On the other side, secular progressives sometimes chafe at Smith’s unwavering faith-based framework. They argue that her reliance on religious language and Islamic law may alienate non-religious allies. Smith’s reply is characteristically direct: “If your liberation doesn’t have room for my hijab, it’s not liberation. It’s just a different cage.” As of 2025, Sharifa Jamila Smith is still very much active, though she has intentionally stepped back from direct media attention to mentor younger organizers. She currently serves as a senior fellow at the Healing Justice Institute and is reportedly working on a book tentatively titled “The Uncolonized Heart: Black Muslim Women Leading the Way.”
Sharifa Jamila Smith personally leads the weekly "Healing Circles," where women—regardless of religious background—engage in trauma-informed storytelling. The recidivism rate among Rose House participants is under 12% over five years, a fraction of the national average. Smith’s model has since been replicated in Newark and St. Louis. In 2018, Smith co-founded the Black Muslim Feminist Collective (BMFC) , a network that challenges patriarchal interpretations of Islamic texts while simultaneously critiquing mainstream white feminism for its erasure of religious Black women. The BMFC’s manifesto, written largely by Smith, has been quoted in academic journals and used in university courses on intersectionality. sharifa jamila smith
Unlike many public intellectuals who seek the spotlight, Smith has historically operated as a "behind-the-scenes" strategist. She is best known for her role in developing women-led grassroots initiatives in urban centers such as Detroit, Chicago, and Philadelphia. Her focus has consistently been on three pillars: , economic cooperatives rooted in Islamic ethical finance , and spiritual healing from racial trauma . The Formative Years: Finding a Path at the Crossroads Sharifa Jamila Smith’s journey into activism was not linear. In her early twenties, she worked as a public school teacher in a low-income district on Chicago’s South Side. It was there that she witnessed the "school-to-prison pipeline" firsthand—a reality that would shape her life’s trajectory. Disillusioned by a system that punished rather than nurtured, she turned to faith. On the other side, secular progressives sometimes chafe
Her story reminds us that the most effective leaders are not always those with the largest platforms, but those who quietly build the infrastructure of hope. Sharifa Jamila Smith has spent decades doing exactly that—one formerly incarcerated woman, one cooperative grocery, one healing circle at a time. To search for Sharifa Jamila Smith is to uncover a hidden history of American social justice—a history where faith fuels resistance, where women lead without apology, and where the most vulnerable are centered, not sidelined. As her work continues to ripple outward through reentry programs, economic cooperatives, and spiritual healing spaces, one thing becomes clear: Sharifa Jamila Smith is not just a footnote. She is a chapter yet to be fully read. It’s just a different cage
