Prime[Muslim-bashing]time
Long time no post. Se la vie, no? But, seriously, inshAllah I hope to post more regularly from here on forth.
Okay, I confess, I watch T.V. Not really watch T.V. in general, but three shows in particular: House, Lost, and ER. Try as I might (soooo many times in fact) to cut it out, these three programs are my twelfth step that I haven't reached yet. I was waiting for House to come on last night and caught the series premier (or maybe it was the second episode) of the show called "Bones."
Aside from the fact that it was just another hoblog of cliches and hackneyed story themes (I mean could it look any MORE like Crossing Jordan, stripped down to the bare bones of course? Pun, however sorry, intended.) Anyways, the theme was America's Favorite Fallback - "terrorism." Apparently this Afghan guy killed his brother with a car bomb (though they went through an extensive discourse pinning the victim as a suicide bomber). He planned to kill others, and the Rambo-esque FBI agent saved the day by killing him first.
Now, given that this show was on Fox, parent of "Faux News" I appreciated the main character's few attempts at assigning the actions of the bad guy "Fareed" as a result of "extremist" preacher's teachings. That is about it. Everything else was terrible, in so many ways, ways I can't fully address here. But I will give it a shot. And I will list, because I don't have the time for something more structured and perty right now.
1. The 4 "Afghan" characters were portrayed by 1 Caucausian brunette with black eyeliner, 2 obviously SOUTH Asian men, and a non-descript guy shown only in picture, more Arab than anything else. Does any of this matter to the producers - OBVIOUSLY not, because the sure did make that episode, didn't they. Does it matter to me? YES, because it only FUELS my belief that the general inability to classify between ethnic groups, or lumping a bunch of people with skin somewhere between peachy and ebony as Middle Eastern or Muslim, is symptomatic of a larger disregard, disrespect, or apathy toward engagement of the latter. Basically, all people not black or white are Brown and can be classified as anything within that range, since it's all just a shapeless blob of a people.
Note the show LOST. Naveen Andrews, a British Indian plays and Iraqi (Muslim Solidier). Now, can someone PLEASE tell me the last time they saw an Iraqi with a Jherri Curl?? Because I sure don't recall that....but that's another point all together. In general, there are about 3-5 actors in Hollywood who play all the Arab, South Asian, Muslim, etc roles. There are so few, I can just name them: Omar Sharif (practically dead), Tony Shalhoub (Lebanese Christian), Jherri Curl dude I just mentioned. That's about all I can remember. I am sure there are a couple of others, but that's that. Knowing Hollywood as it is, I am not sure I can say in good conscience that I would love to see more real Muslim, "authentic" Arab or Afghan characters (only wanting what is best for my ummah) but I DEFINITELY would like more writers and screenwriters and directors. Because at the end of the day, actors are saying what has been written for them, or what the director told them to do.
Representation is everything, EVERYTHING. Right now, and really since the inception of the gold and silver screens, Muslims and Middle Easterners have been (like just about every other non Caucasion/European group) relegated as the Other. I mean this is Said 101 over here, so hopefully you all have read or are familiar with these concepts. Anyways, back to representation. Being able to control the image, that power is tremendous, and not given nearly as much due as it should. Muslims/Middle-Easterners have been simply appropriated into this frame of reference created long ago by Orientalists, and that frame of reference was simply adapted into popular film themes. Again, these are basics, which you all probably know about. Without being able to represent ourselves, we will never break through this exotic/erotic/violent/mystical force which surrounds us in the average Joe, middle America psyche. I mean, okay if you live in an urban area, or Dearborn, MI maybe you dont fall as easily into these thinking patterns. But what if you live in Middle America, USA. The most exotic people you have met are from the "bad" side of the Rio Grande, and you watch Faux news and feel yourself to be well-informed? What do you have out there which helps you to have a REAL understanding of Muslims, that other fifth of humanity? Can I really blame those people for being Islamaphobic, if that's all they have to go on? I don't really think I can, as much as I would like too.
WHICH, brings me back to the bone I have to pick with Bones....Okay, so for some reason, whenever they want to cast a Muslim/Mid-Easterner man, they go and call up some random dark-skinned person. BUT when they want to cast a female - it's inevitably a white woman with BROWN HAIR. I mean while it is overdone with the men, is UNDERdone with the women?? What the hey? Can I get an Afghan nose up in here? How about a strong chin? An olive-undertone? What about a blond/blue Syrian? GRRRR. Oh yeah, the ACCENTS PEOPLE - THE ACCENTS. WHY DID THE WOMAN LAST NIGHT HAVE AN EASTERN EUROPEAN ACCENT? FOR GOD'S SAKE: the character is supposed to be a professional, western educated and raised Afghan, and she sounded like they just stepped outside the KREMLIN! I mean, do all foreigners have the same accent?? NO. The answer is NO. So why are these actresses asked to play an Afghan woman (or Arab or Pakistani) and use these horrific accents??? Please, do SOME research. It's 2005. Maybe they could get away with this crud back in the days of "Sinbad" with the blackface makeup, or "White Man who Rescues the Arabs from Themselves/Lawrence of Arabia." But it's 2005. Sigh, but you know, maybe it just doesn't matter what year it is - not much has changed has it?
2. Maybe inconsequential fact: Afghans aren't suicide bombers - really. I mean for real, most Afghans in America aren't observant. Sad, but true. Most Afghans in Afghanistan aren't hardcore. That is why the Taliban were such an anomoly. For all the peace they secured in the beginning, people rose against them because they were doing something extremely foreign to Afghan society: shoving religion down their throats. Anyone who knows an Afghan (or is one) know that we are the most STUBBORN people and independant. And we will take our religion the way we deem fit, thank you very much. This, of course is good and bad, but that's how it is. It's really astonishing how foreign un-Islamic ideas are to Afghans. I don't want to pull out my wahabbi beating stick, but really, many of the practices brought into the Taliban, and the current so called resistance in Southern AFG are just foreign, of Gulf Arab origin. There I said it. I can smell the fire I will be roasted on now. But it's just the truth, and the truth sometimes hurts. Anyways, I hate when Muslims are just automatically portrayed as terrorists, but I esp. hate when Afghans are because it's NOT our forte. Most Afghans have just been trying to LIVE for the past 35 years. And we are usually so busy fighting ONE ANOTHER that we don't have time to mess with others. Besides, Islam manifested in Afghanistan with a strong traditional, mystical tradition. We be Sufis, not Salafis. :-) Hello, Rumi! Goodbye, Albani! We like our Islam with a good healthy dose of dhikr, zawiya, and an occasional cultural bida like "espun." We hurt each other in the name of stuff like family honor, sports, or both. Not saying it's right, but it's what it is. We don't hurt ourselves or others IN THE NAME of religion, because we all know that's it's just not about that.
Okay, well there are other things, but I can't get to them now. I am going to have to put a post up of my personal essential readings. Sorry for the barely coherant post. I need to structure time my time to post regularly and substantively. Peace.
Okay, I confess, I watch T.V. Not really watch T.V. in general, but three shows in particular: House, Lost, and ER. Try as I might (soooo many times in fact) to cut it out, these three programs are my twelfth step that I haven't reached yet. I was waiting for House to come on last night and caught the series premier (or maybe it was the second episode) of the show called "Bones."
Aside from the fact that it was just another hoblog of cliches and hackneyed story themes (I mean could it look any MORE like Crossing Jordan, stripped down to the bare bones of course? Pun, however sorry, intended.) Anyways, the theme was America's Favorite Fallback - "terrorism." Apparently this Afghan guy killed his brother with a car bomb (though they went through an extensive discourse pinning the victim as a suicide bomber). He planned to kill others, and the Rambo-esque FBI agent saved the day by killing him first.
Now, given that this show was on Fox, parent of "Faux News" I appreciated the main character's few attempts at assigning the actions of the bad guy "Fareed" as a result of "extremist" preacher's teachings. That is about it. Everything else was terrible, in so many ways, ways I can't fully address here. But I will give it a shot. And I will list, because I don't have the time for something more structured and perty right now.
1. The 4 "Afghan" characters were portrayed by 1 Caucausian brunette with black eyeliner, 2 obviously SOUTH Asian men, and a non-descript guy shown only in picture, more Arab than anything else. Does any of this matter to the producers - OBVIOUSLY not, because the sure did make that episode, didn't they. Does it matter to me? YES, because it only FUELS my belief that the general inability to classify between ethnic groups, or lumping a bunch of people with skin somewhere between peachy and ebony as Middle Eastern or Muslim, is symptomatic of a larger disregard, disrespect, or apathy toward engagement of the latter. Basically, all people not black or white are Brown and can be classified as anything within that range, since it's all just a shapeless blob of a people.
Note the show LOST. Naveen Andrews, a British Indian plays and Iraqi (Muslim Solidier). Now, can someone PLEASE tell me the last time they saw an Iraqi with a Jherri Curl?? Because I sure don't recall that....but that's another point all together. In general, there are about 3-5 actors in Hollywood who play all the Arab, South Asian, Muslim, etc roles. There are so few, I can just name them: Omar Sharif (practically dead), Tony Shalhoub (Lebanese Christian), Jherri Curl dude I just mentioned. That's about all I can remember. I am sure there are a couple of others, but that's that. Knowing Hollywood as it is, I am not sure I can say in good conscience that I would love to see more real Muslim, "authentic" Arab or Afghan characters (only wanting what is best for my ummah) but I DEFINITELY would like more writers and screenwriters and directors. Because at the end of the day, actors are saying what has been written for them, or what the director told them to do.
Representation is everything, EVERYTHING. Right now, and really since the inception of the gold and silver screens, Muslims and Middle Easterners have been (like just about every other non Caucasion/European group) relegated as the Other. I mean this is Said 101 over here, so hopefully you all have read or are familiar with these concepts. Anyways, back to representation. Being able to control the image, that power is tremendous, and not given nearly as much due as it should. Muslims/Middle-Easterners have been simply appropriated into this frame of reference created long ago by Orientalists, and that frame of reference was simply adapted into popular film themes. Again, these are basics, which you all probably know about. Without being able to represent ourselves, we will never break through this exotic/erotic/violent/mystical force which surrounds us in the average Joe, middle America psyche. I mean, okay if you live in an urban area, or Dearborn, MI maybe you dont fall as easily into these thinking patterns. But what if you live in Middle America, USA. The most exotic people you have met are from the "bad" side of the Rio Grande, and you watch Faux news and feel yourself to be well-informed? What do you have out there which helps you to have a REAL understanding of Muslims, that other fifth of humanity? Can I really blame those people for being Islamaphobic, if that's all they have to go on? I don't really think I can, as much as I would like too.
WHICH, brings me back to the bone I have to pick with Bones....Okay, so for some reason, whenever they want to cast a Muslim/Mid-Easterner man, they go and call up some random dark-skinned person. BUT when they want to cast a female - it's inevitably a white woman with BROWN HAIR. I mean while it is overdone with the men, is UNDERdone with the women?? What the hey? Can I get an Afghan nose up in here? How about a strong chin? An olive-undertone? What about a blond/blue Syrian? GRRRR. Oh yeah, the ACCENTS PEOPLE - THE ACCENTS. WHY DID THE WOMAN LAST NIGHT HAVE AN EASTERN EUROPEAN ACCENT? FOR GOD'S SAKE: the character is supposed to be a professional, western educated and raised Afghan, and she sounded like they just stepped outside the KREMLIN! I mean, do all foreigners have the same accent?? NO. The answer is NO. So why are these actresses asked to play an Afghan woman (or Arab or Pakistani) and use these horrific accents??? Please, do SOME research. It's 2005. Maybe they could get away with this crud back in the days of "Sinbad" with the blackface makeup, or "White Man who Rescues the Arabs from Themselves/Lawrence of Arabia." But it's 2005. Sigh, but you know, maybe it just doesn't matter what year it is - not much has changed has it?
2. Maybe inconsequential fact: Afghans aren't suicide bombers - really. I mean for real, most Afghans in America aren't observant. Sad, but true. Most Afghans in Afghanistan aren't hardcore. That is why the Taliban were such an anomoly. For all the peace they secured in the beginning, people rose against them because they were doing something extremely foreign to Afghan society: shoving religion down their throats. Anyone who knows an Afghan (or is one) know that we are the most STUBBORN people and independant. And we will take our religion the way we deem fit, thank you very much. This, of course is good and bad, but that's how it is. It's really astonishing how foreign un-Islamic ideas are to Afghans. I don't want to pull out my wahabbi beating stick, but really, many of the practices brought into the Taliban, and the current so called resistance in Southern AFG are just foreign, of Gulf Arab origin. There I said it. I can smell the fire I will be roasted on now. But it's just the truth, and the truth sometimes hurts. Anyways, I hate when Muslims are just automatically portrayed as terrorists, but I esp. hate when Afghans are because it's NOT our forte. Most Afghans have just been trying to LIVE for the past 35 years. And we are usually so busy fighting ONE ANOTHER that we don't have time to mess with others. Besides, Islam manifested in Afghanistan with a strong traditional, mystical tradition. We be Sufis, not Salafis. :-) Hello, Rumi! Goodbye, Albani! We like our Islam with a good healthy dose of dhikr, zawiya, and an occasional cultural bida like "espun." We hurt each other in the name of stuff like family honor, sports, or both. Not saying it's right, but it's what it is. We don't hurt ourselves or others IN THE NAME of religion, because we all know that's it's just not about that.
Okay, well there are other things, but I can't get to them now. I am going to have to put a post up of my personal essential readings. Sorry for the barely coherant post. I need to structure time my time to post regularly and substantively. Peace.
posted by Zohra at 1:10 PM
1 comments
