[1/5] Shaira Tasnia, 16, puts her helmet on while on a group cycling trip with community program Hijabs and Helmets, in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada, August 17, 2023.
Hijabs and Helmets aims to provide education and a welcoming environment toward people new to cycling and the city - especially to Muslim women who may come from backgrounds where cycling was not the norm.
The program was created three years ago to meet a community need, said Menna Badawi, a community health worker at Access Alliance Multicultural Health & Community Services and program lead for Hijabs and Helmets.
The group realized "there was a gap in services for Muslim women in the community ... who are interested in cycling and kind of don't know where to go," Badawi said.
"As a Muslim hijabi I did find there was a gap in recreational sports for women who look like me," she said.
Persons:
Tasnia, Laura Proctor, Menna Badawi, Badawi, Elhassan, Anna Mehler Paperny, Rosalba O'Brien
Organizations:
REUTERS, Rights, Cycling, Access Alliance Multicultural Health & Community Services, Maple Leaf Sports, Entertainment, Toronto, Maple Leafs, Raptors, Muslim, Thomson
Locations:
Scarborough , Ontario, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Toronto, Toronto's, Taylor