Television is one of the most powerful mediums available for social change. Through characters and stories we love, we can help heal the divide and show people that we are all human and all want similar things. That may seem like small comfort at a time when racism, homo/transphobia, sexism, and anti-Semitism are at an all-time high.
Even so, let’s celebrate characters changing the narrative and helping make a better, less prejudiced world. FBI’s Omar Adom “O.A.
” Zidan Is The First Egyptian-Born Lead Character on A Police Procedural When I think about characters changing the narrative, O.A. is always the first one that comes to mind.
Unfortunately, many peace-loving Muslims get blamed for terrorist activity related to conflict in the Middle East, and that’s been reflected in our television shows for a very long time. Before O.A.
was introduced on FBI Season 1 Episode 1 . there were few Muslim characters on TV who were not either guilty of terrorism or being accused of it based on credible evidence. Sure, Law & Order: SVU had a couple of episodes about Muslim women who were raped and killed because they didn’t subscribe to radical Islam, but guess who was always the culprit? Their Muslim fathers or brothers.
That changed seven seasons ago when O.A. was introduced.
He is the first and so far only Middle Eastern-born Muslim character to be a leading man in any show, and he’s also an FBI agent. His loyalty to the United States is never in doubt. Before becoming a fi.