How We Chose the 2026 Closers
TIME's list highlights the contributions of 18 Black leaders who are working toward greater equality.
Juwayriah Wright
About
Juwayriah is a journalist and editorial producer at TIME Magazine, where she's covered Muslim life in America, polio vaccination campaigns overseas, infanticide, and other atrocities afflicting the Muslim world.
Articles
Angela Doyinsola Aina Demands America Invest in Black Mothers
As Black women die at disproportionate rates in childbirth, Angela Doyinsola Aina is pressing America to fund the community care that works.
Isabel Allende Tells the Stories of the Silenced
“I like to give voice to those who have been silenced—women, the people who are defeated, the people of color,” author Isabel Allende tells me in my conversation with her for TIME.
What Medieval Muslim Philosophers Knew About Your Digital Habits
Imagine replacing your late-night existential conversations with ChatGPT with lessons from a real philosopher—one grounded in ethics, metaphysics, and the intellectual rigor of the Islamic Golden Age. That’s what you’d find in The Philosopher Responds: An Intellectual Correspondence from the Tenth Century.
Israeli Strike Kills Al Jazeera’s Anas al-Sharif, Who Left a Final Message from Gaza
Like many journalists working in Gaza, Al Jazeera journalist Anas al-Sharif wrote a final message to be posted in the event of his death.
The Malnutrition Crisis in Gaza Will Outlive the War
Babies are supposed to grow. But for the last eight of his 20 months of life, Enas Alwaheidi’s toddler son, Taim, has remained at the same weight: 9 kilograms, or just short of 20 pounds. “We don't have enough flour, so every day we make three pieces of bread,” Alwaheidi tells TIME from Sheikh Redwan near Gaza City.
Journalists In Gaza Are Documenting Their Own Starvation
Last month, unable to carry the weight of two cameras, a work laptop, and his body armor, Gazan photojournalist Bashar Taleb made the decision to prioritize his health over his work. The 30-year-old, who has worked with Agence France-Presse since 2010, had lost 35 pounds while documenting the crisis he now lives in the midst of.
The Disorienting Saga of a Dallas Woman Detained By ICE on Her Honeymoon
Ward Sakeik stands in a Dallas kitchen making watermelon juice. For 140 days, someone else decided what and when she would eat. The 22-year-old wedding photographer spent the last five months in ICE detention after being arrested on her own honeymoon.
Islamophobia Surges Online After Zohran Mamdani’s Win
Zohran Mamdani’s win sparked a massive online Islamophobic backlash, highlighting rising digital hate in politics.
Trump Calls Mamdani a 'Communist Lunatic' After NYC Primary Upset
“Zohran Mamdani, a 100% Communist Lunatic, has just won the Dem Primary, and is on his way to becoming Mayor,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
As Sanctions Ease, Syria Weighs What Comes Next
The dramatic fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime has unlocked not just political change, but a complex web of economic possibilities — and risks — that could reshape the lives of millions of Syrians still reeling from war.
🎥 Hajj 2025: Narrated Report
Saudi Arabia’s 2025 pilgrimage will look drastically different. In this TIME video, I narrate the key reforms based on my original reporting.
Hajj Begins With Sweeping New Changes
Saudi Arabia has announced drastic changes for the 2025 Hajj pilgrimage that begins today, including new rules prohibiting children from accompanying pilgrims, and prioritizing pilgrims traveling for the first time.
The Search for Food in Gaza
Once vibrant with produce and daily bustle, markets have been hollowed out by months of siege, bombardment, and economic collapse.
How Muslim Voices Can be Amplified Through Collaborative Journalism
The idea of liberation goes beyond personal freedoms or the ability to move through the world unchallenged. It speaks to a larger, shared responsibility to amplify truth, challenge falsehoods, and foster understanding across the divisions that too frequently separate us.
Mahmoud Khalil’s Case Brings Family Separation into Focus
Mahmoud Khalil remained confined as his wife gave birth to their son. The separation wasn't due to logistical impossibility but a denied request for temporary release, highlighting what some experts describe as a pattern of using family separation as leverage against specific communities.
What a Fascism Expert Sees in Mahmoud Khalil’s Fight for Justice
To explore the broader implications of Khalil's detention, I spoke with Alberto Toscano, author of "Late Fascism" and columnist for In These Times, about what Khalil's case signifies for the state of democracy and civil liberties today.
The Road to Damascus: The Case for Normalization with the New Syrian Government
The United States’ continued designation of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) as a terrorist organization is one inspired by a track record of insularity.
What the New Houthi Terrorist Designation Means for Yemen
Critics argue the terrorist designation—which carries penalties for doing business with the faction—could exacerbate an already dire situation where millions of civilians rely on aid to survive.
The Politics and Propaganda of Hostage Swaps
In the theater of conflict, the release of hostages becomes a telling performance on the world stage. When Palestinian prisoners are released, the act is swift. The hundreds of oft-unnamed men, women and children embrace their loved ones in a flurry of tattered grey prison garb. No stage is needed for the cast members of Israel’s rolling prison system.
Designer Rachel Scott Is Redefining Luxury
Rachel Scott wants to change our understanding of luxury. Scott, who founded the fashion brand Diotima in 2021 and has a studio in New York City’s Chinatown, draws her inspiration from Jamaica, where she grew up.
Welcome to Halalabama - The Food Section
When I spoke to the founder of one of Alabama’s most renowned halal food trucks, he apologized for not being able to give our conversation his full attention: he was in the middle of making strawberry barbecue sauce to pair with lamb ribs. Ashurah Ali Mustaqeem carefully curates his rolling menu—including curried oxtails, Caribbean jerk chicken, and agave-glazed fried chicken and waffles—so every item registers as boundary-pushing and deeply rooted in the cultural fusion of Alabama’s South.
The Path Back to a Free Syria Is Rooted in Faith
The journey back to Syria is laden with emotional, logistical, and economic obstacles. Much like the Prophet Muhammad’s own migration, in Islam, reclamation is a continuous effort that requires global support.
Last North Gaza Hospital for Premature Babies at Risk
“It's not a game when they throw leaflets or when they announce that there are evacuation orders,” Mahmoud Shalabi, Deputy Director of Programmes at Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) told TIME from Gaza City. Shalabi and his family have been internally displaced for more than seventy days.
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Production Work
Explore some highlights from my production work below.
The Closers 2026
18 extraordinary Black leaders working toward greater equality.
Davos 2026: A World in Transition
How global leaders see the challenges and opportunities of the year ahead.
The Age of Longevity
Science-backed insight into the latest longevity research—and what your golden years could look like.
The Best Inventions of 2025: Special Mentions
Here are the 2025 best inventions earning special mentions
The Best Inventions of 2025
Here are the 300 best inventions making the world better, smarter, and more fun.
The 100 Most Influential People in AI 2025
Meet the innovators, leaders, and thinkers reshaping our world through groundbreaking advances in artificial intelligence.
Girls of the Year 2025
TIME's first-ever Girls of the Year list, presented by LEGO, features young leaders inspiring communities around the world. 💜🌟
TIME100 Most Influential Companies 2025
These are the world's most influential businesses of the year.
TIME100 Health 2025
In a rapidly evolving global health landscape, these are the most influential voices leading the way—advancing care, shaping policy, driving innovation, and transforming lives.
7 Leaders From Gold House’s A100 List
Gold House unveiled its annual A100 List, recognizing the 100 most impactful Asian Pacific leaders across industries.
The TIME Earth Awards | 2025
Each year TIME honors individuals whose actions have had an indelible impact on global efforts to address one of the most pressing crises facing our planet: climate change.
The 2025 Closers
TIME highlights 25 Black leaders who are working to close racial equity gaps.
The 100 Must-Read Books of 2024
Gripping novels and short stories, eye-opening histories, moving memoirs, and more. These are the books that entertained and enlightened us.
The Best Inventions of 2024
200 innovations changing how we live
The 2024 TIME100 Next
Meet the TIME100 Next 2024: the emerging leaders from around the world who are shaping the future and defining the next generation of leadership.
Latino Leaders 2024
17 trailblazers changing their industries, the U.S., and the world.
Kid of the Year 2024
Heman Bekele, a 15-year-old from Virginia, has a big idea with life-saving potential—an affordable soap that could be a new and more accessible way to deliver cancer medication.
TIME100 Most Influential Companies 2024
The TIME100 Most Influential Companies list recognizes the organizations that are making extraordinary impact around the world.
The TIME Earth Awards 2024
Honoring individuals influencing the future of the planet through their work on climate justice, awareness, and activism.
The Closers
Striking change-makers working towards racial wealth equity
200 Best Inventions of 2023
Groundbreaking innovations that are making the world better, smarter, and a little more fun
TIME100 Voices: Ideas From the World’s Most Influential People
Hear new perspectives on the issues that matter from leaders around the world
TIME100 Leadership Series
Conversations with individuals who are shaping the world and inspiring others to build a better future.
TIME100 Voices: Ideas From the World’s Most Influential People
Read new ideas and perspectives on the issues that matter from the world's most influential people.
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