Why DEI Matters: Amplifying Muslim Voices in Hollywood

Last updated on: March 20, 2025 at 11:24 pm by Sue Obeidi

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Why DEI Matters: Amplifying Muslim Voices in Hollywood 2025-03-20T23:24:13-05:00 Sue Obeidi

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For the MPAC Hollywood Bureau, DEI efforts have provided better opportunities for nuanced and authentic portrayals that better reflect the true diversity of the Muslim experience. Photo courtesy of Noorulabdeen Ahmad on Unsplash.

Diversity Equity & Inclusion: The New Taboo & Curse Words

No matter what we now will call DEI, the work of MPAC Hollywood will continue to push for Muslim stories to be told, and Muslim voices to be heard, but more importantly, valued. |Photo courtesy of Thirdman

As the Senior Vice President of the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) Hollywood Bureau, my work is deeply rooted in my faith. Islam teaches me the importance of fairness, equity, and inclusivity. God tells us in the Quran (Islam’s scripture), that He could have created us all the same but instead, the Almighty says, “O mankind, We have created you from a male and a female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another” (49:13). Now curse words, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) are universal principles that are foundational to my faith and work.

DEI programs Have Been Integral

Due to the Executive Order, we have recently seen many companies that have been banging the drums of the importance of DEI programs walk it back for fear of backlash from the administration. In the space where I work, Hollywood, DEI programs have been integral and provided critical support. The MPAC Hollywood Bureau has been able to engage these programs to give Muslim creatives opportunities they would otherwise not have. These initiatives push for broader representation in writers’ rooms, impact casting decisions, and getting better stories told. For the MPAC Hollywood Bureau, DEI efforts have provided better opportunities for nuanced and authentic portrayals that better reflect the true diversity of the Muslim experience.

Damaging Portrayals In Media

As history tells us, isolating communities, sowing division, and perpetuating ignorance is a matter of life and death. | Image courtesy of Mostafameraji, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

The elimination of these programs have real-world implications for Muslim communities. Since the entertainment industry’s founding, Muslims have faced damaging portrayals in media, often painted with the broad brush of extremism or violence. If these initiatives disappear, we risk regressing into a narrow, monolithic view of the world, where people of color, immigrants, and religious minorities are once again cast as “the other.” As history tells us, isolating communities, sowing division, and perpetuating ignorance is a matter of life and death.

The labor union, SAG-AFTRA Affirms Support for DEI as Studios Back Away, calling them “Moral Imperatives.” We at the MPAC Hollywood Bureau agree.

No matter what we now will call DEI, the work of MPAC Hollywood will continue to push for Muslim stories to be told, and Muslim voices to be heard, but more importantly, valued. It is important now more than ever. God says, “O you who have believed, be persistently standing firm in justice” (4:135). This passage advocates for systems that protect the most vulnerable among us. DEI programs are essential to this advocacy, as they provide the frameworks through which we can address systemic inequities.

The work we do at the MPAC Hollywood Bureau is not about entertainment and this is not just about our professional duties; it is about living out the universal values that underpin our faith and humanity.

If these initiatives disappear, we risk regressing into a narrow, monolithic view of the world, where people of color, immigrants, and religious minorities are once again cast as “the other.” | Photo courtesy of Cotton-bro studio.

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About Sue Obeidi

Sue Obeidi, Senior Vice President of the MPAC® Hollywood Bureau, leads efforts to promote accurate and nuanced portrayals of Muslims and Islam in film and television. Under her leadership, the Bureau has bridged the gap between the entertainment industry and the American Muslim community by consulting on high-profile projects and creating a pipeline of American Muslim storytellers with the Bureau’s screenwriting programs, competitions, and fellowships. Sue contributes her thought leadership by publishing op-eds in trade magazines and organizing and speaking on panels. The MPAC® Hollywood Bureau founded The Muslim House® at the Sundance and SXSW Film Festivals, where authentic and honest conversations about representation are front and center. Variety’s Inclusion Impact Report has recognized her in 2017 and 2022 as a leader in bringing inclusion to the forefront of the industry. Additionally, she serves as a senior fellow at the Luskin School of Public Policy. To learn more about The MPAC® Hollywood Bureau, please visit mpachollywoodbureau.org. You can read more about the author here.

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