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R-N student performs in video "I am a Muslim," addresses stereotypes
By: Kristy Barry
Posted: 12/18/07
"I'm not a terrorist. I'm not a date merchant. I don't live in a tent, or keep my wife zipped up in it all day."These are the words of a Rutgers-Newark student, Mustafa Gatollari, in a YouTube video dispelling stereotypes about Muslims and the religion of Islam.
The video, entitled "I am a Muslim," has received nearly 1.3 million hits as well as over 58,000 user comments on YouTube.
Gatollari, a senior English major at R-N, performs a two-minute monologue in front of a brown cloth backdrop. The video included basic animations, such as a cartoonish cab zooming across the screen when he says, "I've never worked at a gas station or driven a taxi cab."
Gatollari said that the idea for the video came from his friend, Yasir Sahmy, who saw the Molson Canadian beer commercial consisting of the slogan, "I am Canadian."
Gatollari said that Sahmy suggested somebody did the same thing with Muslims. Sahmy, who's currently in Egypt studying to be a sheik, asked him to write a script and they went from there. The video spawned parodies such as "I am a Christian," "I am an atheist," and "I am a redneck," among others.
Gatollari, who has theatre experience, said he has only watched the video once and that he's not fazed by the number of people who have seen the video.
"A million hits probably came from my mom and dad. [The amount of hits] feels kinda cool but then again, it's YouTube and anyone can put up a video," he said.
He cited such silly videos such as "My New Haircut" and "Numa Numa" as proof that millions of video hits doesn't necessarily indicate quality or substance, but he's pleased to spread his message.
"I'm proud if I could change someone's mind about Islam, not really change, but help people understand Islam," Gatollari said.
He said that Islam is negatively portrayed in the media, that the culture and the religion are not defined by horrific violence.
As for Gatollari using the name "Muhammad" for the video, he said he wanted to use a character name, an archetypal Islam name instead of Mustafa.
"I want to keep on doing videos like this, something that people will remember for a long period of time," he said.
From the over 58,000 comments, Gatollari said he expects ignorant or inane comments. He gave an example of someone who watches a Beatles video and writes, "Beatles suck! They don't even know how to play their instruments."
For the more intense criticisms on Islam and Muslims, Gatollari said he was "disheartened to see that people still latch onto these negative stereotypes."
He also shared another example of someone who left a comment in response to him saying that "the Qur'an is the greatest book ever." The user, he said, retorted by writing, "I guess you didn't read the Lord of the Rings trilogy."
The video, filmed in September, was created by the Muslim American Society which is a religious, social, non-profit organization that promotes Islam.
The director of MAS Youth New Jersey and R-N alum ('05), Zaied Abbassi, said he oversaw the filming and was pleased with the outcome.
"I thought it served the goal and objectives we wanted to achieve in a light-hearted and fun manner."
He said there were people who loved the video, those who hated it, and those who were on the fence and encouraged an open an honest debate about the subject.
Gatollari said the Muslim American society isn't just a group that preaches.
"For me it's just a reason not to forget, to do my Islamic work, to help people," he said.
Maged Ibrahim, a sophomore finance major at R-N, said he thought the video was funny as well as truthful and people should strive to live in peace.
"We are living together so let us live our lives in peace and harmony," he said. "We are all equals in all religions and cultures."
In a poignant moment of the video, an American flag sways across the screen as Gatollari says, "I would go back to my own country, but I'm already in it."
© Copyright 2009 Observer
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