Jack Shaheen's 5 Tips for Combatting Arab Stereotypes in the Media
BY: Julia Jahanpour/Contributing Writer
Jack Shaheen, writer and lecturer on social stereotypes, spoke at the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs (WRMEA) conference this past Friday, sharing his observations of how Arabs are portrayed in American society and film.
He began his speech by quoting the Greek philosopher Plato: “Those who tell the stories rule society”.
The Plato quote prefaced the points made in his speech by outlining the idea that stereotypes and judgments are created by the portrayal of Arabs through movies and stories. Shaheen stated that myths play a significant role in the perception of groups of people, and that myths have surrounded the Arab stereotype for decades. He proceeded to offer five suggestions to fight those myths in our society.
“For nearly half a century,” Shaheen begins, “I have tracked Hollywood’s Arabs and Muslims. Almost always I’ve found they appear as villains. They’re godless, evil, enemy others, renewed and repeated over and over again. These images are hard-wired into our psyches.”
Jack shaheen talks media at @WRMEA conference in #WashingtonDC #news #work #dc #palestine #israel #media pic.twitter.com/2nva1i0xck
— Reema Abuhamdieh (@ReemaAH_RT) March 24, 2017
Shaheen went on to say that he believes these prejudices have been escalating in American film and television.
Ten weeks after the 9/11 attacks in New York, a television series aired on the Fox Network called 24. Until this show, American Arabs were nearly invisible in media. Not having a presence in entertainment and media isn’t favorable, but it’s worse to have a negative one. The show portrayed Arab Americans and Muslim as “homegrown terrorists”, as Shaheen said. It made them out to be evil citizens, out to destroy their own homes.
Many Arab Americans died during the 9/11 attacks, along with others. They were victims just as much as the rest of the Americans who were killed. With 24, Arab Americans were suddenly shown to be the true villains lurking in American society – the enemy. The Fox show paved the way for other television series to safely portray Arab Americans and Muslims as one-dimensional villains.
All of a sudden, mosques were not being shown as holy places for worship. Instead, they were places to breed terrorism. Americans had started to remove the religion from American Muslims, and replace it with a need for violence.
Shaheen’s first suggestion for ridding America of the stereotypes and prejudices it has come to accept is for the young Arab and Muslim American filmmakers, producers, directors, and influential people to form a coalition. The author says they need to come together to empower the Arab American community. If a new show or movie is to be produced that portrays stereotypes, they could reach out to the producers and writers.
Second, Shaheen suggested reaching out to scholars who study humanizing and vilifying Arab Americans, and have them work with the media to get a factual presence known. They are students, faculty members, researchers, etc. They need to give their studies and findings to those who can portray a relatable, accurate image of Arab Americans.
His third suggestion was headed by the quote “presence prorogates power.” He says that there is not enough presence overall in America, and that the media needs to create more roles for Arab Americans to fill. Also, the presence of an Arab American on the set of films and television shows is important, as they could give real-time advice on creating content that doesn’t offend the community.
The fourth proposal was to showcase filmmakers, directors, writers, and producers at Arab film festivals. It would give them a sense of accomplishment, and honor them for their work.
Lastly, Shaheen believes that major Arab American organizations should acknowledge image-makers who enhance the Arab American image, and those who vilify them, much like what Arab America does with its Hummus Haters series. He believes it is essential for Arab Americans to know who the good producers are and who are those that are damaging the community’s image.
Through advocacy with the media, Shaheen is certain that a new image for Arab American and Muslim communities can be created.
Watch the full WRMEA conference here:
