Our Mission
MENA Arts Advocacy Coalition (MAAC) achieved landmark success by achieving status for Middle Eastern, North African performers in Hollywood in 2017. The 1st time the MENA community has had hiring status, previously they were counted as white. A loophole that leads to the erasure of positive portrayals in the media and feeds into dangerous stereotypes and leads to serious harm for the entire MENA and SA region. Founded by Azita Ghanizada, an Afghan-American actress in the United States. MAAC began when she was informed she was considered caucasian by a major Television network after a network pilot table read. She realized that in the new world of diversity and inclusion, an entire region of the world was being erased. After her successful lobby for the inclusion of MENA in the casting world. She helped write and create the Casting Society of America’s guidebook on hiring and auditioning MENA & MENASA performers. Helped rebuild and rewrite all casting breakdowns globally. Has educated C-level suite executives on the blatant erasure of MENA performers on screen. Presented a study on MENA on TV, titled “Terrorists & Tyrants.” Lobbied to have MENA included for the first time in USC Annenberg and UCLA’s very important yearly diversity reports and infographics. And has provided Studios, Networks, Producers, and filmmakers access to our pool of diverse artists.
We continue to actively educate the Hollywood community on the failure of fair and balanced MENA performers across all TV and Film platforms and provide resources, tools, and recommendations on how to advance the visibility of the MENA & SWANA community in Hollywood. We aim to continue to elevate MENA & SWANA presence across all industry wide DEI events, film festivals, Academies and guilds.
It’s time for MENA to be recognized and elevated
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Azta Ghanizada
Actress, Producer, Speaker, & Founder