Witch Willows WanderingsLittle Mosque on the Prairie; Prejudice Abounds
January 22nd 2007 20:46
After writing a blog about the Muslim groups in the US “turning out” against the Fox hit show 24, I decided to take a look around to see if there could possibly be any other show that may offend them but don’t seem to care about one way or another. The reason I did this was because it is clear that the Muslim community, in general, does not like Fox to begin with and after complaining about 24 yet again, I began to think it was a little odd. I started to wonder if it were only specific groups they were hammering and more or less US groups and companies only. I wondered why you don’t hear CAIR making demands at Qantas air or the CBC in Canada. Well, the following may give you some of the answer.
Upon searching for answers, I found a new series just released at the beginning of January. Little Mosque on the Prairie is a comedic show about Muslims on the CBC in Canada. All humor is post 9/11 humor yet the Muslim groups such as the Council on Islamic Relations do not have a problem with it. They see the use of humor as a good thing to try to get people over the 9/11 hump, no matter what the humor entails. So why is this any different that other shows that are classified as drama and show Muslims saying and doing “suspicious” things? So, let me see if I understand this; since Muslim groups do not like the show 24 because of the way it portrays Muslims as terrorists, they would actually be okay with it if there were only a little comedy added?
Some of the scenes on Little Mosque on the Prairie include a Muslim man in line at the airport on his cell phone, when a woman over hears his conversation and believes he is planning on taking over the plane and blow it up. She leaves the scene and a security guard enters, quickly detaining the man while saying something about the Muslim man not going to paradise today. Recently MSNBC has spoken with a director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and he has given the show great reviews. He was asked if he would like to see the show or a similar show aired in the US and he stated that yes, he believes it would help American-Islamic relations by using comedy even though the scenes may still be controversial. That is, until there actually is a show in the US like this one…then all hell will break loose. Then again, if it is hosted by a network that the Muslims agree with, then it could actually happen…so the show producers need to steer clear of Fox and possibly ABC.
During the premiere in Toronto, they actually threw in a cliché or 2 and paraded camels through the downtown area, coupled with free chicken shawarmas. The comedic show not only pokes fun at Muslims as terrorists, but also have a white guy dubbed the “resident redneck”. I have only seen clips of the show since I do not live in Canada and it does not air in the US yet, but apparently they try to use mild humor and actually poke fun at Muslim misconceptions and rural Canadians as well. Even though the clips I saw were funny in a Seinfeld sort of way, I am still left wondering why the Muslim groups are okay with one show and not the other? Are they okay with “little mosque on the prairie” because it is Canadian show AND the show’s creator is Zarqa Nawaz? Would the reaction be any different if it were the exact same show, but it was the US that put it out and the creator was named Bob Smith?
Here is my case in point: last year in Columbus, OH there was a Mitsubishi car lot that was going to run an advertisement where they were going to declare a “jihad on the automotive market”. They were going to have a radio commercial that stated the car could seat “a dozen jihadist comfortably” and they were also going to give away free rubber swords to kids. But guess what happened. The local Muslim groups thought it was funny and got on board with the promotion? Wrong! Guess again. The correct answer is the local chapter of CAIR was up in arms over the entire idea. They thought the entire thought of the campaign would basically make fun of Islam and all Muslims and thought it was not a good idea. So they decided to push the company to not use the ad, which Mitsubishi complied and even issued an apology. Did I just pull this story out of thin air from the local paper? Was it Fox news that told me of this juicy little ironic tidbit of news? Nope. It was Tucker Carlson on MSNBC, so I guess another news station bites the dust with the Muslims. I suppose all the will have left is Al-Jazeera, if they want supposed unbiased news that doesn’t represent them in a bad light….oh wait….too late for that one too.
So in conclusion, what have we learned from this? Just when you thought I was complaining about Muslims boycotting shows and so forth, you found out the REAL truth. The real truth being that if any other country besides the US put out a show, especially one mocking Muslims, then it’s perfectly fine. But the minute anyone in the US tries this it’s a big fat no-no. Do you know the funny thing? The TV show in Canada is a series, so it’s on weekly. The commercial that was poking fun at Islam was to be a RADIO commercial, which may be played often, but normally only last for around 30-60 seconds per play. PLUS it was an advertising campaign, so it would have only been for a certain amount of time…not nearly as long as a TV show. I find it funny that I have been accused of showing prejudice against Muslims because of my rant about them protesting 24, yet nobody wants to point out how the Muslim community in the US is showing prejudice to a majority of companies here, and some companies more than others. Do as I say not as I do, right? Well, maybe as Americans we should unite and research what companies Muslims have “stock” in and do a little boycotting ourselves. You’d be amazed to see what companies they have their hands in.
Blessed Be
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Comment by Francis
Passionate Apathy
As I've already mentioned I think the Islamic community is off the mark protesting fictional shows and adverts and such, but there is a difference between these shows beyond national origin.
There are Islamic terrorist characters on 24, but the Muslims in Little Mosque are just people, people trying to make their lives and not trying to destroy anyone else's. There is humor in the scene where someone hears one side of a cell-phone call and assumes the worst, as well as the general culture clashes.
Perhaps people will tune in for the humor, and come to see Muslims as just people, instead of the dreaded Them. If it can help ease the tensions then I certainly hope it gets shown here in the U.S.
Comment by Miss Faith
I think it would be interesting to see if a show like that were to be aired in the US, just to see what CAIR's reaction to it would be this time. We are talking about CAIR here...so it doesn't really surprise me much.
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