Bilan Osman
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bilan Osman (born 1992)[1] is a Swedish journalist, opinion columnist and anti-racism activist.
She was born in Gothenburg to parents from Somalia, a chemistry professor and an activist, and raised in Partille.[1][2] Her paternal grandfather, Nor Osman, was a poet.[2] She studied multimedia journalism at Bona Folk High School in Motala.[3]
Career
Osman has been a columnist at the newspapers Svenska Dagbladet (2018–2019)[4][5] and Expressen,[3][6] and also written opinion articles for other Swedish publications, including the magazine Opulens.[7] For eight years beginning in 2013, her primary work was as a travelling educator for the anti-racism Expo foundation.[8][9] She then joined the Islamic Ibn Rushd Study Association.[9][10][11]
She has contributed to the anthologies Av oss blev det aldrig några riktiga damer,[12] Svart kvinna (2015)[2][13][14] Rummet (2015)[2][15] and En annan historia (2017).[14][16]
Activism
In 2013, Osman was one of five co-signatories of an open letter in Aftonbladet urging Muslim women in Sweden to veil themselves in solidarity with a pregnant woman who was attacked in Stockholm by a man who objected to her hijab.[17] She stated at the time that the group wanted to normalise the hijab in Sweden.[18]
Educating people about and combatting racism is a major focus for Osman.[2][6][14] She has written for the group anti-racist blog Inte rasist, men ... ('Not racist, but ...).[6] In response to the murder of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement in the US, Osman said that she sought to "start a conversation about whiteness" in Sweden.[8][19] She covers right-wing extremism and has been accused of left-wing extremism;[9] in early 2024 a Facebook post in which she expressed exasperation with white people led to criticism.[1]
