Ahlan Wa Sahlan

Ahlan Wa Sahlan

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Something to chew on

Awesome article written by Ali Eteraz on why its almost an insult to be called a Muslim in America.

Makes me mad enough to chew tire iron. I have said before that I feel very lucky to live in the Twin Cities because of the baptism by fire that the area went through regarding Muslims. It has made the atmosphere a lot more comfortable for Muslims to move about and work in without the fear of reproach. Unfortunately not all places are the same as here and I know firsthand that Phoenix is disgustingly discriminatory.

I wonder about the other parts of the country, if I moved somewhere else would I have to worry about walking on the streets? finding a good job? Would I be equally represented by the police or my politicians?

And why, in a country with "freedom of religion", do I have to worry about it?

Also note Ali's likening of being Muslim to being gay in America, something I've also made reference to in previous blogs. I would however like to point out that homosexual kissing on TV is, now, commonplace while we pretty much have yet to see a decent Muslim character in any way.

Just a little bit of something to chew on...

4 comments:

mezba said...

You have to see Little Mosque on the Prairie. In Canada it's a great TV show with lots of Muslim characters.

Molly said...

Yes I have seen it. And you're talking about Canadian television which is, in many ways, generations ahead of the monster which is US media. We have one single show, called Aliens in America, which figures a Muslim character as the main. However he is the sidekick (to the anglo-rific main character), the comic relief, the loveable doofus, and his name is "Raja". He barely counts.
Any other Muslim characters are on shows like 24 or West Wing, and they're terrorists. American television is very anti-Muslim.

Molly said...

that last line was very "duh".

just call me Captain Obvious.

Mona Zenhom said...

OK, I'm stretching here. How about Sayid on LOST? He is a muslim character (the actor is Indian) and he is a good guy. Not saying he is the perfect muslim, but still. It's a step in the right direction and he's a favorite with a lot of LOST fans.