Hashi Mohamed

Hashi Mohamed (; born September 1983) is a British barrister and journalist. A member of Lincoln's Inn since 2010, he is also an author of two books, and has written for publications including The Guardian, The Times, and The Financial Times. He currently works for Landmark Chambers, as well as acting as the Chair of Coin Street's Secondary Housing Co-operative Housing Association since 2023.

Born in Kenya, Mohamed came to the United Kingdom as a refugee child. He studied at the University of Hertfordshire and the University of Oxford, before gaining his first position at No5 Chambers. His career as a journalist and broadcaster has included documentaries on BBC Radio 4, and writing for a variety of print publications. He often authors op-eds on social mobility and the housing crisis. He has written two books on these themes: People Like Us (2020) and A Home of One's Own (2022).

Early life and education Born in 1982 or 1983 in Nairobi, Kenya, His paternal grandfather, also called Hashi, was a rural goat farmer in Italian Somaliland. of which six were from a previous marriage. His father was a salesman and died in a car accident in 1993. When he arrived in the United Kingdom, he knew only basic English and nothing about British customs. He lived with his aunt and in low-rent housing before he was reunited with his mother, He was raised on state benefits, and was also homeless for part of his childhood. Mohamed studied at Wembley High School, a comprehensive school in north London. At the age of 18, he gained British citizenship, which allowed him to be able to return to Kenya. There, he concluded that he would have greater opportunities in the United Kingdom. and that a child in his position today would be unable to do so. a position available to him for his entire lifetime. He completed his training as a barrister in London in 2012;

Mohamed admits in People Like Us that he often takes a 'tough love' approach in his work, such as sending home an intern for arriving only four minutes late and without pen or paper, and says that people must either "evolve or die". which focusses on housing and maintenance within the South Bank. In March 2023, Mohamed submitted written evidence to the UK Parliament's Select Committee detailing his professional views on the causes of the UK housing crisis.

Journalist On BBC Radio 4, Mohamed has presented several documentaries including Adventures in Social Mobility in 2017 He has contributed to publications including Prospect, The Guardian, The Times which is an attempt to rethink the concept of social mobility in modern Britain.

Mohamed published his second book, A Home of One's Own, in September 2022. The book is about the housing crisis in the United Kingdom from the perspective of both his personal and professional experiences. As of September 2024, Mohamed was working on a children's book about the safety and security of the home, based on his own children's interests and experiences. He also encouraged the government to repeal the two-child benefit cap in September 2024, saying that it has had a "devastating impact on children". In response to the election of Rishi Sunak as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Mohamed disagreed that it was a victory for progressivism because of Sunak's multimillionaire background. Mohamed sees as ironic that policies of Sunak's Conservative Party would not welcome his family's immigrant background.

In Mohamed's campaign for greater social mobility, he says that the idea that "if you work hard you will get on" is a myth in modern British society, and that top professions are often actually catered to people from privileged backgrounds. He has criticised the media attention around rare cases of social mobility as a distraction from its failure to exist in the majority of cases.