A filmmaker and a stand-up comic get in a car with the “half-baked” idea to visit 30 mosques in 30 days. “The mission was to tell interesting and compelling stories about Muslims in America,” Ali, the 29-year-old stand-up comic, told The Huffington Post. “There is no monolithic story of our community.”
What Ali and Tariq stumbled upon was the well-documented but little-known history of Muslims in the United States, a history that dates back at least to the 17th century. They were getting to see firsthand what President Barack Obama spoke about in February, during his closing remarks at the Summit on Countering Violent Extremism: “Islam has been woven into the fabric of our country since its founding.”
“We’re a kick-ass community,” he said, “and we want to showcase this.”
