At YSU, producer's film shares lessons

The filmmaker dressed in Muslim garb to see how she would be treated.
By WILLIAM K. ALCORN
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- One of the greatest fears among Muslim Americans is being misunderstood and perceived as something they are not.
That is one of the things television documentary producer Rachel Maguire learned about Muslims in the United States while making the documentary "The Muslim Americans."
Maguire's documentary, which focuses on discrimination, and three other films -- "Security Versus Liberty: The Other War;" "The Case for War: In Defense of Freedom," and "Faith Without Fear" -- were shown Saturday at the America At A Crossroads Film Festival at Youngstown State University's Kilcawley Hall. They also aired on Public Television Channel 45/49 last week.
Maguire, who founded Naja Productions, has 18 years of experience in television writing, directing and producing, including working for Walter Cronkite for three years. One of her recent projects was an independent documentary, "Metal of Honor," which chronicles the efforts of the New York City ironworkers at ground zero after Sept. 11, 2001, burning through steel to clear paths for equipment and emergency personnel.
What she did
To learn firsthand what Muslim Americans are experiencing post-9/11, Maguire put on a hijab (Islamic scarf) and burka (Islamic dress) and, with a companion and undercover cameras, flew from her hometown of Chicago to Minneapolis.
Doning the Islamic garb "transported me to a place I hadn't been before," she said.
"I was subjected to a full 'pat down' at the Minneapolis airport and was ordered to draw my dress taunt around my body, presumably to determine if I had something hidden beneath it," she said.
Maguire, a tall blonde who flies all over the world because of her work, said she had never seen anything like that before nor had she been pulled out of line for a pat down.
Additionally, she said she felt people's eyes on her, some curious and some filled with anxiety and fear.
Maguire, during an interview before the showing of the her film, said that because of increased scrutiny since 9/11, there is an anxiety that permeates Muslim Americans' lives that was not there before that fateful day in 2001.
"I think their primary reaction is that they are saddened by how they are treated," Maguire said.
But, she said, another reaction to the discrimination is that Muslims have drawn together and are reaffirming their Islamic faith. Until 9/11, Muslims were among the country's most silent citizens, she said.
Now, young women whose mothers did not wear hijabs are wearing the scarf, Maguire said.
Film's goal
The goal of her documentary is to educate people about Muslim Americans in general, and specifically show that they are not all terrorists, Maguire said.
She said another thing that is important for people to realize is that Muslims and their religious beliefs are influenced by the culture in which they live, and can vary widely because of that influence.
"Muslims are assimilated, educated and proud to be Americans," Maguire said.
"We've got to be informed about what is going on in our society, and the world, if we are to ask the right questions and come to the correct conclusion about policies," said Dr. Victor Wan-Tatah, director of Africana Studies and professor of philosophy and religious studies at YSU.
"The films help us to appreciate and value the positive aspects our differences," said Wan-Tatah, a native of Cameroon.