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No
basis for decrying Muslim portrayal in '24'
No
matter the year, no matter the subject,
and no matter the place there are always
groups that are angry over certain things
and are ready to protest and get their views
out there.
Now,
I have absolutely no problem with people
being able to express their views; in fact,
I love to hear opposing viewpoints, but
sometimes expressing opinions gets to a
point where the person or group is just
making a complete fool out of itself. Such
is the case with the stance that the Council
on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has
taken with FOX's award-winning show "24."
The
show, which finds Kiefer Sutherland battling
terrorists is under fire from CAIR for its
depiction of Muslims in the current season.
The major plot of season four is not yet
known, but viewers of the show (including
myself) have already witnessed an American-Islamic
family by the name of Araz conspiring to
do something sinister to the United States,
including kidnapping the Secretary of Defense
and holding him hostage at gunpoint while
a video camera rolls. At the crux of CAIR's
argument is the depiction of Muslims as
terrorists in popular television shows and
entertainment, but my question is, what
is wrong with that? Why are Muslims off-limits
to being depicted as terrorists when the
vast majority of terrorists in the world
are, in fact, followers of some kind of
Islam?
According
to CAIR's Web site, the group "is calling
on Muslims nationwide to contact local Fox
TV stations to ask that they air the CAIR
‘I am an American Muslim public service
announcement (PSA)."
In
its response, FOX "encouraged local
affiliates nationwide to place the PSA as
close as possible to the airing of the popular
‘24' drama series." I can understand
FOX buckling under the pressure of such
a letter and airing the PSA (after all,
the company is in the business of making
money and does not want to estrange itself
from any fans), but why was it even necessary
in the first place for CAIR to make such
a fuss? I cannot even begin to tell you
how many things I have either read, heard
on the radio, or seen on television, that
insist the average Muslim is not a terrorist,
and I think most Americans already accept
this and know that Muslim terrorists only
represent a small portion of Muslims worldwide.
But why does it need to be continually shoved
down peoples' throats by special interest
groups with chips on their shoulders?
Previous
seasons of "24" contained villains
ranging from a disgruntled MI6 agent to
an Eastern European terrorist played by
Kiefer Sutherland, but why, when the topic
suddenly involves Muslims, should FOX feel
as if it is walking on eggshells? Is it
inconceivable that a Muslim would be a terrorist
or, gasp, plot against America in a sleeper
cell? If memory serves me correctly, exactly
that scenario happened on Sept. 11, 2001.
I
never understand groups such as CAIR, which
fight for a certain collection of people,
yet fail to see the bigger picture and immediately
become defensive when Muslims are seen in
a critical light. How ironic it is that
the average person here in America is capable
of seeing the distinction between a peaceful
American-Muslim and a terrorist, when CAIR,
a group which fights for Muslim rights,
cannot.
Gerry
Wachovsky is a senior broadcast journalism
major at CSULB and the Diversions editor
of the Online 49er.
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