“We can meet our destiny — to build a land here that will be for all mankind a shining city on a hill.” ~ Ronald Reagan
Growing up in the ’70s and ’80s, I watched a lot of TV. In addition to shows such as “Gilligan’s Island,” “Hogan’s Heroes,” “Get Smart” and “The Dukes of Hazzard,” I loved programs that — unknown to my young mind — pushed societal understandings of race, gender and family. These sitcoms included “My Three Sons,” “Family Affair” and “The Courtship of Eddie’s Father” (all featuring single dads), “The Partridge Family” and “Alice” (both featuring single moms), “The Brady Bunch” (a “blended” family), “All in the Family” (which tackled issues such as feminism), “Chico and the Man” (which included an Hispanic character) and all-black shows such as “The Jeffersons” and “What’s Happening?” And who could forget a young and adorable Gary Coleman in “Diff’rent Strokes” (black inner-city kids adopted by a wealthy white single dad)?
In the ’80s, comedian Bill Cosby launched “The Cosby Show,” a successful and historically significant prime-time program that humorously portrayed the lives of members of a modern American family — a family that happened to be black. And unlike blue-collar characters like Isaac on “The Love Boat” or the inner-city ethnic minority students of “Welcome Back, Kotter” (not to mention a junk dealer in “Sanford & Son”), the Cosbys were an upper-class family where the father was an accomplished physician, the mother a successful attorney and the children attended prestigious schools. If Martin Luther King Jr. dreamed of a time when all Americans regarded each other as full-fledged Americans — regardless of race and ethnicity — every week “The Cosby Show” helped us envision that reality by portraying an endearing family that defied long-held stereotypes and helped Americans realize that African Americans are simply like everyone else.
And so it was no surprise that, in the wake of growing anti-Muslim sentiment in the post-9/11 era, many have called for positive examples of the nation’s over 6 million American Muslims in popular media.
A year ago, for example, former news anchor Katie Couric said:
I also think … the bigotry expressed against Muslims in this country has been one of the most disturbing stories to surface this year. Of course, a lot of noise was made about the Islamic Center mosque down near the World Trade Center, but I think there wasn’t enough sort of careful analysis and evaluation of where this bigotry toward 1.5 billion Muslims worldwide, and how this seething hatred many people feel for all Muslims, which I think is so misdirected, and so wrong — and so disappointing. … Maybe we need a Muslim version of “The Cosby Show.” I know that sounds crazy, but “The Cosby Show” did so much to change attitudes about African Americans in this country, and I think sometimes people are afraid of what they don’t understand.
Well, the producers at TLC may have been listening. A new eight-part reality show premiered on TLC last month called “All-American Muslim.” Filmed in the Detroit suburb of Dearborn, a city known for its large Arab and Muslim populations, the new show introduces viewers to the lives of five very different American Muslim families. The show has real-life characters, including two very different sisters, a high school football coach and newlyweds. The families all share the same faith, but the show humorously demonstrates that the nation’s 6-8 million Muslims lead very distinct lives that oftentimes challenge the many commonly held stereotypes about Islam and American Muslims. In addition to the challenges surrounding life in modern America, the show tackles issues such as the diverse understandings of faith, post-9/11 life for American Muslims and gender roles in Islam.
Characters include Suehaila, who wears a traditional Islamic headscarf and observes her daily prayers (and whom I met on her visit to Washington, D.C.) and Shadia, her outspoken sister, who is decorated with piercings and tattoos and recently married her Irish Catholic sweetheart Jeff; Nader and Nawal, newlyweds expecting their first baby; Fouad, the head coach of the Fordson High School football team; Mike, a deputy chief sheriff, and his wife Angela, a consultant to a major auto manufacturer; Nina, a strong, independent entrepreneur; and Samira and her husband of seven years, Ali, who, like millions, struggle with fertility issues.
Week after week, Americans can take a peek into the everyday lives of their Muslim neighbors — and in doing so, realize that American Muslims are just like everyone else. American Muslims are busy struggling to raise their families, go to work, pay the bills and achieve the American Dream. American Muslims are no different from their friends and neighbors, and there’s no doubt the diverse everyday heroes televised in “All-American Muslim” only confirm this reality. Beyond challenging the stereotypes swirling around American Muslims, the show will no doubt have a positive effect on perceptions of the millions of American Arabs, the majority of whom are in fact Christians.
Sadly, it’s not surprising that the show has drawn harsh criticism from the usual haters and bigots. Claiming the program does not portray the stereotypical face of violent extremism and terrorism surrounding Muslims and Islam, they’ve launched a shameful effort to pressure advertisers to withdraw critical support. But the fact is, this reality show portrays the reality that Arab and Muslim Americans are the same as everyone else.
Ronald Reagan often referred to our nation as a “shining city on a hill.” As a beacon of freedom, our shores have attracted countless millions of every stripe yearning to be free. Upon observing the variety of ethnic names of those entering Ellis Island at the turn of the last century, a rabbi remarked that all — regardless of racial or ethnic origin — were American names. As we begin the twenty-first century, TLC’s new show “All American Muslim” eloquently demonstrates that all faiths are indeed American faiths.
Suhail A. Khan serves on the board of directors of the American Conservative Union and as chairman of the Conservative Inclusion Coalition, an organization dedicated to the political involvement of Americans of all ethnic, racial and faith backgrounds.