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Here is a fact that might surprise you. In 2009 a Gallup poll found 77 percent of British Muslims identified “very strongly” or “extremely strongly” with Britain, a higher percentage than the British public as a whole (at 50 percent).

Here is another. In 2010 a group of British Muslim women in partnership with the Armed Forces Muslim Association (AFMA) attended a memorial event. They were responding to a miniscule group of Islamists that had, by disrupting the now-traditional parade of soldier’s coffins through the town of Wootton Bassett, dominated the national news.

As Kalsoom Bashir put it, “Other organizations—that represent nobody—have tried to hijack the message from UK Muslim communities. We are here to claim it back.” She added, “There was a strong feeling of disgust in the Muslim communities that anyone would try to exploit the grief of families at Wootton Bassett.”

In attendance was the family of Jabron Hashmi, the first British Muslim serviceman to be killed in action in Afghanistan. Group Captain Zahur Ulhaq from AFMA said, “There is a strong history of Muslims playing an integrated role in the UK armed forces. It is important to recognize the contribution that these communities have made.”

I think there is a conspiracy of sorts to keep facts like this from us. The conspirators are an odd bunch—not just the Islamists (who shout, “Are you Muslim or are you British?” and “The West is dar al-harb!”—“a house of war”) but also the Islamists’ allies on the Left (who scream, “Down with the West!,” “We are all Islamophobic!,” “The War on Terror is a War on Islam!”) and the Islamists’ enemies on the Right (who shriek, “Eurabia!,” “Stealth Jihad!,” “Fifth Column!”).

Sorry about all those exclamation marks. But that’s how the dominant discourses feel—painful, polarizing, and paranoid. Their awful din means we can’t hear the quiet revolution going on among British Muslims. Aftab A. Malik invites us to tune out the headlines once in a while so that we can see that “a generational shift has occurred in the last decade” as the Muslim community has “shifted from being isolated to being self-reflective and ready to take on challenges.” He claims this is “the natural expression of an inquisitive, creative, empowered and articulate generation of British Muslims.”

And there at the forefront are Muslim women waging a quiet struggle to secure gender equality within contemporary Islam.

Here are some groups we don’t hear enough about.

British Muslims for Secular Democracy raises awareness among British Muslims about secular democracy and “a shared vision of citizenship (the separation of faith and state, so faiths exert no undue influence on policies and there is a shared public space).”

Sisters Against Violent Extremism (SAVE UK) promotes a dialogue among all groups in order to contribute to new ways of understanding and bridge building.

And take a look at these British Muslims demonstrating (with a quintessentially British humour, note) against the Islamist idiots of Al-Muhajaroun.

Tahmina Saleem and Sara Khan established Inspire in 2009 to empower Muslim women, strengthen community cohesion, prevent all forms of extremism, enhance gender equality, and promote human rights.

A recent conference, “Speaking in God’s name: re-examining gender in Islam,” saw scholars, academics, and activists meet and develop a critique of religious authorities who, in the name of God, have justified the oppression of women. They also gave a platform to those authorities who empower women to assert their rights.

And now a campaign has been launched in the UK. The organizers of the “Declaration of Jihad Against Violence” say “we can no longer sit in silence while we watch the name of our faith being used to justify crimes. It is our duty to make our voices heard and to reclaim our faith.”

Watch this Muslim woman and take heart. Her voice—not the braying of the separatists—could be the sound of our shared future.

Today, in the 21st century, injustices continue to be perpetrated against women. Politics, culture, and religion are being used as tools to define and regulate women’s behavior, to restrict their roles in society. The promise of an Islam elevating the status of women and viewing her as a full and active member of society remains unfulfilled.

Amongst British Muslim communities it is no different. Whilst many Muslim women are making great achievements within British society, many more are denied fundamental freedoms simply because of their gender. Many of those who deny women their rights claim to do so in God’s name. They argue that Islam offers gender equality only to deny it in practice. They boast about a woman’s dignity only to violate it. They talk about her spiritual equality only to refuse her access to the Mosque. Subjugation of women, which Islam came to prevent, has come in the guise of religious authority that seeks to justify unacceptable practices. For too long these views in the UK have remained unchanged and unchallenged. Until now.