Muslim characters on TV
A USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative study found Muslim characters are underrepresented and often depicted without complexity across Western shows.
This post originally appeared on Red, White and Brown’s newsletter on Substack (Issue #58 sent on March 25, 2023).
Two of my favorite TV shows over the last year have been the latest season of “Ramy” (Hulu) and the debut season of “Mo” (Netflix). Both fictional series are inspired by real-life experiences from two creators who, like many of us South Asian Americans, straddle two cultures and multi-generations.
“Ramy,” created by Ramy Youssef, is about an Egyptian American millennial trying to figure himself out in New Jersey. “Mo,” created by Mohammed Amer and Youssef, is about a Palestinian American family in Texas. Both depict aspects of the Muslim American experience that are raw, nuanced and relatable to any immigrant family — everything from dating to food to careers to immigration paperwork to family dynamics.
But while Youssef and Amer are the leading creators and stars on their streaming shows that depict Muslim American lives with complexity, a 2022 report found that is usually not the case elsewhere on screen.
The USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative study looked at 200 popular episodic scripted series from the U.S., the U.K., Australia and New Zealand. It found:
- Muslims are underrepresented on TV shows: They are about 25% of the world’s population but only reflected in about 1.1% of the characters across the popular series analyzed.
- The storylines linking Muslims with violence are all too common: About 39% of Muslim characters were targets of violence, almost 31% were perpetrators of violence and around 12% died in a series by violent means.
- Half of Muslim characters are depicted as Middle Eastern or North African — even though Muslims are the most racially and ethnically diverse religious group in the world.
The full USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative report, which was created with support from Pillars Fund (one of our Twitter Spaces guests), Riz Ahmed’s Left Handed Films and Ford Foundation, is online. Pillars Fund has created an online database of Muslim filmmakers and storytellers to promote more representation.
Muslims, along with Hindus, are the leading religions across Asia. After Indonesia, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh are home to the largest Muslim populations by country in the world. So the representation is all the more relevant to South Asian American storytelling, as well.
Wishing a happy Ramadan to all those who celebrate.
Other interesting things this past week:
- “Nikki Haley walks fine line on race, gender in appeal to GOP base” (The Washington Post)
- “How a fake Hindu nation scammed its way across America” (Intelligencer/New York Magazine)
- “One of nation’s first Asian American bookstores is closing after 41 years” (Berkeleyside)
- “Leader of India’s opposition to Modi is expelled from parliament” (The New York Times)
- “Nepal wants a sacred necklace returned. But a major museum still keeps it on display.” (ProPublica)
- “What joining a vegan brunch club (without being vegan) taught me about food, fortitude and friendship” (Well+Good)
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