“The Surprising Lessons of the ‘Muslim Hipsters’ Backlash”
“The mixed reactions within the Muslim-American community excited me because it proved the idea that Muslims are not a monolith. But the criticisms made me realize I’d been naïve to think that the video could be a personal celebration. Inevitably, people saw it as a representation of our community. Muslim Americans are in many cases wounded, marginalized, reactive, and defensive, in large part because we’re underrepresented and misrepresented in the media. The two and a half minute clip stirred up feelings born of years, if not generations, of exclusion and marginalization.”
This is absolutely such a great way to respond to criticism, without anger or defensiveness but with confidence and communication. Reading it, I don’t feel like I have to be on anyone’s “side”, just that I should be aware of some problems with what she did — just like she is — but also be aware of the very positive things about her video and what it means for her personally. It leaves it complicated.
