WASHINGTON – Desperate to build bridges and possibly recruit new elements, the FBI is using ethnic comedians to reach out to suspicious Arabs and Muslims. “We want to demystify the FBI and show people that we are human, not just cold FBI agents coming out to arrest people,” Gwen Hubbard, chief recruiter for the FBI’s National Recruiting/Testing Office, told Reuters. Revamping an image damaged by a wave of arrests and searches since the 9/11 attacks, the law enforcement agency has sponsored a show of the “Axis of Evil” comedy group during a recent meeting of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC). The group is made up of comedians of Arab and Muslim roots who have formed a niche by taking on Mideast stereotypes and making subjects such as war and terrorism funny. With large posters reading: “Today’s FBI. It’s for you”, the agency paid $10,000 to sponsor the annual event attended by 1,000 people in a ballroom at a Washington.
