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AMERICAN MUSLIMS is a six-part documentary series exploring the untold history of Muslims in the United States.
NOMINEE, BEST VIDEO DOCUMENTARY - Webby Award | PBS Digital Channels - 3M views | "Highly watchable" - Hyperallergic Magazine
Race, Religion, and Nationality • Religious Pluralism • Religious Freedom • Slavery and Freedom • Civil War • Ethnicity, Race, and Migration • Great Migration • Civil Rights • Gender • Colonialism
Date of Completion: 2024 | Run Time: 24 minutes | Language: English | Captions: Yes | Includes: Transcript & Discussion Guide | Executive Producers: Maytha Alhassen & Zaheer Ali | Executive Producer & Project Lead: Graham Judd | Senior Producer & Lead Writer: Mafaz Al-Suwaidan | Editor & Writer: Beyza Boyacioglu | Co-Producer & Lead Researcher: Zehra Rehman
Did you know that Thomas Jefferson owned a Qur’an and that George Washington enslaved Muslim individuals? In 1805, a Muslim diplomat even broke his Ramadan fast at the White House. Author and journalist Aymann Ismail, a Slate Magazine staff writer, explores these historical connections from the Library of Congress to Jefferson’s Monticello and Washington’s Mount Vernon. At the Library of Congress, he encounters two significant books: a copy of the Qur’an once owned by Thomas Jefferson and the autobiography of Omar Ibn Said, an enslaved African Muslim who was brought to America during Jefferson’s presidency. Through these works, Aymann reveals how Muslims were simultaneously included in the founders' vision of religious freedom while being denied rights due to the founders' attitudes toward race and slavery.
Hyperallergic Magazine | Best Films of 2024
"These six short documentary films tell unlikely stories about being Muslim in the United States … This series may shift some of your thinking about the history of diversity in this country — it’s longer, for instance, than you might think — and new revelations finally allow a fuller story to be told. Highly watchable.”
Indiana University, Indianapolis | Edward E. Curtis IV, Professor, William M. and Gail M. Plater Chair of the Liberal Arts; Director, Arabic and Islamic Studies
"An unprecedented effort to understand the meaning of Muslim Americans for our shared history, informed by meticulous and pioneering research, this beautifully rendered documentary series is an invaluable resource for educators and for all Americans devoted to a more truthful account of our collective past."
Temple University | Zain Abdullah, Associate Professor Emeritus, Religion & Society and Islamic Studies
“Few documentaries connect scholarship and storytelling as effectively as American Muslims: A History Revealed. Its cinematic approach and historical rigor make it an invaluable classroom tool for sparking critical conversations about freedom, faith, and identity in America.”
Johns Hopkins University | Naveeda Khan, Professor, Anthropology with affiliation to Islamic Studies
“What a joy it is to watch a show of such high production value that puts Muslims front and center in U.S. history from its early days to our present, with well-researched stories told so engagingly. I was gripped by “American Muslims.”
David Ludden, Professor of History Emeritus, New York University, and University of Pennsylvania
“The hardest thing for any teacher of world history is to bring the wider world of cultural diversity into American History. "American Muslims" does that with a poignant, detailed personal intimacy that makes my heart sing.”
Rutgers University-Newark | Alex Dika Seggerman, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Art History, Department of Arts, Culture and Media
“This groundbreaking series visualizes the little-known but vitally important history of Islam in the United States in the accessible and engaging format of documentary television. It will be an indispensable resource for educators worldwide.”
Mohammed VI Polytechnique University | Wendell Marsh, Associate Professor of African Literature and Philosophy
"Even before the founding of the United States, Muslims have been present, but their presence has gone overlooked, ignored, and hidden. “American Muslims” reveals this history through moving stories, inviting images, and stunning production quality. It is a must for the classroom."
AWARDS
Nominee, Video & Film - Documentary | Webby Award
Nominee, Video & Film - Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging | Webby Award
FESTIVALS
Tasveer Film Festival