Islamic rights groups aren't happy with the title of the Warner Bros Pictures film Towelhead, which was adapted from Alicia Erian's book of the same name by writer/director Alan Ball, and have requested the studio change the name to something less offensive. Warner Bros is sticking with the title and issued a statement explaining their decision.
* * * * Warning: The statement includes offensive language* * * *
Author Alicia Erian's Response to the Criticism:
"As an Arab-American woman, I am of course aware that the title of my book is an ethnic slur. Indeed, I selected the title to highlight one of the novel's major themes: racism. In the tradition of Dick Gregory's autobiography Nigger, the Jewish magazine Heeb, or the feminist magazine Bitch, the title is rude and shocking, but it is not gratuitous. Besides the fact that the main character must endure taunting about her ethnicity (including being called a towelhead), so much of the novel's plot is fueled by the characters' attitudes toward race.
I was not contacted by any organization or group when my novel was released in 2005. I don't know if this was because no one had heard about my book, or because they didn't feel it would have as much of an impact as a film. Having lived in a world in which my book has existed without protest for the past three years, however, I feel I have at least some view onto what to expect from the public in terms of a response. The bottom line is, never once have I encountered anyone who didn't understand the seriousness of the word 'towelhead' and all its implications.
This is not to say that I don't find these concerns legitimate -- I absolutely do. We live in a racist society, one in which people continue to use ethnic slurs to delineate those who are different than they are. Realistically speaking, though, these people are neither the audience for my book, nor for the film. They will continue to use whatever language they wish whether or not a movie called Towelhead is released. For this reason, I am pleased that Warner Bros. is standing by the title.
Towelhead, like its many cousins -- nigger, spic, gook, etc. -- is an ugly word. The job of the artist, however, has been, and always will be, to highlight that which is ugly in the hopes of finding something beautiful. This charge, by necessity, will at times put the artist at odds with admirable groups such as CAIR. The solution, it seems to me, is not to force the artist to alter his or her work, but instead to use the occasion of that work as an entry point for meaningful debate and discussion."
Writer/Director Alan Ball's Response:
"As a gay man, I know how it feels to be called hateful names simply because of who I am. Therefore, I felt it was important to retain the title of Alicia Erian's novel, in which she so effectively dramatizes the pain inflicted by such language, something many people of non-minority descent never have to face. I believe one of the unintended consequences of forbidding such words to be spoken is imbuing those words with more power than they should ever have, and helping create the illusion that the bigotry and racism expressed by such cruel epithets is less prevalent than it actually is, which we all know is sadly not the case."
Warner Independent Pictures' official stance on the issue:
"One of the ideas conveyed in the film is that we all make assumptions about each other, without knowing, based on racial stereotypes. It was our goal in releasing Towelhead to help make this point.
Some of our past releases, like Paradise Now, were extremely controversial and elicited demands that the film not be released; Good Night, and Good Luck drew criticism from some as well. Warner Bros. supported the release of these films then, as they do now of Towelhead, as a medium to create dialogue and support the expression of ideas, as controversial or as unpopular as they may be. We apologize for any offense that is caused by this title but support Alan Ball and Alicia Erian in this effort."
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Towelhead tells the story of a 13 year old Arab-American girl named Jasira (played by Summer Bushil). Jasira's life is disrupted when her mother sends her to live with her Lebanese father who's just moved into a quiet cul-de-sac in Houston. In this new and unfamiliar environment, Jasira must confront racism and hypocrisy, as well as her own budding sexuality.
Towelhead hits theaters on September 12, 2008 and is rated R for strong disturbing sexual content and abuse involving a young teen, and for language.
Source: Warner Independent Pictures
