noor Tagouri, a Libyan-American hijabi journalist, has been featured in Playboy, the famous entertainment magazine, and has been included as one of the Renegades 2016, a series of profiles on iconic figures who challenge stereotypes, taboos and common culture.

“To be honest, I think being a hijabi Muslim woman, helped me gain that trust. I know what it’s like to have the narrative of our community be skewed and exploited in the media. I was like, ‘Hey, I know what it’s like to be misrepresented in the media. I won’t do that to you. I want to tell your story because it’s important and deserves justice.’ I know first-hand that once people are re-empowered, they realize their own story is powerful and they begin to share. It’s incredibly rewarding and can even help enlighten or save others,” she told Playboy.

Being a Muslim woman and experiencing what they go through on a daily basis have made her a better reporter, she mentions in her interview with Playboy. Tagouri tells stories for Newsy, an American video news network that produces short-form video news pieces.

The first story she did with Newsy was on Middle Eastern and North African Americans being considered “white” on the US census and how that might change on the 2020 census. “I referred to it as “White Without the Privilege.” There was a ton of backlash on Facebook from people who didn’t like the story. It was comical seeing people telling me to ‘go back home’ when in fact, I was born in West Virginia.”

The number of milestones Tagouri crossed on her way to stardom is magnificent. First, she graduated from college at the age of 20. She started her #LetNoorShine campaign in 2012 and it went viral. Last year, she took the TEDx audience by storm with a groundbreaking speech that advocated unapologetic individuality. She’s also a YouTube celebrity with a channel that draws tens of thousands of viewers.

On a social level, she collaborated with Lis’n Up Clothing, a street-wear brand,  on a fashion line project. Half the revenue goes to Project Futures, an anti-human-trafficking organization. Her dream is to become the State’s first commercial TV anchor, and we have great hopes she’ll be able to make this dream come true.

WE SAID THIS: We’re proud of you, Noor!