By David Ignatius

AfghanistanIt's easy to get depressed reading the news out of Afghanistan. The insurgents are getting stronger, the United States is sending another 20,000 troops there—and yet even Defense Secretary Bob Gates admits that American soldiers aren't a long-term solution. So what to do?

In sorting out these policy dilemmas, it helps to talk to Afghans such as Saad and Jahid Mohseni, who are struggling with these problems every day. The two entrepreneurial brothers are running a media business in the war zone of Kabul and, far from giving up, they keep thinking of innovative ways to adapt and survive.

Since the tragic events of 9/11, there has been an upsurge in ethnic comedy by Arabs/Muslims in America. More and more Arab/Muslim individuals and groups such as "Allah Made Me Funny," the "Sultans of Satire" and "Axis of Evil" are appearing on stage with comic routines and they are attracting larger and larger non-Muslim audiences. Paradoxically, a tragedy that triggered widespread Islamophobia in American society seems also to have opened the field for Arab/Muslim comedy.

This panel discussion and lecture series, sponsored by The Middle East Center at the University of Pennsylvania, will explore the landscape of American Middle Eastern ethnic comedy and its intricate relationship with Islamophobia.

Panel Members: Mucahit Bilici (Professor of Sociology at John Jay College-CUNY), Jordan Elgrably (Founder of Levantine Cultural Center, and the Sultans of Satire: Middle East Comic Relief) and Rahim Armat (of Kodoom.com, Cultural Events Search Engine).

Contact Rahim Armat: 302.521.6606
or Jordan Elgrably: 310.402.8866




[Philadelphia, December 26, 2008]—The Sultans of Satire show features some of the best stand-up comedians today who happen to be of Arab, Iranian, Turkish, Greek, Armenian and Middle Eastern Jewish heritage. In “West Meets East: The Inauguration Tour,” Sultans regulars Mike Batayeh, Noel Elgrably and Elham Jazab, plus special surprise guests, will perform live in Philadelphia on January 16, 2009 and in Washington DC on January 18, when they’ll offer their own brand of outrageous comedy, along with satirical insights on the inauguration of Barack Hussein Obama.

Sultans of Satire Inauguration Tour

The Sultans of Satire show features some of the best stand-up comedians today who happen to be of Arab, Iranian, Turkish, Greek, Armenian and Middle Eastern Jewish heritage. In “West Meets East: The Inauguration Tour,” Sultans regulars Mike Batayeh, Noel Elgrably and Elham Jazab, plus special surprise guests, will perform live in Philadelphia on January 16, 2009 and in Washington DC on January 18, when they’ll offer their own brand of outrageous comedy, along with satirical insights on the inauguration of Barack Hussein Obama.

Vivien Sansour, puppeteer-clown-actor-organizer of the Olive Tree Circus, is back from the olive harvest tour of West Bank towns including Bethlehem, Hebron and surrounding villages. She will be removing her red nose and sharing with a large audience the slide show, video and personal experiences of the fourteen Arab, Jewish and non-Middle Eastern Americans who traveled together, creating puppets and performing for the children of the West Bank in the service of peace.

Cosponsored by the Iman Cultural Center and the American Friends Service Committee, Middle East Peace Education Program.

Free to the public, RSVPs strongly advised: 310.657.5511.

Amazigh Film FestivalThe second annual Amazigh Film Festival, under the stewardship of director Helene Hagan, will present art, music and films of the Amazigh or Berber cultures of North Africa. Last year's event was highly successful and the second edition promises to be even more intriguing. Here's the schedule:

4:00-4:30 pm: Slideshow presentation, "Kabylia, the land, the people, the Arts" (10 min) - Welcome Address by Helene Hagan and presentation by Rachid Bouksim, Director of the Issni N'Ourgh Film Festival of Agadir, Morocco, on the recent development of the Amazigh Cinematography in Morocco.

4:30-6:30 pm: Documentaries "Pottery from the Rif" (27 min, 2003, Morocco, Dounia Productions, Ltd.) and "On Native Lands" (86 min, Canada/Morocco, 2007, Orbi xii).

6:30-7:30 pm: Art Exhibit and Reception with art by Moroccan artists Hassan Moumene (Atlas) and Abdallah Aourik (Souss). Traditional mint tea and tidbits catered by CHAMEAU, Inc. of Beverly Hills.

The artwork for the New LATC's "Jihad Jones" productionWhether or not Arabs and Arab Americans are represented in their genuine diversity in Hollywood films and television remains an open question—one which author Jack Shaheen, to be sure, has addressed in his book (and eponymous documentary) Reel Bad Arabs. As well, a number of recent forums in Los Angeles have looked at just how Arabs/Muslims are depicted in film/TV. [Levanine Cultural Center, SAG and MPAC will present a roundtable on the topic in January 2009, “Broadening the Scope, Roles for Arab/Muslim Actors in Film/TV”; we invite you to stay tuned or sign up to receive our email blasts.]

The 4th Annual God Loves Beauty Festival, Nov. 12-20, 2008

NiloofarA new feature film directed by Sabine El Gemayel, "Niloofar" will be screened in the upcoming AFI Fest in Los Angeles on November 1 and 3. This Franco-Iranian production includes Roya Nownahali, Shahab Hosseini, Hengameh Ghaziani, Mobina Ayenedar, Amir Aghai, Sadegh Safai, and Fatemeh Motamed Aria.

Nasreen is a twelve-year-old girl whose dream is to read and write in a village where education is only for boys. While assisting her mother during a delivery Nasreen meets a wise woman who allows her to secretly study. Nasreen's father arranges her marriage to an older man once she becomes a woman. Horrified by this notion, Nasreen does everything in her power to postpone her first periods. When destiny catches up with her she hides her womanhood from her community to pursue her dream. Until one day, the truth is revealed.