In a recent piece for The Philadelphia Inquirer Naif Al-Mutawa, a clinical psychologist and father of five, wrote about the absence of positive Muslim characters in American entertainment. “Of all the diverse fictional characters who have inspired us,” he writes, “Muslim protagonists remain very rare in American entertainment.” Faced with a dearth of Muslim heroes in American media, Naif Al-Mutawa decided to create “The 99” to provide his sons with role models. It’s a comic book series starring 99 superheroes, who each represent one of the 99 attributes of Allah, and use their powers to battle evil. After two years of looking for an American distributor, Mutawa has been unable to get his program broadcast in the United States. Naif Al-Mutawa, creator of “The 99” and the subject of a new PBS Frontline documentary called “Wham! Bam! Islam!,” discusses why there need to be more positive portrayals of Muslims in entertainment.
The World is an independent newsroom. We’re not funded by billionaires; instead, we rely on readers and listeners like you. As a listener, you’re a crucial part of our team and our global community. Your support is vital to running our nonprofit newsroom, and we can’t do this work without you. Will you support The World with a gift today? Donations made between now and Dec. 31 will be matched 1:1. Thanks for investing in our work!