Change Your Name Ousama !

Last night Shari & I attended a screening of a new film called; “Change Your Name Ousama”. This  was a Toronto premiere of the film about Muslims in Canada, and the after-effects of September 11, 2001. One of the topics that it deals with is racism in Canada: anti-Muslim sentiments parallel anti-Semetic attitudes.

There is also an exploration of the challenges that we all face in our perspectives of “the other”, who we may  not know. Film Maker Faud Chowdhury and CBC Security Correspondent Bill Gilespie show how Muslims in Canada became unintended victims of “9/11”

The film also provides an introduction to the diversity among people of the Muslim faith; cultural, national, ethnic, geographic, etc. For those who value an “either / or” approach to life, the complexities illustrated in this film will be frustrating.

This wonderful, educational screening, with a discussion period afterwards, was provided by Matthew Kellway, M.P. (NDP) for the riding of Beaches- East York in Toronto. I would recommend it, if you have the opportunity to see it, other than at the Montreal Film Festival or the Delhi International Film Festival.

 

Advertisement