Yassmin Abdel-Magied, always the student, and always eager to learn, investigates the themes of resistance, transformation, and revolution in her new book Talking About a revolution which poignantly asks how do we build a better world for us all?
Self-confessed Dr. Who fan and a vocal advocate for change, Yassmin Abdel-Magied, is one of generation Y’s brightest and most talked-about young thinkers and is no stranger to a contentious conversation.
After having started one of the bigger conversations of 2017, after tweeting ‘Lest. We. Forget. (Manus, Nauru, Syria, Palestine)’ on ANZAC day, her life as a media presenter and writer in Australia took a very different turn. Heavily criticized for her post, which she subsequently took down and apologised for, Abdel-Magied was shut down, leaving no room for discussion – if you can call it that – and was treated as though challenging the status quo and inadvertently pushing the boundaries of others sense of entitlement, privilege and status were a national offence.
With a career in ruins, politicians calling for her deportation, and death threats coming in hard and fast, Abdel Magied made the decision to leave Australia (albeit with a broken heart) and take up an invitation from friends to live and start her life from scratch in the UK. A country that has afforded her some peace, and where she has found acceptance, love, and clarity.
From her new home in Europe, and staying true to her sociopolitical and engineering roots, Abdel-Magied explores the balance between sustainability, affordability, and reliability in her new book Talking About a Revolution (Penguin). All in the name of keeping the conversation going where it matters most.
Happy: Hey Yassmin, thanks for chatting with us, what are you up to today?
Yassmin: I’ve had an ideal day today, which is a mix of work and pleasure! I woke up early and headed out of town for my current hobby of choice: a horse ride! I rode Bengi today, who does require a strong hand, but managed to enjoy a few lovely canters under an unusually sunny London sky. Came home, had a few zoom calls, and then settled in for the afternoon to begin work on a book review I’m writing. There was also a fair bit of social media activity / procrastinating in between… but nobody needs to know about that! :P
Happy: Tell us about your suburb, what do you love/not love about where you live?
Yassmin: I love where I live. It’s a super Muslim area, right near a mosque, and occasionally I hear the Athan (call to prayer) come through my window. There are halal restaurants, dessert spots, and what the British call ‘offies’ (a corner shop which is sometimes not on a corner) on almost every inch of the street, meaning I never need to travel far for a snack, and the tube is a short walk away. It’s adjacent to the gentrification, but not yet steeped in it. Just how I like it!
Happy: Describe your average workday?
Yassmin: Like so many self-employed writers, there is no typical workday, but instead, work seasons. If I am in a season of ‘creating’, I avoid social activities and work calls, and try to have a calm morning, pottering around with coffee before planting my rear in front of the computer for however many hours it takes for me to hit the word count for the day. If I’m in the ‘promotion’ phase, as I am at the moment, it’s much more chaotic – flitting around the city, in meetings and coffees and interviews, ‘strategically networking’ and awkwardly packing my self-consciousness away as I attempt to ply my wares (!!). Then there’s the ‘recovery’ season, where I try to do as little as possible. We all need rest!
Happy: What about your ultimate day?
Yassmin: A morning of some sort of activity (a horse ride, a cycle), coffee with a friend or two, a couple of productive meetings, a few hours of ‘deep work’ (writing, reading, creating), and then some sort of educational social or cultural activity (a theatre show, a lecture) once the sun comes down. Dinner with friends, maybe an episode of something light and funny before bed, and then sleep! I’m a woman of simple pleasures.
Happy: If we paid you $500,000 for this interview what would you do with the money?
Yassmin: Hmm! Well, like any engineer turned writer worth their salt, I have a number of different options that I would spend some time choosing from:
First scenario: I’d give a chunk to the parents. Quietly, of course, because they would definitely make a fuss over anything they deem too audacious a gift. Put a bunch in my pension/superannuation, because this freelance life does not treat that fund kindly, donate a percentage to a few organisations who work with women and marginalised genders escaping or recovering from domestic violence, and definitely, definitely, book a holiday. Preferably somewhere warm, where I can go on a sweet road trip!
Second scenario: Buy a house in the countryside and turn it into a women’s writers commune, hehe, where women can come and stay and write for free!
Third scenario: Use it as seed funding to start that media company I’ve always dreamt of founding… (I did give it a go after I moved to London in 2018, but it didn’t quite work out. 500k might just be enough for round two!) So, where shall I send the invoice?
Happy: Which book are you currently reading?
Yassmin: I just finished Omar Sakr’s Son of Sin, and have picked up David Graeber’s Bullshit Jobs which I’ve wanted to read for a while. My TBR pile is significant, so I’ve got plenty of good stuff ahead of me as well!
Happy: What was your favorite book growing up?
Yassmin: Oh I adored the Tamora Pierce Alanna: The First Adventure and that entire Song of the Lioness series. It planted in me a secret fantasy of becoming a knight! Serving which king though, I do not know. I was also a big fan of Alex Rider… big adventure, fantasy, and sci-fi themes in my adolescent reading.
Happy: Top three books?
Yassmin: No, see, this is a trick question! How can you ask a writer and reader to pick only three!
Happy: Okay then, which book did you last read that opened your eyes and mind to a new perspective?
Yassmin: I really enjoyed Detransition Baby by Torrey Peters! I felt like a fly on the wall in a world I knew so little about. Darkly funny, honest, challenging – and while reading, I thought – oh, this wasn’t written for me. I loved that. Utterly fantastic.
Happy: We love libraries, in your travels, have you come across a library that blew your mind?
Yassmin: Is it cheating if I say the London Library? I was also a huge fan of Washington DC’s Library of Congress, which I visited a few years ago. A stunning space, with a gorgeously detailed, soaring ceiling. A strong recommend if you’re in DC!
Happy: Does The London Library (where you are currently a trustee) have a rare book that you secretly or not so secretly covet?
Yassmin: OThe London Library, is one of my favourite spots in the city! Hmm. If I am perfectly honest… the library has a cabinet full of these tiny, rare books from the 16th century that I walk past every time I visit, and though I don’t even know if I would read one of these 3 or 4 inch high, centuries-old miniatures… I can’t help but want one!
Happy: Your voice is very important in this time of change, and we enjoyed hearing you speak at the Sydney Writers Festival, which you joined via Video link, this year’s theme was particularly interesting, Change My Mind. What was the last thing you changed your mind about?
Yassmin: I think over the past few years I’ve been learning a lot about the experiences and perspectives of non-binary folks and understanding what it means to feel – deeply and authentically – that ones truest self lives outside the construct of binary gender. Through reading, and dialogue with close friends, I have come to understand it is its own place, rather than a space of transition alone, as I’d previously conceived of it before. So perhaps you could say, I changed my mind about the binary nature of gender? I’m still learning, of course, and grateful for all who share in ways that enable me to arrive at a greater understanding.
Happy: Just for fun, if you had a first date book list, what would it be?
Yassmin: Ha! Books they’re recommending, or books I want them to read? I’d probably hand them bell hook’s All About Love for some guidance on how I think about love and relationships, Tayeb Salih’s A Season’s Migration to the North (for some Sudanese history), and my memoir, so I don’t have to explain so much!