Original news, features, opinions from Chicago to Jerusalem
Will Smith violence takes Oscar protests to dangerous level When Hollywood actor Will Smith walked on stage of the 94th Academy of Arts and Sciences Oscars Award on Sunday March 27, 2022, and punched comedian Chris Rock in the face with an open fist, he elevated and personalized what has been an occasional occurrence of…
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Dubai launches Walk of Fame that will be four times more than Hollywood Downtown Dubai will be home to more than 400 stars in the first phase, as Emaar launches ‘Dubai Stars,’ a walkable tribute to stars and influencers from all over the world Emaar, the biggest lifestyle developer outside China, the developer of Burj…
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A very special Oscar Night One of my personal favorite topics is the movie industry and the racism and bias that the industry allows based on politics. This incident involving Vanessa Redgrave back in 1978 impacted my life and characterized the injustices of the American media on so many levels By Ray Hanania (Originally published…
The Power of Hollywood Movies in the Palestine & Middle East conflicts Ray Hanania’s podcast is an audio version of his column published Jan. 26, 2017 in the Arab News in Saudi Arabia. It discusses the power of movies and how they can significantly alter, change and impact the beliefs of the American people. Why…
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Plight of Syrians competes for Oscar This year’s Academy Awards Oscar presentation of Hollywood Film Oscars includes only two submissions addressing Arab World issues, one on the plight of Syrian refugees and the terrorist war in Aleppo, Syria, and the other a historical drama set during the Algerian civil war of the 1990s. By Ray Hanania Once again…
Now that the Oscars are over, can we have a real discussion about the absence of fairness, the racism, stereotypes and bias that consumes the Hollywood movie industry? And to be honest, African Americans have a lot to complain about here in America over the past 400 years for sure, but they really are the last…
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Omar Sharif was one of the first Arab actors to appear in the biased anti-Arab arena of Hollywood. His talent took him past the bigotry that has denied Arabs roles in major motion pictures, excluded pro-Arab themes and narratives from Hollywood movies, and marginalized Arabs to the sidelines of a biased movie industry. But his legacy…
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A look back at the Oscars and the Academy Awards night from 1978 when Palestine and Israel clashed on stage for the first time. Here’s one of several columns I published over the years reflecting on that moment, this one published in 2006. By Ray Hanania A very special Oscars Night BY RAY HANANIA (Originally…
From Joan Rivers to Vanunu and Iran by way of WMD By Eileen Fleming Last Wednesday Joan Rivers was asked by the celebrity website Splash News Online about Israel’s Operation Protective Edge and replied, “When you declare war, you declare war. They started it. We now don’t count who’s dead. You’re dead. You deserve…
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What’s so racist about FX TV’s Tyrant? By Ray Hanania (Here are just my immediate thoughts in a sarcastic Tirade about Tyrant!) What’s racist about FX TV’s series Tyrant? The entire show. Because you know, all us Ay-rabs are brutal dictator murderers and we go around brutally raping women because we were brutalized as sissy…
Tyrant: hate TV series coming this summer reveals more about Hollywood than Arabs and Muslims By Ali Younes The Arab Daily News has uncovered a brewing conflict and war of words involving the executives at FX channel that produces the upcoming TV series Tyrant and its creator Gideon Raff. Ray Hanania, the Managing Editor of…
New American TV show fuels more anti-Arab stereotypes By Ray Hanania In 1991, MGM in Hollywood produced a film that it called “Not Without My Daughter.” The movie is about an American woman who marries an Iranian man in the United States and, after having a young daughter, the husband convinces the wife to visit…
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Actor Edward James Olmos headlines Detroit diversity conference April 10 in Dearborn By Ray Hanania Golden Globe and Academy Award nominee Edward James Olmos will headline the annual Images and Perceptions Diversity Conference in Dearborn April 10 featuring a day-long program of entertainment, educational instruction and attendee participation exploring issues of diversity. This year’s theme is “Embracing…
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Arab World represented by three films at Oscars tonight By Ray Hanania Three films from the Arab World will be in competition at tonight’s Oscars, including the first ever nomination at the Academy Awards representing the State of Palestine. They are feature film Omar, Film short Karama Has No Walls, and documentary feature The Square. A fourth film,…
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