Disciplines
African American Studies
Abstract
Summary by Eliza Anderson.
Kujegi Camara is a lifelong Bronx resident and Assistant Director for Engagement and Operations at Fordham’s Center for Community Engaged Learning. She attended high school at Manhattan Center for Science and Math in East Harlem and received a bachelor's degree from Princeton University.
Camara was born in 1994 to Gambian parents who immigrated to the Bronx in the late ‘80s. Growing up on 176th and Walton Avenue, Camara lived with her large extended family and would cook meals with her mother and aunts. The neighborhood had many Senegambian immigrants, and the Mount Hope Masjid that she attended had a predominantly West African congregation. She spoke Soninke at home with her family, at the masjid, and with her friends. Her father was in construction, and her mother was a stay-at-home mom.
Camara recalls enjoying her time in public school, but experienced teasing on the basis of her African heritage and language. She recounts a vulnerable instance in elementary school when a boy pulled off her hijab in the lunchroom. Camara also speaks about her memories of 9/11 and its aftermath, prompting questions of personal identity and conflict: “Can you be fully American, be fully Muslim, and then also be fully Gambian and fully African?” The masjid was a powerful space for Camara, as it was a place where she spent considerable time, where she felt she could be fully herself, and a place that “[she] could be very proud of.” It was at the masjid that she felt empowered in her community and her faith, and she began to teach younger children. She highlights how her cultural identities blended together and sometimes collided, recalling how many family members had objected to her going to dorm at Princeton. This experience led her to found the Smiling Coast Women Empowerment Network, with a goal to empower West African Muslim girls in their educational journeys.
She highlights the importance of the hijab as a sign of modesty before God, and reflects on how styles have changed across cultures and generations. On the question of what she hopes for the future of the Muslim community in the Bronx, she emphasizes her desire for Gambians to see themselves “in the fabric of what does it mean to be from the Bronx.” Being proud of her Bronx identity is central to how she navigates raising her three daughters in the Bronx.
Recommended Citation
Naison, Mark, "Kujegi Camara" (2025). Oral Histories. 373.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/baahp_oralhist/373
