Multifaith Group Films Commercial to Prevent Hate Crimes

April 5, 2003

Source: The Associated Press

On April 5, 2003 The Associated Press reported that "twenty-nine-year-old Anjum A. Ali has two very distinctive looks - that of an American patriot and that of a Muslim... Dressed in her traditional head garb, the American-born Muslim has struggled to make more traditional citizens understand that she, too, is a patriot... With the help of her friend Neil Kuchinsky, a well-known Jewish lawyer who often serves as an advocate for people of the Jewish religion, and local real estate investor Vince Ferranti, a Christian Italian-American, she hopes to change people's minds about Islam... The three have undertaken a project to teach people the truth behind Islam and Ali's patriotism... Kuchinsky and Ferranti recently funded the filming of a commercial called 'Compassion: The True Face of Islam,' featuring Ali and her young daughter Muryum... The commercial was filmed and produced at New Millennium Studios in Petersburg by Production Executive Jarene Fleming. The group plans to seek out airtime from local cable stations and network television companies so that the commercial can run during the war to combat anti-Muslim feelings and possibly help to prevent Muslim hate crimes."