In 'The Ghosts Of Sugar Land,' Friends Reflect On Muslim Life In Suburban Texas
Bassam Tariq frames his short film, “The Ghosts of Sugar Land” around the self-reflection he and his friends went through after the disappearance of their friend, Mark. The film provides a glimpse into life for American Muslims in post-9/11 suburban Texas,
In the film, the group of friends suspects that Mark either joined ISIS or tried to bait his friends into doing so, after Mark posted his desire to join the terrorist group on Facebook. Because they fear associating themselves with him, Tariq says, the group wears masks during the film.
“It’s not that we have to wear these masks because of something we did, we’re wearing these masks because of something he did,” says one of the friends in the film.
“This isn’t just paranoia,” another says.
As the group investigated Mark’s situation further, Tariq says they started to worry about how they had treated Mark.
Read more: https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/in-the-ghosts-of-sugar-land-friends-reflect-on-muslim-life-in-suburban-texas/