Shows like ‘Homeland’ and ’24’, or movies like ‘Zero Dark Thirty’ might make us think “this must be how it really goes down” – but how do you separate truth from fiction in media?
Eager to hold media accountable and change negative media depictions of Muslims, a CAIR-Chicago volunteer wrote to Newsweek to express her disappointment with their ‘Muslim rage’ issue. Her letter was published.
Eager to hold media accountable and change negative media depictions of Muslims, a CAIR-Chicago volunteer wrote to Newsweek to express her disappointment with their ‘Muslim rage’ issue. Her letter was published.
What’s wrong with the way Muslims are portrayed in the media? Where do biases and stereotypes stem from? What does popular culture have to say about Muslim women? CAIR-Chicago communications coordinators Aymen Abdel Halim and Leena Saleh answered these questions and more in a presentation on March 21st at Saint Xavier University.
Communications Intern Jenn Schanz weighs the pros and cons of the image being portrayed by the a new Arab video game character.
“If you enter any Islamic mosque or center and talk to Muslims there, almost every single one has been a victim of discrimination or harassment of some kind,” Sharif said.
A Gallup Poll released last week showed that 53 percent of Americans view Islam negatively and more than four out of 10 admit to being at least a little prejudiced against Muslims.
“The core of the problem is that Muslims are seen as a Monolith by the media and so when one Muslim commits and act of terror or error, all Muslims are brought to bear for that Act. And that kinda of mentality does not exist for other communities because of the nuanced understanding of other communities,” said Ahmed Rehab.
“I would love the opportunity to talk about my faith proactively when there isn’t something terrible happening. And everyday, good things are going on, but the one day that something bad happens, that’s when people become interested in our faith and that is troublesome,” said Ahmed Rehab, CAIR-Chicago Executive Director.
“I would love the opportunity to talk about my faith proactively when there isn’t something terrible happening. And everyday, good things are going on, but the one day that something bad happens, that’s when people become interested in our faith and that is troublesome,” said Ahmed Rehab, CAIR-Chicago Executive Director.
Sharif engaged the class in a discussion on misperceptions of Islam and how extreme images of Muslims in pop culture and mainstream media often feed into ignorance and intolerance.
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