Hollywood Needs To End Islamophobic Portrayals of Muslim

President Obama and Secretary Kerry called on US commercial entertainment, specifically film and television, to present ISIS, activities of Anti-Islamists (Islamophobia), and authentic Muslims/Islamic  ideological philosophy  at their right perspectives.

Recently President Obama and Secretary Kerry each called on US commercial entertainment, specifically film and television, to help in two major challenges: Islamophobia and ISIS recruitment.

In his landmark speech embracing Muslims as part of the American fabric past and present, President Obama called for more normal, authentic Muslim characters - "unrelated to national security" on television. With the scourge of Islamophobia terrorizing by associating Muslim of all ages with ISIS and other extremists massacring  people , has monopolize the Media industry.

  

We know from neurological research that our emotions influence political decision-making more than rational thought; that is why narratives are so effective. They move us to feel empathy with the characters portrayed, reports Cynthia P. Schneider for HuffPost. 

When Muslims are seen again and again as terrorists, whether in news reports, TV or film, the repetition only reinforces prejudices, despite the fact that the vast majority of Muslims abhor terrorism and are its principle target.

We also know that these negative portrayals reverberate within Muslim majority communities. The infamous Homeland graffiti incident shows how much Muslims resent these insulting stereotypes.

A key finding of the most extensive opinion survey of Muslims around the world is that Muslims' views of the "West" or non-Muslim societies are shaped largely by what they (Muslims) think non-Muslims think of them. And how did they asses the "West's" opinion of them? Largely through representations in media.

President Obama believes, negative portrayals of Muslims in media not only fan the flames of Islamophobia, but they also reinforce feelings of alienation and humiliation in Muslims -- exactly the sentiments that motivate people to join ISIS and other extremist groups.

One key strategy is to work with television writers and researchers on their own terms. This is the approach of MOST Resource, a non-profit organization that provides television and film writers information and access to experts to facilitate more accurate and true Muslim characters and plots.

When shaping Muslim plots and characters, they often welcome the chance to speak to experts, as well as information from resources such as MOST's Story Bank, which compiles thousands of news and human interest stories involving Muslims and Islam.

To be fair, nuanced Muslim characters and plots have begun appearing in high profile shows, including Army Wives, Grey's Anatomy, Bones, and The Good Wife.

Grey's Anatomy unforgettably brought to life the dire conditions of medical care in conflict-ridden Syria, when Syrian doctors visiting Grace Hospital removed ¾ of the instruments and turned out the lights to simulate the conditions they work under during the war.

With Iranian-born Arastoo Vaziri, Bones has deftly integrated a Muslim character into its regular plot now for years. Issues involving his background arise occasionally and organically, giving him, for example, the opportunity to say that the 9/11 attackers did not represent Muslims or Islam.

The first American television show set in the Middle East, Tyrant unfolds a Shakespearean plot of power, family, violence, and love against a backdrop of tyranny, revolution, and extremism. With pithy comments such as this from a female Bedouin character being abducted by ISIS-like extremists -- "No real Muslim would take a mother away from her child" -- the show has the potential to communicate some basic truths within the context of a riveting plot.

Interestingly, comic books have blazed the trail of authentic, relatable Muslim characters with superheroes such as Kamala Khan, a 16-year-old Pakistani American created by G. Willow Wilson, a convert to Islam working with Marvel editor Sana Amanat. Note: A Muslim/Pakistani/American editor hires a Muslim writer to create a sympathetic "everyman" Muslim teenage female superhero. Chances are there would be more Muslim characters and plots on television, if there were more writers with Muslim backgrounds.

Dr. Naif Al Mutawa, the pioneer in Muslim comic superheroes, created The 99, a series translated and distributed from Indonesia, to Saudi Arabia, to the US, with male and female superheroes who embody the 99 characteristics of Allah.

For his efforts to provide positive heroes for young Muslim children (including his own six boys), Dr. al Mutawa has weathered death threats, and condemnation by hardliners in the US and in his native Kuwait. Dr. Al Mutawa's example shows both the potential of positive Muslim narratives and the perils in this divisive time of creating them.

If television and film narratives have the potential to shift perceptions on a large scale, the impact can be even stronger in the intimacy of a live theater performance, something I experienced at Georgetown with Myriad Voices: A Cross Cultural Performance Festival, two years of programming designed to increase understanding of Muslims, Islam, and Muslim majority regions.

Myriad Voices and similar programs on other campuses were supported by "Building Bridges" grants from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, one of the very few foundations to support cultural engagement as a strategy to increase understanding with Muslim majority communities. Given the proven capacity of narratives to change perceptions and the urgency of the problem of Islamophobia, other funders should join them.

President Obama and Secretary Kerry are right: narratives can change hearts and minds and turn them away from Islamophobia or ISIS. With our diverse population, with over three million Muslims, and a renaissance in quality television, the time is ripe for more and more nuanced characters and storylines involving Muslims in mainstream TV.