Abstract

The objectives of this article are two-fold: to provide a review of the major figures and trends in Muslim American comedy and discuss certain techniques and approaches that have been used by stand-up comedians to counter predominant and discriminatory perceptions of the “Other”. To reiterate film critic Jack Shaheen’s argument in Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People, the Western public is fed constructions of Islam as a “problem”; the terms “Arab” and “Muslim” are interchangeably used; Muslim men are depicted as “terrorists”; and Muslim women are depicted as “veiled and oppressed”. Much has been written on the generation and effect of stereotypes promoted by popular culture. However, stereotyped groups also use popular culture to speak for themselves. Popular culture also functions to resist, counter, push back against, and subvert stereotypes. In other words, the “Other” can speak for him or herself through popular culture as a means of contesting stereotypes that define Muslims and Arabs in terms of cultural and religious understandings that narrowly categorize individuals through attributes such as religiosity and femininity. This potential is being realized by second-generation Muslims familiar with the platforms created and provided by other marginalized groups in Anglo-American popular culture, and their work has come into its own especially in the aftermath of 9/11, a time that saw both the intensification of stereotypes and heightening of Muslim American consciousness. I concentrate on these specific stand-up comedians in the US and the UK, despite the fact that there are others in the diaspora who discuss Islamophobia, because these American and British comedians address all of the three most common stereotypes of Muslims: “Arab = Muslim”, the “terrorist”, and the “veiled and oppressed woman”.

Highlights

  • Accepted: 10 September 2021Stand-up comedy is a performance in which individual comedians use a narrative consisting of fictional and semi-autobiographical jokes and stories to speak to audiences about various issues

  • We provide a brief overview of Muslim American stand-up comedy, which technically began with the solo act of Preacher Moss, an African American convert to Islam, called Allah Made Me Funny (Allah Made Me Funny 2003), created two years after 9/11, in 2003

  • The worldwide popularity of Anglo-American Muslim standup comedy aimed at addressing stereotypes is partly attributable to its digital landscape, to mainstream media, and to the fact that comedians own their own websites and do their own promoting on networking sites such as MySpace, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram

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Summary

Introduction

Stand-up comedy is a performance in which individual comedians use a narrative consisting of fictional and semi-autobiographical jokes and stories to speak to audiences about various issues. Richard Pryor (1940–2005), whom I discuss in more depth later in this article, is especially known for turning the tables on the original form of minstrel stand-up by applying the humor of incongruity (addressed below) to stereotypes of African Americans His focus on race issues in the US in the 1970s and 1980s set the tone for a common trend among stand-up comedians from other marginalized communities. I begin with a review of the major figures and trends in Muslim American comedy since its beginnings in 2003 This is followed by a discussion of certain techniques and approaches that have been used by stand-up comedians to counter predominant and discriminatory perceptions of “Others”. Because they are women, Hami and Mirza include the “veiled and oppressed woman” stereotype

Overview of Muslim American Comedy
The Backgrounds of Muslim American Comedians
Critical Reception
Comedic Techniques
Incongruity
Performativity
Everydayness
10. Conclusions
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