With a new wave of Islamophobia in the U.S. after recent attacks on Iran, Ramy Youssef has come under fire for his Sesame Street appearance.
The Golden Globe winner joked “it’s got to be tough” for Fox News to see him teaching Elmo some Arabic words during Arabic American Heritage Month, despite the words meaning “peace” and “my love.”
“I feel for them, right?” Youssef joked on The View. “I think they’re worried, saying Arabic immersion, and it’s got to be tough, because I think they’re supporters of the president. So imagine your president on Easter is tweeting ‘Praise be to Allah,’ and now Elmo saying ‘habibi.’ Feels threatening.”
Noting that he taught Elmo the word “habibi,” which means “my love,” and “salamu alaykum,” is phrase Jesus used, meaning “peace be upon you,” the comedian reasoned, “This is really not that difficult, it just means peace.”
Youssef continued, “There’s been a lot of languages, and there’s been no backlash to those. So, it actually really did surprise me. I guess, now I’m not surprised. But I’ve said a lot of things, and this was the thing that people have been most upset about. … literally saying ‘peace’ and ‘my special friend.’ I mean, I’ve talked about Free Palestine, I’ve talked about things that are so important to me, and people have said certain things. Elmo saying ‘habibi’ has set them off in a way that has never happened to me before.”
Meanwhile, the experience filming Sesame Street with a childhood legend was “so emotional” for Youssef, especially during Arab American Heritage Month.
“You grow up watching Elmo, and so for Elmo to say ‘salamu alaykum,’ for Elmo to say ‘habibi,’ I was very emotional,” said Youssef. “Actually, if you watch the clip, you can tell. I can’t believe it, it’s very surreal the entire time.”