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Dismantling the "Axis of Evil": Reforming Middle Eastern Representations in Hollywood

posted October 20, 2009 - 2:03pm by Editor
Event Details
Date/Time: 
Nov 10 2009 7:00pm - 9:30pm
Price: 
Free to the public, donations requested.
Advance reservations strongly advised as seating is limited: 310.657.5511.
Where: 
Mark Taper Auditorium
Los Angeles Central Public Library
Fifth and Flower Streets
Downtown Los Angeles CA 90071
Underground parking $8 per car.
directions from the westside: take the 10 Freeway East
to the 110 Freeway North, exit 6th St.,
continue heading East to Olive, turn Left, turn Left again on Flower
and enter parking garage on your left.

Dismantling the Axis of Evil (new)Dismantling the Axis of Evil (new)The Iranian American Bar Association and Levantine Cultural Center present "Dismantling the Axis of Evil: Reforming Middle Eastern Representations in Hollywood & Seeking Sounder Public Policy after 9/11 in the Age of Obama."


This program includes a brief review of roles in film and television, followed by a spirited dicussion, and questions from the audience. Panelists include Ahmed Ahmed, comedian and actor, Reza Aslan, author of No God, but god and How to Win a Cosmic War; John Tehranian, attorney and author of Whitewashed: America's Invisible Middle Eastern Minority; Maz Jobrani, actor and comedian ("Axis of Evil Comedy Tour"; "The Interpreter"); and Shiva Rose, actress ("David & Layla," "CSI Miami"), activist and playwright.

In an event held at the beginning of this year entitled Arabs and Muslims in Hollywood, Levantine Cultural Center along with the Muslim Public Affairs Council and the Screen Actors Guild, brought together a star-studded panel of actors and directors to examine the portrait of Middle Easterners in Hollywood and the themes of terrorism and religious extremism that often follow. Participants included casting director April Webster ("Lost," "Criminal Minds," "24"), Oscar-nominee and Emmy-winner Shohreh Aghdashloo, Omar Metwally ("Munich"), Raya Meddine ("Bosta," "The Young and the Restless") and Maz Jobrani ("The Interpreter", "Homebody Kabul")

This is a follow-up discussion and a "how to guide" on eliminating negative stereotypes of Middle Easterners in the media that undermine the social and political voice of these communities in America. Specifically, the panel will feature a distinguished group of experts from Hollywood academia and the bar to discuss the link between media representations of the Middle Eastern community and the ensuing public policy decisions of the last decade, including the war on terrorism. The panel will also assess concrete reforms to bring about a more balanced depiction of the Middle Eastern community in entertainment and media.

Co-sponsored by

Arab American Lawyers Association (AALA) of Southern California, PAAIA Next Generation, BoomGen Studios & Shabeh Jomeh, Los Angeles, with support from the Los Angeles Central Public Library, Social Sciences.


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