Little Mosque on the Prairie

Earlier this week, in my RTVF 110 class, we watched two episodes from the Canadian show "Little Mosque on the Prairie". The basis of the show focuses on a small Muslim community located in a small rural Canadian city, which mainly consists of white people. Consequently, there are few people that are not exactly open to their Muslim neighbors. However, unlike other shows, the stereotypes are not on the Muslim characters but on the white characters.

Our instructor first asked if we enjoyed the show? Yes, I did enjoy it because it was a breath of fresh air and it did not play on the stereotypes that are commonly portrayed on Muslim characters in film and television. Furthermore, the show was funny but also instructive in teaching aspects of Muslim culture.

The show was an initial success, garnering 2.1 million viewers in Canada. The ratings have dropped a little but it has been generally received well. Ultimately leading CBC Television to pickup the show for a second season. Due to its success other networks worldwide have added the show to their lineup. Recently, the United States came knocking on the door. On June 10, 2008, FOX signed a deal to pick up the U.S. rights for "Little Mosque on the Prairie".

Initially, that sounds great. The executive producer of the Canadian version, Mary Darling, sees it as a " way to bridge cultures and bring peoples" together. Yet, the war in Iraq brings daily news of U.S. soldiers dying which causes tension between a portion of the U.S. population and the Muslim community. Obviously, this is manifested through prejudice and discrimination. It is these type of people that will argue against the show. Perhaps, they would even go as far and declare it un-Patriotic.

I am skeptical of the show being successful in the United States because it will be composed of entirely different writers and producers, basically a different perspective. There are no guarantees that the essence of the show will remain intact. The current situation between Islamic nations and the United States government will add strain to be politically correct. Some people feel that the show makes fun of people with Muslim backgrounds and how they are treated. (I argue that while it is humor the show aims to point out that these events happen on a daily basis. After all, humor is the greatest ice breaker. ) Due to this reason, I think important elements from the Canadian version will eliminated. I am not too sure that white portion of the United States population would embrace the depiction of white characters. Many within the show play the stereotypical "red neck", which is to be ignorant.

I think if the U.S. version is a stark contrast from the Canadian version, the FOX network would have missed an opportunity to mend some cultural gaps. The show may seem annoying or corny but underneath that layer are subtle messages that serve as didactic tools to correct misconceptions of the Muslim faith.