Satire isn’t funny when it targets the oppressed

Shelina Janmohamed takes on a controversial comedy sketch that pokes fun at Muslim women who have married jihadis

A screengrab from the BBC sketch “The Real Housewives of ISIS”. Hat Trick production for BBC2

A controversial comedy sketch pokes fun at Muslim women who have married jihadis

The video clip begins with a woman in an abaya and headscarf posing and complaining: "It's only three days to the beheading, and I've got no idea what to wear." Meet the Real Housewives of ISIS. The 90-second long clip aired as part of a BBC satire show that tackles the week's news.

The sketch follows a group of fictional British Muslim women who have travelled to Syria and are now living ludicrously restricted lives under ISIL. The creators of the skit say that no subject is safe, and since ISIL creates so much of our news, it is fair game.

For anyone familiar with the Real Housewives genre of television, the superficial hyperfeminine concerns of these women come as nothing new. The ISIL housewives are mocked for the same reasons.

But set to a backdrop of rising hate crime against Muslim women, and an all-pervasive security lens trained at Muslims who are only ever seen as terrorists, the sketch has whipped up controversy about whether it really is satire, in bad taste, or actually dangerous for Muslim women. Muslim women already suffer being called ISIL wives (and worse).

Racists and Islamophobes take it far too literally. They see the Real Housewives of ISIS and think that's what Muslim women are like. Let's tell them to get a sense of humour, too.

I can see why the sketch was created; mocking human foibles is fair game. If Muslims want to be as ordinary as everyone else, then we are fair targets for sketches that poke fun at human fallibility.

And it’s a big step forward from mocking religious beliefs and trotting out the stereo­types of oppressed, voiceless women. These women are independent, autonomous and have their own minds. Isn’t that what we constantly argue for?

But, in my view, while the intentions may have been worthy, it missed the mark.

The Real Housewives genre is itself deeply misogynistic, so pushing Muslim women into that mould is a race to the bottom.

Many of the women who find themselves playing wife to ISIL jihadis have been groomed and are subject to abuse. Humour can work in dark situations, but the mockery should always be of the oppressor and never the victim. That’s why the image of a woman chained to the sink or wearing a suicide vest, while initially shakes us up, is actually not funny.

Many, many women are suffering violence, rape, torture and death in Syria, so it is tasteless to satirise their plight in this way.

The mixed reactions reflect our different views of both the situation on the ground as well as what exactly is being satirised. For the women, we haven’t decided if they are just as hateful as the men of ISIL or if they’ve fallen prey to horrific online grooming and abuse.

The dark comedy film Four Lions followed four British men on their quest to carry out a terrorist act. It was widely lauded for taking a difficult subject and addressing it with the most exquisite humour. Muslims in particular loved it.

So what is the difference? Gender clearly plays a role. Is it that we see girls as groomed, but men as full of hatred? Grooming is certainly a problem. But we need to reflect on our gender stereotypes.

Are Muslims offended at women being mocked, but not men?

The key difference is this is bad comedy. Muslims are far too often told they are too easily offended. Yes we are. By bad comedy.

I say, bring on the satire of ISIL. But this time, make it good.

Shelina Janmohamed is the author of the books Generation M: Young Muslims Changing the World and Love in a Headscarf

On Twitter: @loveinheadscarf