After six thrilling seasons, Netflix abruptly scrapped the prime time comedy talk show Patriot Act, much to the surprise and frustration of fans.
The show has seemed a bit unfocused in recent episodes, but it has failed to live up to its promise.
In particular, the show failed to protect the women who played a key role in its success.
In June, journalist and editorial producer Sheila V. Kumar wrote on social networking site Twitter that when she was working with Hassan Minhaj in the Patriot Act, she was never so unhappy with him.
I've been thinking all day about @prachigu and @amalykinz's tweets on their former workplaces, and how much courage it must have taken to speak out. So I'd like to join them and say, I've never been more unhappy than when I was working at Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj.
— Sheila V Kumar (@SheilaVee) June 8, 2020
However, Sheila V Kumar did not elaborate on the unhappiness but she was not the only employee who had a disappointing experience.
Also read:Users are angry over the sudden end of Hassan Minhaj's 'Patriot Act' on Netflix
Pakistani writer Noor Nasreen spoke about the time she spent on the show's set and what she had to endure while the cameras were off.
A lot of people have asked me to talk about Patriot Act. I avoided it because each time I relive the experience of being humiliated and gaslit, targeted and ignored, I sink back into days of depression. Tweeting this will probably not help me or anyone who has suffered.
— nur nasreen (@Nuri_ibrahim) August 20, 2020
"Most people have asked me to talk about the Patriot Act, but I avoided it because every time I endure the experience of being insulted, targeted and ignored, I get depressed," he said. I go back in those days.Aware of the need for work on the show and the vast opportunity given by the show, he was convinced that tweeting at the time might not have helped him.
"I am amazed that I deserved the mental anguish I endured in the last few months," she added.
"I wish we still had the Patriot Act, I wish they really followed the progressive ethics that they showed on the screen, then they really deserved your love." ۔
Following Noor Nasreen's tweets, those involved in the Patriot Act also raised the point that it was not a one-man show but was based on the hard work of several people who were treated horribly.
Eva Dixit from the New York Times posted that the show was not just a star's talent and charisma, the people whose hard work made her what she looked like were treated horribly.
"I have seen how my friends went through conditions while working there," he wrote.
That show was not just one star’s brilliance and charisma. The people whose labor made it what it was were treated horribly, and I’ve watched my friends break down in real time from what they went through while working there. https://t.co/9hbhKsEzCt
— Iva Dixit (@ivadixit) August 21, 2020
Producer Amy Zhang, on the other hand, expressed the most sympathy and confirmed that other people also went through it.
"It was shocking to learn that Sheila and Noor, the unseen producers who led some of our episodes in the Amazon, Saudi Arabia, Indian elections, were silenced and treated unfairly, not just those who Had to go through all.
It was traumatizing to witness Sheila + Nur, intrepid producers who led some of our top episodes--Amazon, Saudi Arabia, Indian Elections—be silenced, treated unfairly + made to later doubt their own skills in a toxic newsroom.
— Amy Zhang (@azhang852) August 24, 2020
They were not the only WOC who went through this. https://t.co/yED47UaoXB
After which former employees of the Patriot Act also condemned discrimination in the workplace.
One user wrote that while the Patriot Act is important in South Asian representation and social commentary, it should also be condemned for failing to protect those responsible for its success.
While Patriot Act should be celebrated for the underrepresented voice it brought to a blizzard white genre, it should also be condemned. Nur is my brilliant friend who, among other WOC, faced mistreatment while employed by the show. Absolutely no workplace is immune to prejudice. https://t.co/1s6BlM4uI6
— Wil Kauffman (👈 Hire me) (@wilburman4) August 22, 2020
It may be recalled that the Patriot Act was started in 2018 which consisted of six seasons and so far 39 episodes have been aired.
A year before the launch of this show, Hassan Minhaj had hosted a function of the White House Journalists Association which was appreciated. The Patriot Act has been awarded various honors, including P Body, Emmy for Outstanding Design. Despite the end of the show, its current 39 episodes will be available for streaming on Netflix. While fans were outraged by the sudden end of the Patriot Act, Change.org filed an online petition to bring the show back.
