An Educational Campaign
Take the “Z” out™ is an international borderless bridge-building campaign to help people realize how to pronounce Islamic (not Izlamic) words more accurately.
In particular, Islamic is pronounced “Islamic” with an “s” sound, not a “z” sound unlike “Izlamic”. And Muslim is pronounced “Muslim”, with an “s” sound, not a “z” sound unlike “Muzlim”.
Name butchery is often experienced by people of colour and even European names may end up being badly mispronounced. Rest assured, when you get the knack for pronouncing Islamic and Muslim better, it may end up being a painful or annoying experience to now catch others saying it. But now you know, pass it on.
Incepted in 2019
Take the “Z” out™ was incepted in 2019 by artist @studentAsim during Islamic History Month in Toronto, Canada.
A school principal was brainstorming a bunch of ideas with Muslim students for activities for the month. During the interaction — with @studentAsim also present — he noticed the principal kept saying “MuZlim” and “IZlamic” several times. The idea sparked and Take the “Z” out™ was born to foster better pronunciation and ultimately more authentic interactions.
Take the “Z” out™ was picked up by CBC News during it’s initial run. The interview has been archived by CBC and we are working on recovering it!
