For over 250 years, American Muslims have enriched American life, but many of those stories are unknown. Join us for an evening of film, conversation, and community.
Here’s the good news: from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday, August 21, 2026, you don’t have to imagine those stories — you get to hear them, directly from one of the producers.
MCC, in collaboration with Unity Productions Foundation, presents scenes from The Great Muslim American Road Trip — a nationally broadcast documentary about Muslims who helped shape America, brought to life with live commentary from Executive Producer Jawaad Abdul Rahman and a Q&A where you get the mic.
UPF Executive Producer Jawaad Abdul Rahman will speak about the stories of American Muslim builders, bakers, and skyscraper makers as Jawaad takes us through UPF’s Great Muslim American Road Trip film. Brother Jawaad will also deliver the 1:30 and 2:30 Jumu’ah sermons at MCC on Friday, Aug. 21.
This isn’t just a movie night. It’s a room full of neighbors, a filmmaker’s untold stories, and a chapter of American history most people have never heard.
For over 250 years, American Muslims have enriched American life, and this is a rare evening to discover those stories together — film, conversation, and community, in one room.
7 p.m. to 9 p.m. | Friday, Aug. 21, 2026 | MCC Conference Room | Mcceastbay.org/America | Join in person (due to copyright issues, this event will not be livestreamed)
This event is for anyone who is curious about American history or who believes in peaceful coexistence between faiths. We’ll be exploring answers to questions like the following: How does the history of Muslims tie into America’s history as a whole? How has the faith of Islam been practiced? How have Muslims cooperated with people of other faiths in America? What are their views toward our collective future as Americans? The approach is less academia…more adventure.
Questions? events@mcceastbay.org
How much of America’s story is still hiding in plain sight?
As part of America 250, join us for a film screening of The Great Muslim American Road Trip, an award-winningfilm that follows a couple traveling historic Route 66 in search of America’s Muslim roots.
What begins as a classic American road trip soon becomes a journey of surprising discoveries. Along the way,they encounter stories of unlikely pioneers, like the architect who helped shape the American skyline, the camel driver who helped map the American Southwest, the link between West African and American art, and much more. They also meet tech entrepreneurs, doctors, and creatives shaping the future.
Filled with memorable characters, roadside adventures, and plenty of humor, the film offers a fresh look at what it means to be American—and how people of many backgrounds have helped build this nation. Come discover a side of American history you may never have heard before, but one that has been part of our shared story all along.
Oh the places you’ll go…snapshots from the Muslim Road Trip
So where will you go and who will you meet and what will you see at the American Muslims 250/Road Trip Film screening event ???
This event is for anyone who is curious about American history or who believes in peaceful coexistence between faiths. We’ll be exploring answers to questions like the following: How does the history of Muslims tie into America’s history as a whole? How has the faith of Islam been practiced? How have Muslims cooperated with people of other faiths in America? What are their views toward our collective future as Americans?
The approach is less academia…more adventure.
Why Your Muslim Teen Should Join Us
Dozens of communities nationwide have screened UPF’s Great Muslim American Road Trip Film and while adults love it, one of the pleasant surprises has been the feedback from Muslim teenagers. Here is what we’ve heard:
- “I’m Desi, my friends are mostly Desi and Arab, but hearing the stories of how African Americans rediscovered Islam when they didn’t grow up in a Muslim environment helped me appreciate it more.”
- “It was nice to see the main couple, Mona and Sebastian, you don’t ever get to see a love story of a Muslim couple on screen presented tastefully.”
- “I’ve thought about a career as an attorney, so seeing Maria, the civil rights attorney make real change was inspiring.”
- “The whole Route 66 journey was kitchy, but also cool. Even in Amarillo Texas and Joplin Missouri and places I’ve never heard of there are It’s a slice of Americana and I didn’t realize Muslims have been on this journey as well.”
- “Seeing the young Muslims doing cool things in tech. We are kind of afraid of AI, understandably, but also need to control it. Seeing how they are using it to solve real world problems.”
- “The Muslims who came from the Philippines, in the early 1900s, how they were viewed, and how they tried to build a mosque at the worlds fair. That’s random, but also cool.”
What inspiration will your Muslim teen take? Give them a chance to be proud of their heritage and optimistic about our future. Join us
People of all faiths and backgrounds are welcome — bring someone who’d never expect it.
Here’s a little secret about our upcoming film screening: it’s better with a plus-one.
People of all faiths and backgrounds are welcome. We encourage you to invite your family, friends, teachers and colleagues to join us.
Think of the coworker who’s curious but never asks. The teacher who’d love this. The neighbor you’ve been meaning to get to know. This is the invitation that opens the door.
For over 250 years, American Muslims have enriched American life, and this is a rare evening to discover those stories together — film, conversation, and community, in one room.
“Muslims don’t belong in America.”
You’ve heard the nonsense and bigotry from some politicians.
They say that Muslims don’t belong in America…and worse.
But you know that American Muslims have over 250 years of contribution and service. A history of contribution older than America itself. Join us to watch selections from the award-winning TV series, The Great Muslim American Road Trip.
The film follows a young Muslim couple traveling historic Route 66 to uncover the rich and often overlooked history of Muslims in the United States.
Along the way, they explore:
- How Muslim doctors are contributing not just in big cities but in small-town America.
- Islamic values like reverence for God and empathy toward people.
- Commonalities with Christianity at a historic church in Santa Fe.
- The remarkable story of a Middle Eastern rancher hired by Jefferson Davis before the Civil War to help establish the U.S. Army Camel Corps.
- Tech entrepreneurs, teachers, an actor, and so much more…
Rather than offering an academic interpretation, the film presents history in a way that is engaging, relatable, and grounded in lived experience—helping audiences of all backgrounds better understand both America and Muslims.
WHY this matters
American Muslims have been part of the fabric of this nation for over 250 years, yet our stories are often missing, and some voices seek to marginalize us in the public discourse. This goes against the principles of the Declaration we commemorate this year.
WHAT the program is
A ready-made program for your community and guests of other faiths featuring a UPF speaker and scenes from our award-winning film The Great Muslim American Road Trip.
The film follows a young Muslim couple traveling Route 66, uncovering overlooked stories of Muslims across American history—from early pioneers, artists, doctors, entrepreneurs, and more. Rather than purely academic, the film brings our stories to life in an insightful and entertaining way while tying into the greater American story.
About the speaker
Jawaad Abdul Rahman is a Film Producer and Director of Development at Unity Productions Foundation. His career has focused on fostering positive relationships among people of different faiths, using the power of film, philanthropy, and community service. At UPF, he has worked on over 15 award-winning documentary films like The Great Muslim American Road Trip and the Sultan and the Saint, as well as on UPF’s Hollywood engagement and educational outreach initiatives. Jawaad holds an MPA from Indiana University and teaches through the Lilly School of Philanthropy. Before UPF, he founded American Muslims Unite for Life, which registered thousands of American Muslims for bone marrow donation to their fellow Americans with blood diseases.
Jawad has spoken at over a hundred events, including UPF’s First Hollywood Iftar, the Indiana Governor’s Iftar, Buxton Initiative, ISNA Convention, ICNA Convention, ISNA Leadership Forum, APPNA Annual Meeting, and has been a keynote speaker at over a dozen university events including Georgetown, Indiana University (Indianapolis), James Madison, Wichita State, and many others. As part of the ADAMS Center khutba team under the guidance of Imam Mohamed Magid and Ustdah Abdul Rafah Oueretani, he has also delivered khutba at over fifty different mosques around the US on a variety of topics.