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Breaking Down The Criticism Against 'Homeland:' Is It Islamophobic?
You'd think a show that revolves around Middle Eastern terrorism would be more careful about how they portray and engage with Muslims, but sometimes things slip up in a big way. This week, Showtime's hit show Homeland made headlines for a recent episode's curious use of graffiti plastered on the wall of a fictional Syrian refugee camp. The art is only visible briefly as C.I.A. officer Carrie Mathison (played by Claire Danes) walks past the camp, but attentive viewers fluent in Arabic were quick to take note of the writing. It translates to some less than friendly messages about the show: " 'Homeland' is racist," "There is no 'Homeland' " and " 'Homeland' is not a show."
As the discussion reignites over the show's often-controversial portrayals of the Middle Eastern community and the Muslim religion, it's important take a closer look at the critiques levied against the show and discuss the pop culture influence Homeland has had on Islamophobia.
The Graffiti Artists Who Sparked A Dialogue
As social media began erupting over the graffiti messages on Wednesday, a trio of artists stepped forward to claim credit. Heba Y. Amin, Caram Kapp, and Stone released a statement on Amin's website explaining their decision to infiltrate the show to voice their frustrations. The protest against false and misleading stereotypes perpetuated on the show began when the producers sought out "Arabian street artists" to create Arabic political graffiti for the show. The trio threw out the images of graffiti supporting President Bashar al-Assad of Syria that they had been provided with, and instead used their paint to air out grievances with the show.
Throughout filming and post-production, nobody on set seemed to notice that the graffiti was a direct criticism of the show. This mistake came as no surprise to Amin, who explained that "Arabic script is merely a supplementary visual that completes the horror-fantasy of the Middle East, a poster image dehumanizing an entire region to human-less figures in black burkas and moreover, this season, to refugees." This biting critique takes aim at a longstanding frustration that has plagued the show since it began in 2011.
Unpacking the Criticism
Four years and nearly five seasons of watching Danes run around the Middle East to hunt down terrorists has, naturally, brought about a fair bit of backlash. Amidst claims of Islamophobia and stereotyping, three scholars have been at the forefront of critiquing the show's representation problem. Deepa Kumar, an Associate Professor of Media Studies and Middle Eastern Studies at Rutgers University; Laila Al Arian, a journalist and co-author of the book "Collateral Damage: America's War Against Iraqi Civilians;" and Laura Durkay, a New York City-based writer, filmmaker and activist, have all spoken out about the show on a number of occasions. The show has been called out on a list of problems long enough to make Santa Claus sweat.
Homeland has been relentless in its perpetuation of negative stereotypes about Islam and Muslims that began taking hold in post-9/11 America. The first season's narrative reinforced the belief that anyone who can be identified as "Muslim" is not to be trusted—no matter what their actual race or creed is. Over the years writers seem to have tried working on this problem, but lowkey Islamophobia is still a visible plot device. Arian, Kumar, and Durkay have all levied heavy criticism against this issue and helped point out that the entire concept of the show is based on fallacy. As Durkay explains:
"The entire structure of "Homeland" is built on mashing together every manifestation of political Islam, Arabs, Muslims and the whole Middle East into a Frankenstein-monster global terrorist threat that simply doesn't exist."
The misrepresentation isn't contained to just the people inhabiting the region, either. Just like the show's current situation with a fictitious Syrian refugee camp, Homeland faced intense scrutiny and backlash after they portrayed the city of Beirut as an orientalist nightmare filled with gun-touting men in checkered headdresses and women in head-to-toe hijab outfits. The reality is that the city is lined with Starbucks, H&M's, cafes, nightclubs, and men and women wearing all manner of outfits. The lazy portrayal of the city as a terrorist hotbed pissed off Lebanese officials so much, they threatened a lawsuit.
Homeland's International Influence on Islamophobia
Add all of these criticisms together, and you've got a recipe for disastrous storytelling, and the very real possibility that the show is contributing to a culture of Islamophobia. In the aftermath of 9/11, violence against Muslims or people perceived as Muslims has skyrocketed, and shows no sign of waning. One need only look at the controversial marketing for the fourth season of the show to see how anti-Muslim sentiment has become central to its narrative. The poster serves up heavy Little Red Riding Hood vibes that left many wondering what message the producers were trying to achieve. Danes is the wide-eyed image of white innocence, surrounded by a sea of black-clad Muslim women—she is the visual antithesis of the dangerous Middle Eastern wolves that surround her.
The common argument against the type of cultural criticism leveled toward Homeland is that it's just a TV show. Supporters of the show may argue that it doesn't need to be realistic because it's a fictional drama, but I would assert that that rationale is not only lazy, but dangerous. Mosques have burned and people have been murdered because of the Islamophobia perpetuated through news media and pop culture. Refugees have been turned away because of this senseless fear and hatred. In a year where anti-Islam rallies have become commonplace, it's time for shows like Homeland to take responsibility for the message they broadcast to viewers.
Images via Showtime, Heba Y. Amin, and Jim Fiscus.


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Ian Kilpatrick has been in business for more than 21 years, and has more than 30 years' experience within the industry. He is a specialist in plastering and rendering and is able to work across the interior and exterior of any property. With roots in and Taunton, Somerset, this allows Ian to cover the South of England and provide his expert plastering services to both domestic and commercial clients.
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subset: commoncrawl


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Knowing what body shape you have is key when it comes to experiencing a successful shopping trip and a bit of self-styling at home! Being unsure of what suits you clothing-wise can hinder your confidence as well as encroach on your precious time in terms of trying to get it right and feeling good! This can also lead to being left stuck in a rut fairly quickly, and from my experience, this feeling is incredibly common.
During your lifetime your shape and proportions can change due to having children, weight loss or gain, sports activities, your age or a simple lifestyle change so it's best to bear this in mind and as time goes by, continue to assess your body shape.
In this article, I am going to share some valuable styling tips for those of you that have an HOURGLASS body shape.
But first, lets determine if you have an hourglass body shape – here goes!… Your upper and lower body will be in proportion, shoulders and hips will be aligned and you will have a noticeably smaller and defined waistline. Typically you will take the same dress size top and bottom and women with this shape are fortunate as, weight gain or loss is evenly distributed on the body.
Your hourglass figure is deemed to be the perfect body shape! In fact, only 8.4% of the UK population can be proud of their hourglass figure along with the likes of Halle Berry, Angelina Jolie, Kelly Brook and Scarlett Johansson.
There are two versions of this body shape; neat and curvy – the second being the most commonly recognised.
The Neat Hourglass can be characterised by having:
- Shoulders and hips aligned
- A defined bust and waist
- A neat bottom and neat hips
The Curvy Hourglass can be characterised by having:
- Shoulders and hips aligned
- A full bust and small waist
- Rounded bottom and hips
Hourglass – General Rule of Thumb
The cut and style of clothes need to compliment your figure-of-eight hourglass shape. Mimicking and showing off every curve whilst accentuating this feminine body shape, the aim is to highlight your waistline, avoiding any boxy clothing shapes that disguise these curves.
#1 BELTS – The Hero Accessory
Wear belts that sit on your natural waistline, they will emphasise the smallest, and one of the greatest parts of your body. Be careful in choosing a width that complements your overall body proportion – if you're a petite hourglass, opt for a narrower belt, which will best suit to your proportions, a wider belt width will suit curvier figures.
It's time to notice coats and jackets, dresses, tops and knitwear that feature a belt!
Wear tops that stop on your natural waistline, the eye will be drawn to the slimmest part of your body and create a flattering silhouette. Avoid wearing long tops, as it's harder to notice that neat, defined waistline, also stay away from cropped styles, as it will mess with your beautifully aligned proportions. Square necklines will also look too angular and not very balanced overall.
Also, tops with softer curved necklines will naturally flatter and accentuate your curvaceous figure along with v-necks, scoop, rounded neck and wrap tops. However, if you are conscious about showing too much cleavage then layer a camisole underneath.
Make a conscious effort to choose one or two buttoned single-breasted jackets – this will showcase your lovely defined nipped in waist and fabulous curves. Avoid double-breasted styles with overpowering detail, as this will create too much fuss and distraction but most of all you could end up looking bigger than you are.
It is true, curved lapels and necklines on jackets will flatter your natural shape. Flowing hemlines on jackets that skim your waist as well as fitted waists with little or no detail are also great styles for you to wear.
High waist trousers that have a wide leg will be one of the most flattering styles for your body shape. However, if you're itching to try a cropped length then you had better try a cropped flare style of jeans, for example. If you're going for full-length trousers, ensure the hem sits half way down the heel of the shoes for the perfect length.
If skirts are more your 'thang' then why not try a pencil skirt, wrap style or skirt with a fish tail back? These styles will sit high on your waistline and follow your natural hipline and mirror your curves.
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO LEARN HOW TO STYLE YOUR BODY SHAPE AND EXPERIENCE A SUCCESSFUL SHOPPING TRIP, PLEASE EMAIL ME AT firstname.lastname@example.com. @chantelleznideric


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Joons Restaurant
Joons is a small Korean restaurant situated in the busy area of Yonge & Finch. This place is known for their table-top cooking, so I decided to give it a try.
The meal started off with the typical appetizers which included kimchi, broccoli with hot sauce, radish, and mashed potatoes. I did not really like the appetizers that were offered here. I found the taste of the kimchi to be quite off; it was extremely sour (more so compared to other Korean places that I have frequented).
One of the most popular dishes at Joons would be their dak galbi ($9.25 x 2 portions). Dak Galbi is a "dish generally made by stir-frying marinated diced chicken in a gochujang (chili pepper paste) based sauce, and sliced cabbage, sweet potato, scallions, onions and tteok (rice cake) together on a hot plate" (credits: wikipedia). Here at Joons, you have to buy at least 2 portions of the dak galbi, and you can add additional items for $1 to $2 each (such as cheese, veggies, rice, rice cakes etc ...) to customize your dish. I was a little hesitant at first to add the mozzarella cheese to the chicken, but it really compliments well with everything. Overall, this was a decent meal and was not expensive at all.
I thought that the service at Joons Restaurant was lacking despite the place being half-empty (around 1:30 pm). The only times that I really saw our waitress was when she gave us the menus, and when she was cooking our dak galbi on another table. After giving us the food; she seemingly disappeared out of sight and into the back for the rest of the lunch.
Quality of Food: 3/5
Service: 2/5
Dining Experience: 2.5/5
Price: $$
Address: 4852 Yonge Street, North York, ON, M2N 5N2


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Two episodes in and I'm already hooked on Midnight, Texas thanks to its talented ensemble and the writers' ability to juggle several narratives within an episode. Last week I posted a video on Parisa Fitz-Henley's thoughts on Wicca (she plays the nurturing witch Fiji on the show), and this week I have video of Francois Arnaud praising co-star Sarah Ramos.
Continue reading "'Midnight, Texas' Star Francois Arnaud On Why Sarah Ramos Is Perfect For 'Creek'"


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Delightful book! Excellent pictures, ring bound (I like being able to open the book and lay it flat, saves the spine makes the book last longer), great step-by-step instructions, 15 patterns included for all family members from baby to men's. Instruction are given for a traditional gusset heel, short rows, and heel cup and flap.
I found the toe to gusset formula a little confusing at first, required some work with a calculator.
Erratas found here pgs 105, 144
Recommendation: Excellent Book, I would buy it just for the patterns. I might not knit all my socks 2-at-a-time, but I like her approach!


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