Books do more than tell stories. They help shape how children understand themselves and the world around them. For generations, many Muslim children grew up without ever seeing their lives, families, or communities reflected in the books they read. Today, as more diverse stories have found their way onto library shelves and classroom reading lists, those same books are increasingly becoming the target of bans and challenges across the country.

In this episode of Deep Dives with ISPU, award-winning children's author and former ISPU board member Hena Khan reflects on growing up as a Pakistani American Muslim without seeing herself represented in books, and how that experience inspired her to create stories that help young readers feel seen, understood, and valued.

Hena shares her personal experience with book bans, the role stories play in fostering empathy and belonging, and why she remains hopeful despite the challenges facing authors, educators, and readers today. At a time when debates over books are unfolding in communities across the country, this conversation asks an important question: What happens when the stories created to help children feel seen become the target of book bans?

When we asked our team a simple question — what’s one ISPU data point that has stayed with you — we expected a range of answers.

Instead, a clear pattern emerged.

Across data on civic engagement, discrimination, and persistent stereotypes, one throughline connected them all: the gap between how American Muslims show up and how they are still perceived.

In this episode of Deep Dives with ISPU, we hear from ISPU Executive Director Tuqa Nusairat, Director of Research Dr. Saher Selod, and Senior Research Project Manager Erum Ikramullah as they reflect on the data points that stayed with them most.

Together, their insights reveal a larger story — one of a community that continues to participate, engage, and invest in society, even as bias and misperceptions persist. From rising voter registration, to unchanged levels of discrimination, to deeply embedded stereotypes about Muslim women, this episode connects the dots between participation, perception, and the narratives in between.

At first, the connection feels surprising. But as the data unfolds, it becomes clear: this is a pattern we’ve been seeing all along.

Entertainment media portrayals don’t just shape culture—they shape policy. For decades, Muslims in film and television have often been depicted through narrow and harmful stereotypes. New research from ISPU shows those portrayals have measurable consequences, influencing public attitudes toward Muslims and shaping support for policies that restrict civil liberties for everyone.

In this episode of Deep Dives with ISPU, Dr. Sohad Murrar, Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Illinois Chicago and ISPU expert scholar, and Dr. Saher Selod, ISPU Director of Research, unpack ISPU’s report Stereotypes on Screen. Together, they examine how entertainment media fuels perceptions of threat, increases support for surveillance and anti-democratic policies, and reinforces the institutionalization of Islamophobia.

But this story is not just about negative portrayals. Sohad and Saher also explore how complex, human portrayals of Muslims can reduce prejudice, shift attitudes, and strengthen the democratic values that affect us all. At a time when endorsement and upholding of civil liberties feel increasingly fragile, this conversation asks a crucial question: if entertainment media can help construct fear, can it also help rebuild trust?