ccas 2008 summer newsletter

June 2008

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Sympos ium Addresses the Soc ia l , Economic ,and Pol i t ica l Im pl icat ion s of Ind u st r ia l i zat ioni n t h e C u l fM i m i K i r k

ACAS's annual symposium, held March 27 and 28 inI Georgetown University's Copley Formal Lounge,\-/ brought together scholars from such countries as Saudi

Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE, England, and the Netherlands toexplore both the social and economic implications of thesurge of indushialization that has taken place in the Gulf inthe past decades. Not only academics, but lawyers, bankers,and government officials took part in the rich discussion. Inhis opening remarks, Dr. Jean-Frangois Seznec, CCAS VisitingAssociate Professor and the symposium's chair, noted that theevent would "help us understand the economic and financial roleof the region, the role ofwomen, labormigrations, employmentissues, the changes in relations with Iran, and basically all theimplications of this new world order."

His Excellency Shaikh Mohammed bin Isa al-Khalifa, ChiefExecutive of the Bahrain Economic Development Board, gavethe keynote address, in which he discussed how the GCC'swealth has grown steadily from an influx of petro dollars, butthat the future of the region lies in non-oil revenue streams anddiversification. Shaikh Mohammed also noted that the GCCmust be "honest and open about the challenges that face ustoday. If we are to achieve lasting success," he continued, "weneed to examine and address our economic realities, our flaws,and our failings and do so with a level of openness we have notdone in previous generations."

The first panel, chaired by CCAS Director Dr. MichaelC. Hudson, gave a general overview of industrialization inthe region. Dr. Hazem Beblawi of the Arab Monetary Fundspoke about how the region must address two basic concerns:the eventual limit of its oil reserves and its heavy reliance onimported labor. Brad Bourland of Jadwa Investments thenexplained how though oil is ultimately depletable, in theforeseeable future it will continue to bring prosperity to theregion. "However," he said, 'owe need to allow other sectorsof the economy to also grow." Finally, Frances Cook, formerambassador to Oman, spoke about needed trajectories in theGCC, including education that focuses on management andtechnical training, a greater awareness of the importance ofwomen, and creating employment opportunities for nationals.

Dr. Samer Shehata, Assistant Professor in CCAS, chaired thesecond panel, which covered labor constraints and migration

HE Shaikh Mohammed bin lsa al-Khali fa del ivers the keynoteaddress at CCAS's annual symposium, held March 27 and 28.

r-5 CCAS Annual Symposium Explores Industrialization in the Gulf6-8 CCAS Mourns the Loss of Faculty and Friends8-9 Adjuncts and Postdoc Teach Compelling Spring Courses9-1o MAAS Students Demonstrate Against "Israel: Still Sexy at Sixty"

Celebration

15 Writing forTeaching and LearningAboutthe Middle EastWorkshopFeatures Renowned Novelist

16-17 Israeli and Palestinian Histories Explored in Spring OubeachWorkshop

r9-zr Alumni and Student Newszr-23 FacultyNews

rz-r4 Spring zoo8 Public Events

t8-r9 CCAS Congratulates its 27 MAAS Graduates

Center for Contemporary Arab Studies I Ceorgetown University ! Washington DC 20057-1020 n http:/ /ccas.georgetown.edu a 2O2 6g7 5793

Ce nte r Newsissues in the region. Independentscholar Dr. Gwerur Okruhlikdiscussed the ways in which theGCC's dependence on foreignlabor fosters social distance andpolitical confrontation, whileTrinity University's Dr. MaryAnn Tetreault spoke about thebenefits and drawbacks of theAmerican-style institutions ofhigher education that have beenestablished in Kuwait and otherGulf countries in the last ten years.Sarah Leah Whitson, directorof the Middle East and Africadivision at Human Rights Watch,focused her talk on how thepractice of exploiting unskilledexpatriate workers in the GCC

"needs to be focused on as a humanrights issue. There is an endemicabuse of migrant workers in theGulf." she said.

The third panel, chaired by Dr. Hatoon Al-Fassi and Dr. Munira Fakhro talk informally with symposium attendeesCCAS Assistant Professor Dr. after their panel on women and industrialization'Fida Adely, considered the roleof women in industrializalion. Dr. Hatoon Al-Fassi of King the fifth panel, which took place on the moming of March 28Saud University explored the use of technology in Saudi and focused on the dynamic between the Gulf states and Iran.Arabia, such as closed circuit television, to expand education Paul Aarts, lecturer at the University of Amsterdam, outlinedfor women. Yet, she also warned that it helps to preserve fourscenariosofhowrelationsbetweenSaudiArabiaandlranwomen's isolation. Next, Dr. Munira Fakhro, an independent might look in 2030. Dr. John Duke Anthony, founder and CEOscholar from Bahrain, concluded that an increasing number of the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations, then spokeof women in her country are joining the industrial sector, and about the strategic, economic, and political interest of the GCCthat they want their participation countries vis d vis lran, and Dr.recognizedviasuchdevelopments "[The

event] wil l help uS understand Matteo Legrenzi of Canada's

n:f,;:i,Tffil,Hff.Ti;ffi -i!....onomic and nnanciar rore of l]il::':fl"""1?,nT"'t'J3:ifrom the American ;;;-t the regiOn, the role Of w.men, labOr a united diplomatic, economic,of Sharjah in the UAE explo.ei migrat ionS, employment issues, the andadministrat iveent i ty.whether the private sector's Changes in felatiOns With lfan, and The last panel, chaireddemands for immediate profits- baSiCally all the impliCatiOns Of this by Patrick Theros, formercan be balanced with the duties ofmotherhood.

Le duties or new wortd order." :f'il:"tl,1J:dli| ;ll,ilJPanelfour,chairedbyDr.Kristin -Dn. JEer.r-Fnqtgots Sezruec, Council, analyzed the domestic

Smith of American University, Svt',tpostutr,t Cuatn and intemational implicationsaddressed how investments such of industrialization. Dr. Steffenas stocks and bonds finance the Gulf's economic growth. Dr. Hertog of Britain's Durham University spoke about the politicsJean-Frangois Seznec discussed how government-affiliated of state-owned enterprises in the Gulf, which he explainedcompanies, such as Saudi Aramco and Sabic, are limiting arc a way of "upgrading rentier authoritarianism." Dr. Gerdthe control of government by, for example, making the state Nonneman of Britain's University of Exeter piggybacked ona minority shareholder. Jessica Anderson of the Bank of New Dr. Hertog's talk by addressing whether the Gulf states are nowYork Mellon then spoke about how foreign companies in the rentier states or developmental states.Gulf are accessing global capital markets through depositary The two-day symposium certainly met the expectationsreceipts. Finally, British lawyer Alastair Hirst explored outlined in Dr. Seznec's opening remarks, thanks in large partcorporate governance in the region and the cultural factors that to the organizational efforts of Dr. Seznec and Margaret Daher,limit it. the Center's Public Affairs Coordinator. The Center will publish

Dr. Emest Tucker ofthe United States NavalAcademy chaired an edited volume based on the event. O

CCAS News o June 2008

6,5",.,,""*countries share morestrategically in commonthan people are crware.Both have pain in theirhearts with regard to theoccupied Palestiniansand Syrians...Each alsoheld cooperation in bringing the SovietUnion to its lvtees in Afghanistan...[andJ alleight of them constitute part of the epicenterof prayeri pilgrimage, faith, and spiritualdevotion of half of humanity."

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not producinghomogenization, butrather new expressionsof distinctionsbetween populations.Distinctions are greatestwhereforeigners are ahigh percentage of the population [as inmany states in the GCCJ."

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private, publicly held,outside the governmenttype of system allows formu ch fas t er dev el opment.The reason the Saudieconomy is boomingis because companieslike Sabic and Saudi Aramco are able toram through the system to put enoftnousamounts of money into the economy."

JpaN-Fna.Ngors SpzNpc/ /a ah h- SdEe sectors of the Gulf

are very competitive,with high levels of localskills embedded in anenabling policy andre gu I at o ry environment...But the rest of theeconomies remain stuck.effectively, due to such elements as thes ociopolitical framework, the ques tion ofeducation, and the skill shortage. Hencethey're not moving toward competitivenessand longlerm non-oil viability."

cooperation of theministerial andadministrative level hascontinued unabated...[ButJ GCC memberstates do not constitutea security community.The smaller GCC states feel that regionalsecurity can probably be obtained whilecarving out a more autonomous roleforthemselves."


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Center News

6{D;;;,technologt, like closed-circuit television, hashelped education toexpand ffor womenin Saudi ArabiaJ. Butit has also helped toendorse traditionalnolms that preserve the isolation andinvisibility ofwomen as much as possible."

2 008 Svtr,tpostuu PRueusrs

6h",,,-",-,^ 6,f**,,,*,,,outlining possiblerelations betweenSaudi Arabia and lranin 2130-'peacefulh e gemonic c o mp et ition,''friendly neighbors,''alienation,' and'continued fragile pragmatism'-pres ent ananalytical exercise that allows us to thinkoutside the current paradigm."

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workers is a result ofthe laws and policiesof Gulf governments...Solving these problemsis low-hangingfruit.The Gulf Countries hattethe means and capacityto solve these problems."

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l/ l/-- -h h- TWbnly way to make a

living after oil is to havereal economic wealth onthe ground and not liveon fin anc i al inv es tm ent salone...AcceptingYemen will also be amaj or strategic decis ion.It can provide the GCC with a much-needed laborforce and a more diversifiedeconomy."

Hazpu Bper.twr

t/ l/-I h+u, don't htow the

effects ofwidespreadforeign education onculture... It's time to doan assessment on theprivate institutions inthe Gulf. There's still alot of time and spaceforintervention."

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6 rk","- r"'"**aims to achievetransparency andaccountability inhow publicly tradedcompanies are directedand controlled... Threelocal factors-deepconventional respectfor the authorities, adeeply ingrained culture of public politeness,and a distastefor public confrontation-inhibit corporate governance in the Gulfstates."

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2 008 Syprposruu PRrurusrs

6r5,.^,,*r,",* 6h"*"*,exposes women tolonger working hours...Womenwant [these]hours adjusted tofit withmaternal respons ibilites,and they want their payIevel to be the sameas their male counterparts as well as theestablishment of day carefacilities in everylarge industry."

Murma Farcrno

depos itary receipts comesfrom companies [suchas in the GCCJ that areint ern at io nal iz ing fo rthefirst time as wellcs smaller investorsand second and thirdtier institutions... Depositary receipts givethese companies greater name recognitionin the international markets and thqt signala commitment to the communitv outside thelocal market."

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ra ofindustrialization isan unprecedentedopportunityfor growthand reform. The GCCstates are blessed,by and large, withinnovative leaders whonot only have vastfinancial resources, butwho understand the opportunities andwhowant to do what is bestfor their people."

FnaNces Coor

families and succeed inbusiness in the GuWYes, if the Gulf countriescontinue to pursue a's ofter capitalism' thatbrings Islamic valuesinto play rather than acapitalism b"reft of all government control."

Nann MounraDA-SABBAH

6 tS-,,'""-",,-,-'are creating a kind oflarge, retail shareholderculture in the Gulf inwhich a lot of peoplehave shares in largenational enterprises. It'saway of distributingrentier wealth without creating thebureaucratic jobs and subsidies. It's a muchsmarter way of redistributing money."

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is a global economicstory that is high growthfor emerging marketsand probable high oilrevenuesforyears tocome accompanied byfavorable economicliberalization and diversification. "


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Ce nte r News

Memorial Held for Dr. Faruk Tabak, Professorof Modern Turk ish Stud ies a t SFSSamer Shehata

axuk Tabak, Nesuhi ErtegiinProfessor of Modern TurkishStudies in the School of Foreign

Service at Georgetown University,passed away on February 15, 2008 inAnkara, Turkey after falling ill duringthe winter holiday. Faruk was spendingthe holiday with friends and family there,as he often did.

CCAS held a memorial on Apil24,2008 honoring Professor Tabak. Many ofFaruk's students as well as his colleaguesand friends attended the event at whichProfessors John McNeill, MichaelHudson, Sylvia Onder, Samer Shehata,David Cuthell, Tim Beach, BarbaraStowasser, and Dean Robert Galluccispoke about Faruk, his scholarship, andhis contribution to the university. ErdenizSen represented the Turkish Embassy atthe event.

Professor Beach spoke about thepleasures of reading Faruk's recentboolr, The WanW of the Meditenanean,1550-1870: A Geohistorical Approach(Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008).Professor McNeill discussed the breadthof Faruk's knowledge while ProfessorShehata spoke about Faruk as both acolleague and friend in and outside theunivenity. Professor Hudson addressedFaruk's intellectual contribution to CCAS,including his presentation at the Center's2004 annual symposium. Professor Onderread a moving description ofFaruk's funeralwritten by SFS Professor Scoft Redfor4who attended his memorial in Ankara.Onder also read an excerpt from a poemwritten by the Ottoman poet Yahya Bey,in remembrance of Faruk's well-knownwalls along Georgetown's brick sidewalks.Professor Stowasser spoke about Faruk'scharacter: his modesty, decency, generosity,and sense ofhumor.

Faruk Tabak became a cherishedmember ofthe CCAS community after hisarrival at Georgetown in 2000. His officewas located in CCAS, and he quicklybecame known for his warmtho kindness,sharp intellect, and the sheer breadth ofhis historical and sociological knowledge.

6

Systems, and Civilizations atBinghamton University in NewYork State on May 8, 2008.Faruk completed his Ph.D. atthe univenity in addition toworking at the Braudel Centerfor a number ofyears.

Professor Tabak will beremembered by students,colleagues, and friends aroundthe world for his scholarship,generosity of spirit, warmth,kindness, and gentle pr€sence.

He will be sorely missed by CCASfaculty, stafl and students and the widerGeorgetown University community. 1

Writes Dr. Samer Shehata, a close friend of Faruk's: "He wil l be sorely missed byCCAS faculty, staff, and students and the wider Georgetown University community."

Faruk also generously contributed to the A memorial for professor Tabak wasintellectual life of the Center, frequently also held at the Femand Braudel Centerattending CCAS events and becoming a for the Studv of Economies. Historicalregular presence at the annualArab Studies undergraduatecolloquium.

Faruk's book, The Waningof the Mediterranean,1 550-1870: A GeohistoricalAppro ach, w as published onlyweeks before his passing. Justbefore he died, Faruk held acopy of the 432-page bookin his hands. An ecologicaland economic history of theMediterranean spanning fourcenturies and covering a vastgeographical area, it has already beendescribed as a breathtaking achievementBraudelian in scope.


Center NewsCCAS Mourns the Loss o f Dr . George At iyeh,Dr . And rew Vincent , Dr . Lou is Cantor i , andAmbassador Luc ius Bat t le

DR. GEORGE ATIYEH, a respectedmember of the Center for ContemporaryArab Studies'Advisory Board from theearly 1980s until 1997, passed away inApril after a long illness. Dr. Atiyeh wasbom in Amioun, Lebanon, and receiveda B.A. and an M.A. from the AmericanUniversity ofBeirut. In 1951,he moved to theU.S. to attendthe University ofChicago, wherehe earned aPh.D. in Orientallanguages andliterature. Afterteaching at the University of Puerto Ricofor 13 years, Dr. Atiyeh was offered theeminent position of head of the Libraryof Congress's Near East Section. Heoccupied the position for nearly thirtyyears, until his retirement in 1996.

During his tenure at the LibraryDr. Atiyeh expanded the Near Eastcollection from 15,000 to more than250,000 volumes and worked tirelesslyto promote greater understanding ofthe Arab world in the West. His effortsto do so earned him the National Orderof the Cedag one of the highest honorsgiven by the Lebanese government.Dr. Atiyeh also published a number ofbooks and edited volumes, including l/-Kindi: Philosopher of the Arabs (OxfordUniversity Press, 1968) and The Bookin the Islamic World: The lVritten Wordand Communication in the Middle East(The Library of Congress and the StateUniversity of New York Press, 1995).

CCAS DirectorDr. Michael C. Hudsoncommented on Dr. Atiyeh's valuedrelationship with the Center: "Throughhis strong connections with scholarsand academic institutions across theArab world, he enriched our educationalrelationships in the region. He was alsoa close friend of several of the Center'sfaculty members, including HishamSharabi, Hanna Batatu, Halim Barakat,


Ibrahim Oweiss, and myself, amongothers. We are deeply saddened at hispassing."

Our sincere condolences go out to Dr.Atiyeh's widow, Daisy, and their threechildren, Nicholas, Rose Marie, andLancelot.

Friend of the Center DR. ANDREWVINCENT, Senior Lecturer in MiddleEast Politics at Macquarie Universityin Sydney, Australia, and a formerAustralian diplomat in Lebanon andSyria, passed away in April after a longbattle with cancer. He and his wife PetraCanard were living in Beirut at the time,where Dr. Vincent was teaching at theAmerican University there.

Dr. Vincent had a long and fruitfulrelationship with the Center. In 1992,he invited CCAS Director Dr. MichaelC. Hudson to join him and Dr. ClementHenry Moore of the University ofTexas at Austin in organizing a MiddleEast politics simulation "game" overthe Internet in which students fromGeorgetown, Macquarie, and Texaswould play the roles of Middle Easternand global actors facing a series ofregional conflicts occurring in a fictitiousscenario set a few years in the future. Later,students from the American Universitvin Cairo werealso included.

This projectwas one of thefirst of its kindto utilize theInternet and emailto bring studentsfrom aroundthe globe into acommon educational exercise. It provedvery successful and has been refined andrepeated over the years.

"Andrew Vincent brought bothhis experience from the Australiandiplomatic service and his Ph.D. studiesat Penn to become a genuine MiddleEast expert," said Dr. Hudson. "He was

a fine colleague and a wonderful friend,and was much beloved by his students atMacquarie and those from Georgetownwho knew him through the simulationexercises. We will certainly miss him."

Our sincere condolences go out toPetra and other surviving members of Dr.Mncent's family.

DR. LOUIS CANTORI, Professor ofPolitical Science at the University ofMaryland, Baltimore County (UMBC)and a valued adjunct professor at CCAS,passed away in May after a lengthyillness.

Dr. Cantori eamed his doctorate inpolitical science from the Universityof Chicago in 1966 and continued hiseducation at Al-Azhar Universitv inCairo, where hestudied Islamicphilosophy for ayear. Dr. Cantorithen taught atUCLAuntil7972,at which timehe joined thepolitical sciencedepartment atUMBC.Heservedas the department's chair from 1979 to1985. Dr. Cantori also acted as a consultantto USAID and was a visiting lecturerat the State Department. He authoredseveral books and over 40 articles on theMiddle East and comparative politics, andwas a founding member of the AmericanCouncil for the Study of Islamic Societiesas well as the Center for the Study ofIslam and Democracy.

CCAS Director Dr. Michael C.Hudson commented on his friend andcolleague: "Lou Cantori and I wentback a long way-we first met studyingArabic together at Princeton one hotsummer in the early I 960s. We had manyfriendly debates over my "liberal" asopposed to his "conservative corporate"approach to Middle East politics. Overthe years he taught at the Center in

Dr. Louis Cantor i

Dr . Andrew V incent

Ce nte r Newsfields ranging from developmentplanning to local government andcomparative politics. We will indeedmiss him."

Dr. Cantori is survived by Barbara,his wife of 54 years, t}ree children,and nine grandchildren.

Esteemed CCAS Advisory Boardmember AMBASSADOR LUCIUSBATTLE passed away in May fromParkinson's disease.

Mr. Battle was bom in Dawson,Georgia, and received a B.A. and aJ.D. from the University of Florida. Healso served in the Navy in the Pacificduring WWII. Mr. Battle joinedthe State Department in 1946, andenjoyed an illustrious diplomatic andadministrative career, with highlightsincluding apost as ambassadorto Egyptunder Gamal Abdel Nasser's rule andan appointmentas assistant secretary ofstate forNear Eastern and SouthAsianAffairs n1967 and 1968.Afterleavingthe govemment, he served as thepresident of the Middle East Instituteand the Johns Hopkins UniversitySchool of Advanced IntemationalStudies' Foreign Policy Institute. Healso became advisory board chairmanoftheNationalCouncil onU . S . - A r a brelations in1995.

"All of us atCCAS moumthe passing ofAmbassadorLucius Battle,"said CCAS

Ambassador LuciusBattle

DirectorDr. Michael C. Hudson. "Lukewas a devoted member of ourAdvisoryBoard from the inception of the Centern 1975 until 1988, and we benefitedfrom Luke's wisdom, support, andgood humor. He was one of the greatbridge-builders between the UnitedStates and the Arab worl4 and he willbe remembered as one of America'soutstanding diplomats. "

Mr. Battle is survived by four childrenand eight grandchildren. His wife, BettyDavis Battle, passed away n2004.

Adjuncts and PostdoctoralFe l low Teach Com pe l l ingSpr ing Cou rses

Students of Arab-American l i terature ( l-r) Dena Takruri , Lucy Thiboutot,and Dina Hussein join Professor Gregory Orfalea at the Gibran memorialin Washington, D.C. Says Thiboutot about the class: " l t was a journey withunexpected twists and turns, and we came out with new perspectives of ArabAmericans and ourselves."

M i m i K i r k

CAS adjunct faculty Eric Goldstein, Adel Iskander, Noureddine Jebnoun,Laurie King-Irani, and Gregory Orfalea taught a number of noteworthyclasses to MAAS students in the spring of 2008, including Mr. Orfalea's"Arab-American Literature," which was offered for the first time in Georgetown

University's history. Qatar Postdoctoral Fellow Sherene Seikaly also taught acourse related to her valuable dissertation research on consumption in the MiddleEast.

Professor Goldstein's class, "Debating and Implementing Human Rights: Thecase of the Middle East," introduced students to the subject of international humanrights, and used examples from the Middle East and North Africa to illustrate keyconcepts, debates, and players. Dr. Iskander's course, "Dissidence and Innovation:New Media and the Arab World" provided an overview of the increasingly influentialrealm of media as it applies to the region. The class examined definitions of radical,independent, alternative, and politically aligned media, and allowed students toexplore studies inArab satellite television, online radio broadcasting, blogging, andother means of mass communication.

Professor Jebnoun taught a class in Arabic entitled "Ethnic and ReligiousMinorities in the Arab world." The course stressed the role of elobalization and


CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8

the information revolution in bringingto light the treatment of minoritiesin the region, and it ultimatelyemphasized the opportunity forArab societies to develop notions ofbelonging that value participation ineconomic, social, and political lifeabove ethnicity, religion, or place ofbirth. Dr. King-Irani's course, "ArabSociety," presented anthropologicaltheory methodology, and analysisthrough eight ethnographies. Students

were encouraged to position the workswithin the discourses of anthropology,cultural studies, and the politicaleconomy of the contemporary Arabworld.

In Gregory Orfalea's "Arab-AmericanLiterature," MAAS students studiedpoetry, memoir, and fiction from a rangeof figures, from Gibran Kahtil Gibran toRalph Nader to the Libyan-Americannovelist Hisham Matar. The class lookedcarefully at issues of dual identity,ethnicity, and home. Highlights includeda visit by Palestinian-American poet

Sharif Elmusa and a tour of the GibranPeace Memorial on MassachusettsAvenue. Finally, Professor Seikaly,scourse, "History of Consumption inthe Middle East," surveyed the regionthrough the lens of consumption-which, according to Dr. Seikaly, is"a site where individuals, groups,businesses, and states work togetherto create subjectivity, nationalism, andcitizenship." The course's timelinebegan with the Ottoman consumerand culminated with globalization anddevelopment. I

"We wanted to represent those voices who weren't present." -Jessica Devctney

MAAS students Demonstrate Against " ls rae l :St i l l Sexy at Sixty" Celebrat ionM i m i K i r k

hen Harald Fuller-Bennett, asecond-year Master of Artsin Arab Studies student. saw

signs around campus advertising acelebration for Israel's 60th birthdayentitled "Israel: Still Sexy at Sixty,"his interest-and annoyance-waspiqued. "The title seemed over-the-top and offensive," he says. So Fuller-Bennett decided to put up his ownposters, which read, "Sexy at Sixty?Whatever you think about Israel/Palestine...Whomever you believeis to blame...Is there anything sexyabout this?" The sign featured twoimages: one of a gravely injuredIsraeli man, and one of a deceasedPalestinian child.

Within a week, says Fuller-Bennett,the hosts of the celebration, theGeorgetown Israel Alliance (GIA),withdrew the word "sexy" from theiradvertisements. "It was kind of amarketing slogan," GIA co-presidentDavid Denker told the GeorgetownUniversity newspaper The Hoya.*Wedidn't want to offend anyone."

But the controversy had alreadytaken root. Fuller-Bennett then MAAS student Mostafa Hefny sits by the rsrael i f lag in si lent protest.


Center NewsCONTINUED FROM PAGE 9

MAAS and other Georgetown University students hold up f l iers that explain theirpresence at the celebration of lsrae! 's 60th birthday on Copley lawn.

teamed up with fellow MAAS studentsJessica Devaney, Olivia Moseley, andAmanda Johnson, as well as Masters inCommunication, Culture & Technologystudent Reem Al-Masri, to plan ademonstration to coincide with theevent. "We wanted to do somethingthat was aesthetically compelling butalso peaceful," says Devaney. Thegroup decided to wear kaffiyehs,blackclothing, and green tape over theirmouths. and tohold up or handout sheets that read,

"Our presence is agesture toward themany for whomthe passing ofthese 60 years isnot marked bycelebration." "Wewanted to representthose voices whoweren't present,"explains Devaney.

The protestors, who numbered around50, were at first blocked by campussecurity from the GIA celebration, whichwas held on Copley lawn and featured

iglored the group."But the protest did"We m ai ntai n ed ;i?'r:."ffi1':.i":

ou r s ile nce and ffiT::''"fl. :ilou r d ig n ity and *rj;"",.,1"3JHO U f m e S S a q e . " R e . i . J h m a n n ,--J--

Jewish outreach-Hanolo Fur-lrn-BeruErr, coordinator in theMAAS sruoe*'

3rff"J: "ffit"l;likely agree. iie told. The

food, music, and a moon bounce. "Theyhad put up barricades in front of thecelebration," says Fuller-Bennett. Butwith some negotiating and the promise ofa peaceful protest, the group was allowedonto the lawn, where they sat adjacent tothe revelers.

What were reactions to their presence?"Some people said, 'Why do you have tomake this political?', says Devaney, whileFuller-Bennett notes that many passersby

Hoya that protests like this one are partof the leaming experience at a university.

"Hopefully there'll be lessons learned,"she added. O

1 0 CCAS News o June 2008

M i m i

C

MAAS StudentsPut OmanResearch C rantsto Good Use

Kirk

CAS awarded six MAASstudents the Oman StudentResearch Grant, which helps

support new and ongoing studentresearch projects pertaining to thecontemporary Arab world. Thegrant covers such items as researchmaterials, travel, and scholarlymanuscripts.

Khody Akhavi and MichaelFournie used their grant to filma short documentary on thehumanitarian situation of Palestinianrefugees who fled the Nahr El Baredcamp following the Lebanese Armysiege in the summer of 2007. InMarch, Akhavi and Fournie spent aweek in the nearby Beddawi camp,interviewing displaced residentsand camp officials. The film willbe edited and completed early thissummer.

Ethan Morton-Jerome and SandraDoherty focused their project aroundreconstruction in Lebanon. They metwith several international and localNGOs, govemment officials, and theWorld Health Organization in Beirut,and also traveled to southern Lebanonto see some of the reconstruction thathas taken place.

Jeffery Dyer conducted severaldays of research in the archivesof the Peabody-Essex Museum inSalem, Massachusetts. Dyer lookedat personal papers, correspondence,and diaries of several Americanconsuls, merchants, and sailorswho resided in Zanzibar duringthe early and mid-19'h century.The research aided in his master'sthesis, which focused on racial andcolonial hierarchies in l9'h-centuryZanzlbar.

Finally, Wynne Mancini will use

her grant to conduct independent andprimary research on the QubaisiatIslamic Women's group in Syria inthe summer of 2008. I

F ive StudentsReceive SummerFLAS AwardsRia M. R iesner

The U.S. Department ofEducationfunds Foreign Language AreaScholarships (FLAS) through theNational Resource Center on theMiddle East to give students theopportunity to study intermediateand advanced levels of Arabic,Persian, Turkish" or Hebrew eitherin the United States or abroad duringthe summer. This year, almost 100students applied, and five werechosen for summer awards. Theirnames, and the progmms they willbe attending this summer, are notedbelow. Georgetown's NationalResource Center on the Middle Eastcongratulates these students on thisimpressive achievement.

Julie CoryGeorgetown Univ ers ity,CCAS

Hassan ElhajGeorgetown Univ ers ity,CCAS

Harald Fuller-BennettUnivers ity of D amas cus,

Syria

Randolph NogelAmerican Universitv ofBeirut

Lucy ThiboutotMiddlebury College,Vermont


Center NewsN rws BnlrrsA New Face at CCAS

Mimi Kirk joined ccAS as its new Multimedia and publications Editor inMarch, after having worked in editorial positions at theInstitute for Advanced Study in Princeton, Smithsonianmagazine, and AARP The Magazine since 2003. Ms. Kirkhas a B.A. in anthropology from Haverford College andan M.A. in cultural studies from Emory University, whereshe focused her studies on Islamic and French colonialarchitecture in the city of Fds, Morocco. She is also a part-time student at Johns Hopkins University, where she ispursuing an M.A. in creative nonfiction writing.

CCAS Staff Members Rania Kiblawi andZeina Seikaly Awarded New Tit les

ccAS is pleased to announce that Director Dr. Michael c. Hudson authorized titleupgrades forAssistant Director RaniaKiblawi and Outreach CoordinatorZeina Seikaly. Rania has been namedAssociate Director, and Zeina'snew title is Director of EducationalOutreach. Says Dr. Hudson: "I havedone this in recognition of theiroutstanding performance in theirrespective positions." Alf mabroukgoes out to Rania and Zeina for thismuch-deserved recognition!

CCAS to Publ ish an Occasional Paper onEducat ion , Human Deve lopment , andArab Women

Please watch for our latest occasional Paper entitled "Education, HumanDevelopment, and 'Arab Women': Progress, Dilemmas, andAmerican Discourse,,'by Dr. Fida Adely, to be published by CCAS in September 2008. Dr. Adely is anassistant professor at the Center and the first holder of the Clovis and Hala SalaamMaksoud chair in Arab Studies. Her paper addresses the links that have beendrawn between education and human development as freedom or the expansion ofchoices, and it then considers the increase in formal education in the Arab worldand what that means forwomen. Dr. Adely thenrelates this discussion toAmerican discourse on thesubject of Arab women,and the implications of itscontinued politicizationand misrepresentationof women's status fordevelopment efforts.

Pu b I ic Eve ntsPuelrc EvrrursAssumptions and Rationales BehindDemocracy PromotionJanuary 16CCAS Visiting Researcher Zod Nautrdgave a lecfure on case sfudies shehas been conducting which examinethe underlying attitudes of variousconstituencies throughout Washington,D.C. towards democracy promotionprojects in Morocco and Yemen.

2o6 Nautr€ speaks about democracypromotion in the Middle East.

Is the Maghreb the Next Afghanistan?January 23Based on its most recent occasional paper,Is the Maghreb the 'Next Afghanistan'?by Dr. Noureddine Jebnoun, CCAShosted a panel discussion that addressedthe current security situation in NorthAfrica. Dr. Jebnoun discussed his paperand presented video clips of Jihadistoperations in Algeria. Dr. WilliamZartman, Jacob Blaustein Professorof International Organizations andConflict Resolution and the director ofthe Conflict Management Program atSAIS at Johns Hopkins Universiry andDl Haizam Amirah-Fern6ndez, a senioranalyst of the Meditelranean and ArabWorld at the Elcano Royal Institutefor International and Strategic Studiesin Madrid, Spain, provided a criticalcontextualization of the issues that Dr.Jebnoun addressed.

Upgrading Authoritarianism inthe Arab World: Intended andUnintended Consequences of U.S.PolicyFebruary IlDr. Steven Heydemann, Vice Presidentof the United States Institute of Peace.presented his most recent paper at thisevent, and CCAS Assistant ProfessorDr. Samer Shehata acted as a discussant.The Democracy and Governance StudiesProgram co-sponsored the talk.

Engaging the Arab World: BalancingPriorities: A Dialogue Between ArabStudies and Security StudiesFebruary 19This event fostered a dialogue betweentwo groups: those who study the Arabworld from a security studies perspectiveand perceive the region mainly in termsof "terrorism," and regional experts,whose primary concerns are the historyeconomics, and makeup of the socialfabric of the region. CCAS AssistantProfessor Dr. Fida Adely, Dr. NoraBensahel, Senior Political Scientist atthe RAND Corporation, Dr. Paul Pillar,Visiting Professor and member of thecore faculty in the Security StudiesProgram at Georgetown University,and Dr. Samer Shehata, AssistantProfessor of Arab Politics at CCAS,all gave insightful contributions tothis discussion. The dialogue was co-sponsored by the Women in InternationalSecurity Program at the Center for Peaceand Security Studies.

Drs . Pau l P i l la r and Samer Shehatad iscuss how they approach the i r s tudyof the Arab world.

The Politics of Miscalculation:Mid East in the 21st CenturyFebruary 20Dr. Henry Laurens, Professor and Chair ofHistory of the ContemporaryArab World atthe Colldge de France, Paris, discussedwhathe considers to be political misst€ps in U.S.policy towards the Middle East and positedthat better relationships can be built with theArab world as long as current issues are seenin their proper historical light.

Passing a Flaming Torch: The MiddleEastern Issues that Will Confront theNext American PresidentFebruary 20CCAS Advisory Board member RamiKhouri addressed a standing-room-onlycrowd as he elucidated the most pressingissues pertaining to the Middle East thatthe next U.S. president will face.

Rami Khour i lec tu res to a s tand ing-room-on ly c rowd.

Kareema Khoury Distinguished Lecture:Napoleon and IslamFebruary 2lCasting a new look at one of France'smost emblematic historical flgures, Dr.Henry Laurens' lecture explored a little-known side of Napoleon Bonaparte: hisfascination with the Orient and withIslam. From his youth and until his finalexile to St. Helena, Bonaparte cultivatedan Oriental dream, fueled not only bychildhood tales of Alexander the Greatand the Prophet Muhammad, but by hislater direct experiences and assessments

t 2 CCAS News o June 2008

Pu b l ic Eventsin Egypt. The lecture addressed the impactof Orientalism on Napoleon's beliefs andimperial policies as well as the extent ofhis interest in Islam. This year's lecturewas the culmination ofa series ofactivitiesduring a week in February involving Dr.Henry Laurens. Events were co-organizedwith the French Embassy and its culturalservice, the Maison Franpaise.

Dr, Henry Laurens presents h is lectureon Napoleon and ls lam,

Breakfast with the AmbassadorsSeriesFebruary 26CCAS faculry staff, and studentswelcomed the Algerian Ambassador, HisExcellency Amine Kherbi, for an off-the-record breakfast discussion.

Litigating the Palestinian-IsraeliConflict in U.S. Federal Courtrooms:The Politicization of ObjectivityFebruary 27CCAS Visiting Scholar Noura Erakatexplored the different legal avenuesthrough which Palestinians can seekredress for grievances committed againstthem by the State of Israel, and thedifficulties in pursuing such action.

Performance by Arabesque MusicEnsembleMarch IThe eight-piece ensemble performed atGeorgetown University's Gaston Hallas part of a national tour to promoteits new release, Al-Fursan Al-Talatha.The group has garnered critical acclaim,with praise for its "precise rhythms andperfect intonation" (Washington Post)as well as its "rich textures and musicalversatility" (Los Angeles Times). Thehundreds who attended the event save

the group an overwhelming welcomeand a standing ovation.

Overlapping Limits in Franco-ArabEncountersMarch 8CCAS presented this panel discussion aspart of the Limits,/Limites: 20th and 21stCenhrry French and Francophone Studieslntemational Colloquium. ParticipantsincludedDr. OsamaAbi-Mershed. AssistantProfessor of History at GeorgetownUniversity, Dr. Elizabeth Thompson,Associate Professor at the University ofMrginia and Senior Fellow at the UnitedStates Institute of Peace, Dr. Nadya Sbaiti,lnstructor at Smith College, and Dr. Val6rieOrlando, Associate Professor of French &Francophone Literahre at the Universityof Maryland.

Impasse in Lebanon: What Next?March llThree years after the assassination offormer Lebanese Prime Minister RaficHariri, Lebanon faces its deepest crisissince the end of the civil war. On theoccasion of the anniversary of Hariri'sassassination, CCAS assembled a panelof specialists to discuss the futureof the country. Participants includedDr. Michael Hudson. Saif GhobashProfessor ofArab Studies and Professorof International Relations as well asDirector of CCAS, Dr. Bassam Haddad,Director of the Middle East StudiesProgram at George Mason Universityand Visiting Professor at GeorgetownUniversity, and Dr. Augustus RichardNorton. Professor of InternationalRelations and Anthropology at BostonUniversity.

Dr . Augustus R ichard Nor ton speaksabout Lebanon 's fu tu re .

A Flight to Elsewhere: Poetry Readingby Samuel HazoMarch I2Critically acclaimed Arab-Americanpoet Samuel Hazo, Director of theInternational Poetry Forum in Pittsburgh,read selections from his recent works.

Proselytizing for Modernity: The Caseof the American Universitv of Beirut(AUB)March I3Dr. BettyAnderson of Boston Universitypresented her study of the Americandefinition of the modern at AUB in theearly 20e century by analyzing then-president Howard Bliss's letters as wellas texts of the serrnons preached oncampus and curriculum programs. Shealso looked at student newspapers oftheperiod to ascertain student responses tothe university's modernizing project.

The Much Too Promised LandApril3Dr. Aaron David Miller, currently aPublic Policy Fellow at the WoodrowWilson International Center for Scholarsin Washington, D.C., shared his thoughtson his most recent book, The Much TooPromised Land. The work chronicles hisexperiences during his 20-year career atthe State Department, where he advisedsix secretaries of state on the formulationof U.S. foreign policy in the Middle Eastand vis d vis the Palestinian-Israeli peaceprocess.

Confluences of Islamic Art in theMedieval WestApril SStefano Carboni. Curator andAdministrator for the Department ofIslamic Art at the Metropolitan MuseumofArt, Julian Raby, Director of the FreerGallery ofArt and the Arthur M. SacklerGallery and Rosamond Mack, renownedscholar of Islamic Art, presented a paneldiscussion that explored the ways inwhich an Islamic influence manifesteditself in various art forms in the MedievalWest. The event was co-sponsored bythe Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Center forMuslim-Christian Understanding, theDepartment of Theology, the BerkleyCenter for Religion, Peace, and World

CCAS News I June 2008 1 3

R I l . -Pub l rc bven tsAffairs, the Department of Arabic andIslamic Studies, and the Office of theDean of Georsetown Colleee.

A s l ide f rom the ls lamic a r t pane ld i s c u s s i o n s h o w s h o w l s l a m i cin f luences man i fes ted in var ious ar tfo rms in the Med ieva l West .

Women and Leadership in the MiddleEastApril SCCAS. the Mortara Center forInternational Studies, and the VitalVoices Global Partnership welcomedHer Excellency Sheikha Lubna bintKhaled Al Qasimi, United ArabEmirates Minister of Foreign Trade,for an engaging conversation on thedynamic role of women in the MiddleEast. Her Excellency went from runningone of the UAE's largest technologycompanies to becoming its first femaleminister and one of the most powerfulwoman leaders in the region. SheikhaLubna is the recipient of the VitalVoices Global Partnership 2008 GlobalTrailblazer Award.

She ikha Lubna rece ived the V i ta lVo ices Globa l Par tnersh ip 2008 Globa lTra i lb lazer Award .

Palestine: 60 Years of DisplacementApril 14World-renowned speaker and outgoingPalestinian ambassador to theUnited States Afif Safieh addressedGeorgetown University regardingthe current political situation inPalestine and the occupied territories.Ambassador Safieh also discussed thedisplacement of the Palestinian peoplesince the creation of the state of Israelin 1948, why Palestinians left or stayed,and where those who left are nowlocated.

Israel and Palestine at 60: Is There aSolution?April 16Palestinian academic Dr. Ghada Karmiquestioned prospects for a resolution tothe Arab-Israeli conflict and discussedher recent book, Married to AnotherMan: Israelb Dilemma in Palestine(Pluto Press, 2007).

Orientalism and Sexual RightsApril 17Dr. Joseph Massad, Associate Professorof ModernArab Politics and IntellectualHistory in the Department of MiddleEast and Asian Languages and Culturesat Columbia University, gave a lecturebased on his most recent book, DesiringArabs, which recently won the LionelTrilling Book Award.

Dr . Joseph Massad (second f romr igh t ) jo ins f r iends ( l - r ) Dr . AndrewRubin , Dr . Sherene Se ika ly , AmandaFarnham, Dr . Ade l l skander , and Ran iaK ib lawi a f te r h is lec tu re .

Breakfast with the Ambassadors SeriesApril 17CCAS faculty, staff, and studentswelcomed the Moroccan Ambassador"His Excellency Aziz Mekouar, for anoff-the-record discussion.

Oman's Economy: Challenges andOpportunitiesApril2lProminent Omani academic Dr. HatemAl-Shanfari made a presentationon the hurdles faced by the Omanieconomy in light of the explosion ofeconomic growth that its neighborshave experienced in recent years. Healso highlighted the successes of theOmani economy as it works to expand.The Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center co-sponsored the talk.

Iran and the Arab World with Dr.Alidad MafinezamApril22Dr. Alidad Mafinezam, co-author ofthe newly published book lran andIts Place Among Nations (PraegerPublishers, 2008) and director ofthe Mosaic Institute in Montreal,delivered a lecture based on the book,with an emphasis on lran's evolvingrelationship with the Arab world ingeneral and members of the GCCin particular. The lecture examinedcontinuity and change in Iranianforeign policy in the pre- and post-revolutionary periods.

The Arab Maghreb Union: What areits Prospects?April 29Dr. Hedi Baccouche, former PrimeMinister of Tunisia, delivered a lectureaddressing the new dynamics in theMaghreb since the formation of theArab Maghreb Union. The American-Tunisian Association co-sponsored theevent.

1 AI T CCAS News o June 2008

Outreach News

Wr i t ing for Teach ing and Learn ing about theMiddle East . A workshop wi th lb t isam BarakatZeina Azzam Seikaly

fflwenty teachers gathered on Saturday, February 2 in theI CCAS Boardroom for a workshop with renowned author

I Ibtisam Barakat, whose recent memoir, Tasting the Slqt:A Palestinian Childhood, has garnered numerous awards. Theteachers had read tJre book beforehand and were excited to hearMs. Barakat share her experiences and expertise as a writer andas an advocate for peace between Israel and Palestine. She ledthe group through helpful writing exercises and, throughout theday, facilitated dialogues and exchanges that pushed attendeesto question their assumptions and dig deep into their beliefs andunderstandings.

"As young people," Ms. Barakat opined, "we are taughtto disconnect [from ourselves and from the world] in orderto suryive." She urged workshop participants to repair thisdisconnectedness by imagining their head as a globe throughwhich to experience world events and movements as part oftheir personal life. To do this, she said, we must always beworking to improve ourselves by exploring our anger and ourfears, and by opening up to other people. "I'll never have a'home'unless I have a home in myself," she added.

Regarding the history of Israelis and Palestinians, Ms. Barakatsaid that each group feels its own story is the only true narrative,thus excluding the other's and precluding any meaningfulexchanges and eventual resolution of the conflict. Moreover,she explained, victimization and oppression---engenderedby the Holocaust and presently by the Israeli occupation ofPalestinian lands-cause a sense of isolation by which a goupfeels that "no one really knows or understands my suffering."

Ms. Barakat spent a good deal of time exploring the writingprocess and the educator's role in the classroom. "Teaching isabout facilitating the development of human beings," she said,and added that reading literature from other parts of the worldhelps us connect with ourselves and with all of humanity. Sheadvised the teachers to encourage students to delve into theirfeelings and emotions but also to be mindful of their students'physical reactions; crying, shaking, yawning, sweating, andfeeling hot or cold are all physical processesthat are an expected part of stetching, growing,and understanding.

Attendees also leamed about a usefultechnique that Ms. Barakat uses for writitrgworkshops: a "life map" diagram segmentedinto salient themes (momentous events,struggles, etc.) from one's life on a horizontalgrid, with different years on the vertical side.By using this map and 3x5 index cards for eachtheme, a writer can organize the key events ofhis or her life intomanageable chunks; she advised taking two or three of theseto explore in any given writing session. During the workshop,Ms. Barakat gave the participants probing questions as writing


to write, engage in deep discussions, and"Teach ins is about ;1*"13;-,:fTti::',JT:'ff#3fifaCilitating the conflict. Some attendees wanted to focusdevetopme nt of il:ft?Y'#,T#il':,:lJ'LHf "#:li,hUman beingS." it was a profound experience that covered

-lsrrser\4 Bnnexnr a lot of ground' "she did an amazing jobof facilitating the sharing of thoughts andallowing people to connect with the topic,"

A participant takes notes during lbtisam Barakat's writing-focused workshop, held February 2 in the CCAS Boardroom.

prompts and asked them to enter their reflections intojournalsthat CCAS provided.

Although some teachers felt that they were reaching outsidetheir comfort zones, most were grateful for the opportunity

said one teacher in her evaluation form, adding, "It mademe think about how I could do it in my classroom." Anothershared the following sentiment: "She helped me as a writer andidentified my spirit that is in hiding!" I

1 5

Outreach News

ls rae l i and Pa les t in ian H is to r ies Exp lo red inSpr ing Out reach WorkshopR i a M . R i e s n e r

hirty-two area educators gatheredApril 28 on campus for a CCASoutreach workshop entitled

"Israelis and Palestinians: SharedHistory Entangled Narratives." ZeinaSeikaly, CCAS Director of EducationalOutreach" welcomed the attendeesand introduced the day's agenda. Fourpresenters spoke about the history ofthe Israeli-Palestinian conflict as well asits social and political dimensions. Ms.Seiklay also screened the documentaryEncounter Point.which focuses on thework of Israelis and Palestinians towarddialogue and reconciliation.

Dr. Sherene Seikaly, QatarPostdoctoral Fellow at CCAS, gavea presentation entitled "Beyond

What Went Wrong: Palestine Before1948." She began with a discussionof Palestine under Ottoman rule in the1870s, when its residents included amajority of Sunni Arab Palestinians, aminority of Palestinian Christians, anda small minority of indigenous Jews.Dr. Seikaly then covered the policies of

Dr . l lana Fe ldman lec tu res dur ing the spr ing ou t reach workshop, wh ich focusedon ls rae l i and Pa les t in ian h is to r ies and ident i t ies as we l l as the ongo ing conf l i c t .

the 1880s. She also explained thedistinction between two major groupsof Palestinians: first, the 20 percent ofthe current Israeli citizenry whom thegovernment refers to as "Israeli Arabs."In the 1950s and 1960s, this group wasregularly depicted as a "happy minority"benefiting from the state's munificencein democratic political rights, modernmedicine, and advanced education. Thevast majority of the Palestinian people,however, belong to the second group:refugees in the West Bank, Gaza Strip,and countries such as Lebanon, Jordan,and Syria.

Workshop attendees then viewedEncounter Point, an 85-minutedocumentary that has been shown inmore than 150 cities worldwide and wasrecently broadcast on Canada's CBCnetwork and Al Arabiya, a prominentArabic satellite channel. The documentaryfollows bereaved Israeli and Palestinianindividuals, such as a former settler, anex-prisoner, and various family members

the British Mandate(1918-1948), whichwas committed tothe facilitation ofa Jewish nationalhome in Palestine.She traced thevarious waves ofEuropean Jewishimmigration toPalestine beginningin the 1890s inresponse to the riseof Zionism andgrowing Europeana n t i - S e m i t i s m .Finally, Dr. Seikalypointed out thatwhile the categoriesof Arab and Jeware today mutuallyexclusive, they havenot always been so

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D r . M i c h a e l C . H u d s o nDnrcron or CCAS

and were in fact made such by Zionismand Arab nationalism. Thus, the core of

the Israeli-Palestinianconflict is not an age-old religious struggle,but rather a modernconflict over land.

Dr. Shira Robinson,Assistant Professorof History andInternational Affairsat George WashingtonUniversity, spokeabout the conflictfrom the point of thecreation of the stateoflsrael in 1948 unti l2000. Despite thetumultuous politicalevents of the period,Dr. Robinson said thatthe essential conflictsover territory anddemography havepersisted since

l o CCAS News o - June 2008

Outreach News(.O,YTL\L'ED FllOlt P.1Gt: t(t

from both sides, who workto promote a nonviolent endto the conflict. The film,s co-director, Julia Bacha, attendedthe workshop and answeredquestions from the audience.

Dr. Ilana Feldman, AssistantProfessor of Anthropology atGeorge Washington University,focused her lecture on theformation of Israeli andPalestinian identities. She casta distinction between two typesof Israeli immigrants: first, theEuropean Ashkenazi Jews, whowere often better educated andwealthier than the second group,the Mizrahi Jews, who primarilyemigrated from the MiddleEast. Ashkenazis were oftenportrayed as supplying',quality"immigration, while the Mizrahis,it was believed, provided theessential population densityintegral to the fledgling state'slegitimacy. Throughout history

Dr . Sherene Se ika ly , who spoke about pa les t ine be fore1948, takes a b reak w i th her fe l low presenters a f te rg iv ing her lec tu re .

for Palestinian identity, Dr. Feldmancontinued, perhaps the existence ofhundreds of thousands of refugees,

stateless and located in thediaspora, are its most integralcomponent.

Dr. Michael C. Hudson, Directorof CCAS, delivered ttre final talkof the day in a speech entitled"The Politics of the Arab-IsraeliConflict Is the End in Sight?,'Dr. Hudson spoke about politicaldivision itmong the palestinians.the challenges facing IsraeliPrime MinisterEhud Olmert, U.S.involvement in bying to revive thePalestinian-Israeli negotiations,and the unpromising prospects forthe future. He also commented onthe severe social, economic, andsecurity conditions being enduredby the Palestinians, especially inGaza.

Participants had manyopporhrnities to ask questionsof the speakers during thesessions and over a MiddleEastern lunch. Everyonereceived a resource packet withbackground information aboutIsrael and Palestine, including a

list of books and websites to consult forfurther information.O

these identity markers and stereotypeshave been morphed and contested. As

CCAS Outreach Coord inator Par t ic ipates in Program Ent i t led"The Midd le Eas t : A Human i ty M isunders tood"

Students in the educat ion program a t Southern l l l i no isUn ivers i ty -Edwardsv i l le par t i c ipa te in an Arab ic a lphabetac t iv i t y .

C C A S N e w s o J u n e 2 0 0 g

CCAS Director of Educational Outreach Zeina Seikalyvisited Southem Illinois University_Edwardsville(SIUE) May I to participate in a series organized forthe spring semester, ..The Middle East: A HumanitvMisunderstood."

She conducted an afternoon workshop for approximately25 students in SIUE's education program, during whichshe spoke about culture and religion in the Middle East aswell as Arab Americans and American Muslims. She alsowalked the group through a set of curriculum activities shehad developed for the book by Egyptian author MohieddinEllabbad, The lllustrator's Notebook That evening, Ms.Seikaly gave the presentation, ..Words TranscendineBorders: Arab Voices in the American Classroom,', whictoffered more information about the Arab world and Islamand encouraged the use of literature to teach about theregion. More than 200 community members and SIUEstudents, faculty, and staffattended the talk.

I 7

Craduat ion News

GnnouArtoN NrwsCCAS Congratulates its 2008 MAASGraduates

Twenty-seven students graduate this springand summer with a Master of Arts in ArabStudies degree. CCAS congratulates thegroup on this important achievement!

Spring 2008 Graduates

Rola AbimourchedKhodayar Nader AkhaviBenjamin Robert Blaylock*Kristian Rostoft BoysenMeagan Elizabeth BridgesRafael Joseph CarrSandra Beth DohertyJeffery Webster DyerDahlia Hassan EIZeinLyndsay FordMichael Thomas FournieChristopher Richard GratienSamuel Lee HarrisMostafa Hani Hefty*Carla Elena HumudDina Khalifa Hussein*Timothy Elhami KaldasEthan William Morton-JeromeKen NamikawaMatthew Thomas ReynoldsNatalia Sancha-Garcia*Robert Brian SiebekingDena Takruri*Leslie A. Thompson*

* denotes distinction on oralcomprehensive exams

Summer 2 008 Gracltrates

Marwa Wael AlkhairoSarah KaiksowVictoria LynnZyp

Gradu ate C ert ifi c at e Av' ar"d e e s

Nicholas James Ingaciola,Master of Arts in Peace Security Studies

Reem Mo'hdAl-Masri,Master of Arts inCulture & Technology

Communication, is inferior to the technologically modifiedbody. Committee: Dr. Rochelle Davis, Dr.Sara Scalenghe, Dr. FidaAdelY

Tatsiana Hulko"Master of Science in Foreign Service

Ten MAAS Graduates Write Theses

RolaAbimourched: "HandPicked

and Carefully Selected": AnExploration of the Lives of MigrantDomestic Workers in Jordan

This study explores the three-sided andoften problematic relationship betweenemployers, migrant domestic workers,and recruitment agents in Jordan. Migrantdomestic workers confront countlessviolations of their rights, and these oftenoccur because the Jordaniat kdala(sponsorship system) gives employersand recruitment agents a significantamount of control over them. Committee:Dr. Rochelle Davis, Dr. Susan Martin, Dr.Sara Scalenghe, Dr. FidaAdelY

Kristian Boysen: Opposition and theVicissitudes of Exile Politics: TheCase of the National Salvation Frontin Syria

This study focuses on an extemally basedalliance between the Syrian MuslimBrotherhood and the former VicePresident of Syria, Abdulhalim Khaddam,as well as numerous otherpolitical groups.It inquires into the causal backdrop ofthese nascent alliances whose lineagescan be traced to various historical phasesin Syria's political trajectory and socialfabric. Committee: Dr. Michael Hudson,Dr. Samer Shehata

Sandra Doherty: BeautY 'Til

It Hurts: The Normalization ofCosmetic Surgery in Lebanon

This thesis examines the increasingacceptance and promotion of cosmeticsurgery practices in Lebanon and posits thatthe Lebanese cosmetic surgery establishmentand mass media have formed an 'turholy

alliance" in which female consumers areseduced into believing that the natural body

Jeffery Dyer: Unnatural and EverPrejudicial: Racial and ColonialHierarchies in l9th-Century Zanzibar

This study explores the construction ofracial categories by British observers inZanzlbar during the l9th-century and therole that racial identities played in powerrelations between the various groups inthe period prior to the establishment ofthe British protectorate. Committee: Dr.Judith Tucker. Dr. Osama Abi-Mershed

Chris Gratien: "Man of theImpossible": Nationalism and CreatingNew Heroes in Post-Nasser EgYPt

This paper examines the PoPularEgyptian spy novel series Rajul al-Mustahil and the author's attempt tocreate a modern Arab action hero inthe context of national anxiety andtransition following the so-called defeatof Nasserism. Committee: Dr. JudithTucker, Dr. Samer Shehata

Sam Harris: Development ThroughFaith: The Maoadi Life Makers andthe New Entrepreneurial Subject

This thesis examines the Life Makers, anIslamic youth organization inspired by theEgyptian preacher Amr Khaled dedicatedto social change and development basedon Islamic principles. This group providesa social forum for youth interaction, and italso functions to construct a new modelfor Muslim selves through its vision ofsocial change as emerging from individualtransformation. Committee: Dr. RochelleDavis, Dr. John Voll

Tim Kaldas: Colonizingthe Metropole:Colonial Knowledge, ContemPorarYPolitics and the Condition of Maghrebisin France Today

This thesis examines and outlines thecolonial heritage of France's currentproblems with its Maghrebi populationand the source of its notion of nationalidentity and integration. It traces the rootsof anti-Muslim discrimination in France tothe ideas and knowledge constructed about

1 8 CCAS News e June 2008

Academ ic NewsIslam in the colonial period and how thatknowledge was related to constructingFrance's own identity. Committee: DrMichael Hudson, Dr. OsamaAbi-Mershed

The following students will defend theirtheses in the summer of 2008:

Marwa Alkhairo: Iraqi DiasporicIdentity Across Generations, Struggle,and War

Sarah Kaiksow: British ColonialPerceptions in Bahrain

Victoria Zyp: Islamic Banking inthe United States: From CommunityCoops Towards an Emerging Industry

AluMNt NrwsJohn Mahshie (1983) was made SeniorVice President of his firm, Tutt, Taylor &Rankin Sotheby's Intemational Realfy. Hecelebrates his sixth year there and his thirdas the firm's highest producing individualagent. John gets to use his Arabic fromtime to time as he works with a numberof individuals looking for property in theWashington area from the Middle East.

Phillip Tussing (1983) continues to workin the export business in Dickinson, Texas,where he lives with his wife Alexandra.His youngest daughter, Kira, will graduatefrom high school this year and attend SanJacinto College in the fall. Chelsea, hismiddle daughter, has finished her firstyear at Union College. Jamie, his oldestdaughter and whom some alumni mayremember, is now 28 and works with acatering company in New Hampshire.

NabilAl-Tikriti (CCAS Undergrad I 988)has been serving as a2007 -2008 JenningsRandolph Senior Fellow at the U.S.Institute of Peace, where he is followingIraqi forced migration since 2003.

Rania Atalla (1991) writes fromRwanda, where she is currently visitingprograms in Kigali and Kayonza for theNGO Women for Women International.After six years as Chief of Staff toQueen Rania of Jordan and one yearas Communications Director for KingAbdullah, Rania decided to take a careerbreak (which she highly recommends toothers!). As of March 2008, she movedback to Washington, D.C., and is servingas Executive Director for the U.S. officeofWomen forWomen, which focuses onthe empowerment of women in conflictand post-confl ict countries.

Mia Bloom (1991) recently joined theSchool oflnternational and Public Serviceat the University of Georgia, where she

CCAS News 1 June 2008

teaches courses on war" the Middle East.South Asia, and political violence. Miawill be at Penn State in the fall of 2008for a semester research project with theInternational Center for the Study ofTerrorism. She has published severalarticles on women and terrorism and iswriting a new book on the deliberate useof rape as a strategy of war.

Karen Healey (1992) is living in theBaltimore area, working for a companycalled PHH, where she is director ofproduct management and is responsiblefor corporate extranet and anenvironmental service offered to clients.She is also leading the company'sinternal initiatives to reduce itsenvironmental footprint. She misses theinternational arena, but loves workingon environmental issues. She adds thatshe'd love to hear from MAAS alums:karen:healey@comcast. net.

Judith Scholar Winfield (1992) andhusband Steve announce the birth oftheir son Charlie (born on August 15,2007). The family resides in Mansfield,England (near Nottingham). Judithrecently returned to work part-time asthe manager of a program to supportthe development of new and existingbusinesses in her area.

Otavio Peixoto (1997) writes from Riode Janeiro: "This past March, I witnessedfirst-hand the street demonstrationssparked by the mounting food crisiscurrently sweeping the globe. As oneof the world's leading grain exporterstogether with Brazil, the Argentineangovernment is trying to cash in on thecurrent crisis by withholding exports ofrice and other agricultural products underthe guise of fighting inflation by holdingdown the price of basic foodstuffs inthe local market, but the thinly veiled

speculation plot underpinning thewhole affair is undeniable. Ruralproducers thus took to the streets and apot-banging extravaganza ensued in themain square of one of Latin America'smost charming and cosmopolitan cities.Quite exciting, I should say... all tooreminiscent of similar riots I witnessedin Cairo in my roaring years as an internat AUC of Sharia Kasr el-Aini fame..."

Laila Shereen Sakr (1998) movedto California in August 2007 to begina masters program in digital arts andnew media at U.C. Santa Cruz. Sheand husband, Fadi, recently welcomedtheir first child on November 5 namedAmel Helen Sakr. In February, Lailaexhibited graffiti and digital art work atthe Sesnon gallery in Santa Cruz withan installation called "United Statesof Consciousness." She is currentlyworking on building the "Arab digitalmedia archive" from which she hasbeen performing live video remixes;this archive debuted at CornellUniversity in April 2008. She missesD.C. very much!

Patricia (Lally) Vanjaria (1998) writes:"It's hard to believe that it will be 10 yearsthis May since our MAAS graduation.My husband, Hanif, our son, Oliver, andI reside in Atlanta where we have madeour home for the past six years. Oliverwill be completing kindergarten at theend of May and turning seven in June.We are teaching Oliver some Arabicwords just for fun. I am still workingwith Menill Lynch in their Buckheadofifice while keeping up with the MiddleEast in my free time. Hanif is workingwith Morgan Stanley in Atlanta and is afrequent reader of BBC in Arabic. Wewould love to hear from any fellowclassmates : vanj aria3 @comcast.net."

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Aryah Sommers (1999) writes: "I havemoved from the desert to the jungle. I amno longer with the Florence Immigrantand Refugee Rights Project in Arizona,as I am now in Ecuador working as aconsultant to UNHCR. Come down andvisit me in the Galapagos!"

Doug Black (2000) and his wifewelcomed their second child, GarrettMcClean Black, on April 3, 2007. Dougwrites that Garrett and his older sister,Fiona (now almost four) get along mostof the time. He continues to work at SRAInternational, now as the Deputy of thePublic Relations and Outreach Servicespractice area, where he manages a teamof 20 consultants. He's currently workingwith clients at the EPA, USAID, theForest Service and the FAA.

Sara Scalenghe (2000) received the2008 Harold N. Glassman DissertationAward for the best dissertation in thehumanities at Georgetown University.

Haitham Amirah-Fernandez (2001)reports: "I am still working at theElcano Royal Institute for Internationaland Strategic Studies in Madrid as asenior analyst in the Mediterraneanand Arab World Program. This YearI have also started teaching coursesin sociology and political science inthe Department of Arab Studies at theAutonomous University of Madrid. Inlate January, I participated in a panel onthe Maghreb at CCAS, together with Dr.Noureddine Jebnoun and Dr. WilliamZartman.I was very happy to go back tothe Center!" Haitham also co-edited avolume recently published by Routledgeentitled North Africa: Politics, Region,and the Limits of Transformation.

Julienne Gherardi (2001) writes: "In

January I took a new job as Director atthe Wharton School's Aresty Institute ofExecutive Education. I will be marrying

my fianc6, Jeff Perry, this August inCalistoga, Califomia. Following Jeff'sgraduation from Wharton in MaY,we are moving to San Francisco, whereJeff will start a new job at Adobe. As Isettle into this new setting, I'm eager toreconnect with intemational affairs andthe Arab world, and would love to hearfrom MAAS alums on the West Coast:i [email protected]. "

Greta Scharnweber (2001) works as theOutreach Director at Yale University'sCouncil on Middle East Studies. A fewof the more exciting projects she's beenworking on involve study tours foreducators on l) "The Politics of Water" inJordan, Palestine, and Israel; 2) "From Sandto Sea: Cultural Exchange Through Tradeon the Silk Road" in Yemen, the UAE, andChina; and 3) a high school home-stayprognm in Cairo for students studyingArabic at the Center for Global Studies inNorwalk, Connecticut. Greta also enjoyedorganizing the Middle East OutreachCouncil Teacher's workshop at MESAthis past year in Montreal, which focusedon "Urban (r)Evolution: The DynamicIdentities of Middle Eastem Cities." Shestill lives inNew Haven, Connecticut, so ifyou're in town, stop in at Yale and say hi!

Rajae Nami (2002) and her husbandBadr Chawki are happy to announce thebirth of their daughter Yasmeen Ikramon April 8, 2008 in Alexandria, Virginia.

Zeinab Abut-Magd (2004) taughta course this year in the historydepartment at Georgetown entitled

"Colonial and Post-Colonial Literature."She will defend her dissertation in Juneentitled "Empire and its Discontents:Modernity and Subaltern Revolt inUpper Egypt, 1700-1920." Zeinabhas accepted a position as an assistantprofessor at Oberlin College this fall,teaching history of the Middle East andNorth Africa.

Charles E. Kiamie,III (2004) successfullydefended his doctoral dissertation, "Fringe

Benefits?: Rural-Regime Dlmamics,Refraditionalization, and Political (De)Liberalization in Jordan" in Georgetown'sgovemment department inApril 2008. Hegraduates alongside his wife, Rasha, whohas eamed an M.S. in biochemistry andmolecular biology at Georgetown.

Brendan Geary (2005) wil l beteaching at Catholic University nextyear in the political science departmentas a visiting faculty member. He willteach courses on Middle East politics,comparative politics, and Americanforeign policy. Brendan will alsocontinue as the O'Brien Fellow in theInstitute for International Law andPolit ics at Georgetown.

Ariel Ahram (2006) will finish his Ph.D.in govemment at Georgetown in August.He has accepted a job at the Universityof Oklahoma, where he's been namedassistant professor in the Departmentof Political Science and the School ofIntemational Affairs.

Shadi Hamid (2006) is currently aresearch fellow at the American Centerfor Oriental Research in Amman,Jordan. In March, he published an op-ed in the Washington Post on Obama'srace speech and what it could mean forour relations with the Muslim world.

Kristen Scott (2006) is working atChemonics Intemational, managing aUSAID project that aims to develop theEgyptian mortgage market.

AlienorVan den Bosch (2007) is nowbasedin Brussels, where she works as a consultantfor the European Commission monitoringEU-funded development projects in allArabcountries, specifically projects on migration,refugees, and elections.

CunnrNT & GnnouATtNc STuDENT NewsBen Blaylock (2008) married AndreaBjorkman (a graduating Georgetownbusiness school student) on June 7 inSalt Lake City.

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Jeffery Dyer (2008) will start a Ph.D.program in history at Boston Collegein the fall. He will return to D.C. inNovember to present a paper at MESA.

Dahlia Elzein and Dena Takruri(2008) presented a paper co-authoredwith Dr. Rochelle Davis at theHistorians Aeainst the War conference


in Atlanta entitled "War and itsDiscontents: Understanding Iraq andthe U.S. Empire." The paper presentedinitial findings of the research projectheaded by Dr. Davis entitled "TheU.S. Military and Iraqi Culture: AnAssessment of Attitudes and CulturalTraining." Also, Dena continues toco-host and work as the associateproducer for a program on ART (ArabRadio and Television) called "What'sHappening."

Sarah Kaiksow (2008) will be startinga Ph.D. program at Princeton Universityin sociology. She is currently preparingfor her August 3 wedding to AhmedDhafer Alumran in Madison, Wisconsin(with a wedding to follow shortly inBahrain).

Ethan Morton-Jerome (2008) willbe the Program Assistant for "Journey

to Jordan," through which he will lead25 American high school students toAmman to study Arabic and live withJordanian families for seven weeks.

Victoria Zyp (2008) received a CriticalLanguage Scholarship from the StateDepartment to study Advanced Turkishthis summer at Bogazici University inIstanbul.

Jessica Devaney (2009) and NataliaSancha-Garcia (2009) are part of anexhibition at the Katzen Arts Center atAmerican University this summer. Theexhibition, entitled "Multiplicito cracy,"runs from May 31 through July 27.Jessica will debut her documentary film(created with Mary Andreolli), Beautyin the Uprising: Israeli and Palestinian

Art as Resistance.Nataliawill display l5photographs, collectively entitled "FiveSenses of the Arab World." which focus

on society and culture in the Middle Eastand North Africa.

Harald Fuller-Bennett (2009) isspending the summer in Syria and theSudan, where he will be studying Arabicand doing research that he hopes willtum into a thesis. He was fortunate toreceive a FLAS scholarship to help payfor the journey.

Jean-Baptiste Gallopin (2009) has beenon leave this semester to do an intemshipwith UNRWAs representative office at theUnited Nations headquarters in New York.

Shady Hakim (2009) was awardedan SSRC Dissertation ProposalDevelopment Fellowship forthe summer;he will use the award to pursue researchin Egypt for two months.

FncuLTY N rwsFida Adelyreceived a Spring 2008 CompetitiveGranfin-Aid from the GeorgetownUniversity Graduate School to supporthiring a research assistant for her project,

"ForeignAid and the Discourse of Reformfor Education in the Arab World." Dr.Adely also gave a paper entitled "'Good'Development for Women? Neoliberalism,Work, and Constituting Progress" at asymposium on women and developmentat McGill University onApril 17.

Rochel le Davishas been on ajunior faculty research leavefor the spring semester. She is writing twoarticles with three MAAS students (DahliaElzein, Lizzie Foster, and Dena Talffuri)based on the research they conductedinterviewing U.S. soldiers and Marineswho served in haq. The research focuseson the soldiers' interactions with Iraqis,the types of cultural training they received,and their ideas about Iraqi culture andsociety. Two other MAAS students, RolaAbimourched and Brian Siebeking, alsoparticipated in the interview part of theresearch project. Professor Davis isalso completing a book manuscript on


Palestinian histories of village life before1948 and has collected over 100 bookswritten by refugees about their deshoyedvillages. During the spring semestershe gave talks at Reed College andIllinois State University and participatedin a conference at the University ofChicago entitled "Anthropology andCounterinsurgency." She recently joinedthe editorial boards of the Middle EastReport and Information Project (MERIP)andthe Arab StudiesJournal and, is also aboard member of the PalestinianAmericanResearch Center (PARC). In early March,Dr. Davis was the Georgetown FacultyRepresentative on a Georgetown alumnitour ofEgypt and Jordan.

M ichae l C . Hudsonserved as a panelist at the U.S.-ArabEconomic Forum in Washington, D.C.May 7. In April, he spoke at a CCASeducational outreach conference onthe current state of Palestinian-Israelirelations and the outlook for diplomaticprogress. That month, he also appearedon the weekly AI Jazeera English show,

"Inside lraq," and lectured to the MiddleEast Studies Program at George MasonUniversity on prospects for reform and

democratization in the Arab world. Dr.Hudson also participated in the annualconference of the Emirates Centerfor Shategic Studies and Researchin Abu Dhabi entitled "The ArabianGulf: Between Conservatism andChange." Comments from Dr. Hudson'spaper, "With All Deliberate Speed:The Incremental Approach to PoliticalReform in the Gulf" subsequentlyappeared in local papers, includingGulf News. In March, Dr. Hudsonlectured, along with Dr. Bassam Haddadof George Mason University and Dr.Augustus Richard Norton of BostonUniversity, at a well-attended CCASpanel presentation on "The Impasse inLebanon." He also spoke at a CCAS-organized event on "Changing Securityand Financial Conditions in the Gulf,"held at the Dubai School of Government(DSG) on February l7 and chaired by Dr.Tarik Yousef, the Kuwait Chair holder atCCAS and currently on leave as Dean ofthe DSG. The next day, Dr. Hudson wasthe luncheon speaker at the Rotary Clubof Dubai, where he spoke on the U.S.presidential election and the views of thethree main contenders on Middle Eastissues. On February 7, he participated ina conference at the Library of Congress

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Academic Newson the history andbeliefs of the Druze. Dr.Hudson also gave a lecture at the WorldBank January 3 I at a workshop convenedto discuss how to improve the Bank'sdevelopment in the Arab world. On atrip to Qatar and the UAE in January Dr.Hudson lectured to students in Dr. AmiraSonbol's class at the Georgetown Schoolof Foreign Service campus in Doha. Healso participated in a meeting of theadvisory board for the SFS-Q Center forInternational and Regional Studies.

Adel lskandercompleted a co-edited manuscript on thelate literary critic and public intellectualEdward Said. The 28-chapter volumeentitled Edwqrd Said: Emancipation &Representation includes contributionsfrom Gayatri Spivak, Noam ChomskY,Jacqueline Rose, Daniel Barenboim,Joseph Massad, Laura Nader, IlanPappe, Ella Shohat, W.J,T. Mitchell,and others, and is forthcoming from theUniversity of California Press in late2008. Dr. Iskander also authored severalreview articles: "Making Arab News"for the Sage journal Journalism and

"The Specters and Spectacles of IranianMedia" for the Journal of InterculturalCommunication, both forthcoming inlate 2008. His review article "Global

War-Local Views: Media Images ofthe Iraq War" appeared in the 2007issue of the Journal of CommunicationInquiry. In addition, Dr. Iskanderauthored a three-part article series onmedia representation and resistance inthe Arab world entitled "1001 ArabianPlights" in the online journal FlowTV,which is based at the University of Texasat Austin. He also authored severalother articles: "Back to the Future: NewCharter for Charted Territory" in theSpring 2008 issue of Arab Media &Society; "Arab Journalism: Between De-Westernization and Objectivity" in theItalian literary joumal Reset: Dialogueon Civilizations; and "Lines in the Sand:Problematizing Arab Media in the Post-Taxonomic Era," published in the Fall2007 issue of Arab Media & SocietY.As for lectures, Dr. Iskander presentedthe following: "Spoon-fed Objectivity:On the Appropriation of WesternMedia Development Initiatives in Arab

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Broadcasting" at the MediterraneanResearch Meeting of the EuropeanUniversity Institute in Montecatini,Italy on March 14; "The Challengesof Independent Media in the ArabWorld" at the residence of the CanadianAmbassador, Cairo, Egypt, March 4;"New Media and Communication in theArab World" at the Embassy of Canada,Cairo, Egypt, March 3; "Progress Beyondthe Illusory: Envisioning the ProspectsofNew Media Development in Palestine"at Birzeit University, Palestine, February20; "From Palestine to the World: MediaEducation for Media Literacy" at theArab-American University of Jenin,Palestine, February 19; "The 60-yearQuagmire: The Challenges to PalestinianJoumalism" at the Jerusalem Mediaand Communication Center, Ramallah,Palestine, February I8; and "Indigenizing

Orientalism? Refl ections on the MediatedSelf-Portrayal of Coptic OrthodoxChristian ldentity" at the Middle EastStudies Association (MESA) in Montreal,Canada in November 2007.He also gavea series of invited lectures, including

"Recent Trends and Developments inArab Media: The Case of Al-Jazeera" atCairo University, Egypt, March 10, andpresented the following guest lectures:Undergraduate Communication Theoryclass, Modern Science & Arts University,Cairo, Egypt, March 8; UndergraduateResearch Methods in Communicationclass, Cairo University, Egypt, March5; Graduate Seminar in Media Studies,Birzeit University, Palestine, February20; "Palestinian Media at the Crossroads,"Media Development Center, Birzeit,Palestine, February 20.

Nou redd ine Jebnou nparticipated in the SouthAfrican Instituteof International Affairs' conference,

"Seeds of Contempt: RethinkingRadicalization and Responses." Theevent was held in Johannesburg March6 through 8, and Dr. Jebnoun presenteda paper on radicalism in North Africa.He also gave a presentation in Januaryat Washington, D.C.'s National DefenseUniversity entitled "Implications andImpacts of Al-Qaeda on the Algerianand North African Context." In addition,Dr. Jebnoun has appeared numerous

times on Al Jazeera and the BBC in thelast several months, speaking on topicsranging from the brain drain in NorthAfrica to the bombings in Algeria toFrench-U.S.-Maghreb relations.

Laur ie K ing- l ran ibecame Managing Editor of the Journalof Palestine Studies in Washington, D.C.in January. She also published an articlein April, "Exiled to a Limin alLegal Zone,"which addresses the currentpositioning ofPalestinians in the emerging architectureof international humanitarian law. Thearticle appeared in a volume edited byRichard Falk entitled International Lm'vand the Third World: Reshaping Justice(Routledge, 2008).

Gregory Orfaleais at work on an essay entitled "Obama andthe Middle East: Stand Up for...Change?"He also has two books forthcoming in2009. The first,Angeleno Days: SelectedMemoirs and Essays, includes twosections---one on Los Angeles Memoirsand the other on Arab America-andwill be published by the University ofArizona Press. The other work is hisfirst collection of short stories, entitledThe Man Who Guarded the Bomb. Thecollection is forthcoming from SyracuseUniversity Press. He is also serving as ajudge for the 2nd Annual Arab AmericanBook Award in Fiction, offered by theArab American National Museum inDetroit.

Sherene Seika lypresented her work in February at YaleUniversity in two lectures-"Nakbaand Historiography: The Centralityof Catastrophe in Palestinian History"and "Borders. Incarceration, andGender." She also presented a lectureat Georgetown University's School ofForeign Service-Qatar on Decemberl1 called "A Public Good? PalestinianBusinessmen and the British ColonialState." In addition, Dr. Seikaly spokethat same day at Qatar University about

"Nakba wa Ta'rikh" [Catastrophe andHistoryl. She also gave a public lectureat Georgetown University on November27 entitled "The New Arab Home:


Academic NewsConsumer, Housewife, and Citizen inForties Palestine."

Jean-Frangois Seznecpresented a number of papers, includingthe following: "Reform and Security inthe Gulf: A Review of Democratizationin the GCC" at the United States Instituteof Peace, April 7; "The Gulf Economiesand Globalization: The Impact of WTOand FTAs" at the Emirates Center forShategic Study in Abu Dhabi, March30; "Financing Indushialization inthe Gulf ' at CCAS's symposium onIndustrialization in the Gulf (of which Dr.Seznec was the chair of the committeeorganizing the conference), March 27;a presentation on Dubai's economy atthe Council on Foreign Relations inNew York, March 5; "Industrial Policyin the Gulf' at the Dubai School ofGovernment, February 17; lectures at theFirst Presbyterian Church of Annapolison the state of affairs in the Middle East,January 12 and2};"An Overview of theGulf States" at the McDonough Schoolof Business at Georgetown University,January 8. Dr. Seznec also wrote apaper on Gulf sovereign wealth fundsfor Middle East Policy, published in thespring. In addition, since January he hasspoken numerous times on Radio Canadaon oil prices, Gulfpolitics, and industrialissues in the Gulf. He also appeared onTV Argent, the French-Canadian affiliateof Bloomberg, and spoke to the NewYork Times on industrial growth in theGulf. Dr. Seznec has given a numberof interviews for internet publicationsas well, such as ECSSR in Abu Dhabi,Middle East Online, Bloomberg News,and Gulf Base. Finally, he participated ina series of workshops on the future of theMiddle East at the National IntelligenceCouncil and consulted for a major U.S.oil company on oil policy in the Gulf inMarch.

Samer Shehatawas awarded a fellowship fromthe Woodrow Wilson InternationalCenter for Scholars for the 2008-2009academic year, where he will begina new research project on Islamistelectoral participation in the


Middle East. Dr. Shehata will alsopublish a chapter entitled "EgyptianParliamentary Campaigns" in theedited volume Political Participationin the Middle East, to be published byLynne Rienner in the summer of 2008.In May, Dr. Shehata participated intwo workshops: one on elections in theMiddle East at Brandeis University andthe other on Islamists and elections atGeorge Washington University. In April,Syracuse University's Middle EastStudies Program invited Dr. Shehata togive a lecture entitled "Approaches toUnderstanding Culture and Politics inthe Arab World." He was also asked toparticipate in a United States Instituteof Peace study group on "Reform andSecurity" in the Middle East, for whichhe will be writing a short memo onEgypt. Dr. Shehata also presented alecture entitled "Political SuccessionScenarios in Egypt" at the Washington,D.C. Meridian International Center inApril. He published a 3,000-word entryentitled "Democracy: the Middle East"in the Oxford Encyclopedia of theModern World in March. That month.he presented a paper entitled "PoliticalDa'wa: Understanding the Electoraland Parliamentary Participation of theEgyptian Muslim Brotherhood" at the"Islamists and Democrats" conferenceat the American University in Cairo.In February, Dr. Shehata served as adiscussant for a Georgetown paneldevoted to examining Dr. StevenHeydemann's recent paper, "UpgradingAuthoritarianism in the Arab World."During that month he also participatedin another panel held at Georgetownentitled "Engaging the Arab World:Balancing Priorities," which examinedthe intersection ofSecurity Studies andRegional/Arab Studies. Dr. Shehataalso continued a busy administrativeschedule, serving on a number ofcommittees for CCAS and for theSchool of Foreign Service-Qatar. Hecontinued directing the Qatar ArabicLanguage Scholarship Program, whichentailed traveling to Doha in March2008. There he spent several days atQatar University (QU) consulting withfaculty and administrators responsiblefor the program, in addition to meeting

the four American students currentlystudying intensive Arabic at QU. Dr.Shehata chaired the selection committeefor the Qatar Post-Doctoral FellowshipinArab, Islamic and U. S.-Arab relations.He gave a number of media interviewsthroughout the term as well, includingappearing on Al Jazeera English anumber of times, among them the April16, 2008 episode of "Inside Story" todiscuss the verdicts in the trial againstMuslim Brotherhood leaders in Egypt.He also appeared on that network'sshow Min Washington in March toassess the U.S. presidential race andin January to discuss the assassinationof former Pakistani Prime MinisterBenazir Bhutto. Dr. Shehata was askedby NPR's Marketplace to write a shortcommentary on Islam and modernityfor a special series on the Middle East.His contribution, entitled "Modernityand Islam go together," was broadcaston March 13, 2008. In addition, he dida number of interviews for CBS NewsRadio, Iranian television. and othermedia outlets.

Jud i th Tucker andKassem Wahbaorganized theApril 4 seminar, "Teaching/Learning Culture in the ForeignLanguage Curriculum: Critical Issuesand Future Directions," which exploredthe question of teaching studentsculture while instructing them in Arabic,Turkish, Hebrew, and Persian. A numberof CCAS and CCAS-affiliated facultyparticipated, including Sylvia Onder,Reem Bassiouney, Amin Bonnah, FarimaMostowfi, Margaret Nydell, FelicitasOpwis, Karin Ryding, Irfan Shahid, andYoel Wachtel.

Photo CreditsSymposium photos, pp. I-5, 24: Zain Shah;George Atiyeh, p. 7: Middle East StudiesAssociation; Andran mncent, p. 7: MacquarieUniversity; Louis Cantori, p. 7: Centerfor theStudy of Islam and Democracy; Lucius Battle,p. 8: Harry S. Truman Library; Arab-Americanliterature class, p. 8: Sharif Elmusa; MAASdemonstration, p. 9 & 10: Timothy Kaldas;Worlcshop alphabet exercise, p. 17: StephanieDiStasso

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Please help us keep the CCASdatabase up to date. Fi l l out the formbelow with new contact information.

Thank you!UPDATED INFORMATION

Name

Organizat ion

Address

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Country

Email

Telephone/Fax

Please fax this form to (202) 687-7001, or mailit to: CCAS-Georgetown University, ?4L-|CC,Washington, DC 20057-L020, USA.Dr. Jean-Franqois Seznec welcomes attendees to CCAS's

annua l sympos ium on March 27 .

ccas 2008 summer newsletter

Documents