Revolutions, Migrations and the Middle East - Detailseite

This course explores the understudied nexus of migration and revolution, focusing on but not limited to the contemporary Middle East. The fields of Migration and Revolution have long been established in the social sciences, but they often operate in isolation from one another. This has resulted in a significant lack of exploration into the relationship between the two. 

Many revolutionaries were migrants or lived in exile. Moreover, revolutions often involve the mass displacement/mobility of populations, including elites, ordinary (non)citizens, and revolutionary actors, along with their ideas, cultural practices, collective memories, and social networks. Both migration and revolution have the capability to alter the dominant patterns of inclusion/exclusion and discrimination, impact nationhood, and engender new social classes or groups of vulnerable individuals within a society. While they instill hope in many, revolutions, social movements, and uprisings can also bring about hardships, persecution, and pessimism in others. 

This course is designed to facilitate collective learning on the Middle East, specifically focusing on its intersectional colonialities and new modes of Orientalisms. It will provide an opportunity to explore revolutionary migrations and the migration of revolutionaries, with a particular emphasis on different geographies in the region. The seminar serves as a platform for critical exchange on the Middle East, enabling participants to learn from different cases and uncover their commonalities and differences. In addition, we will invite activists/artists/scholars to join our class from time to time and participate in our discussions.