Current Analysis

Who is “Indian” in the Gulf? Race, Labor and Citizenship

How do race and racism operate in the Gulf? Neha Vora and Amélie Le Renard closely examine how the term "Indian," as it is used in the United Arab Emirates, refers to much more than national origin. They trace the role of colonialism, capitalism and the state in creating "Indian" as a racialized cat

Neha Vora, Amélie Le Renard • 11 min read

Current Analysis

Coexistence, Sectarianism and Racism — An Interview with Ussama Makdisi

Alex Lubin interviews Ussama Makdisi about his work on sectarianism and coexistence in the Middle East, the subject of his most recent book. Makdisi also addresses the role of race and colonialism and explains the importance of seeing these ideological formations in historical and geopolitical conte

Alex Lubin • 12 min read

Current Analysis

Humanism in Ruins – An Interview with Aslı Iğsız

Aslı Iğsız discusses her book Humanism in Ruins, which examines the long-lasting impacts of the 1923 Greek-Turkish Population Exchange Agreement. Challenging the common portrayal of the population exchange agreement as a success story, she unveils how the discourses of liberal humanism and coexisten

Burak Başaranlar • 12 min read

MER Article

The Sub-Saharan African Turn in Moroccan Literature

With the increasing presence of sub-Saharan African migrants in North Africa over the past decade, public discussions of race and prejudice are losing their taboo. Moroccan writers are encouraging a broader awareness of structural racism by including more Black characters in their novels and by depi

Brahim El Guabli • 9 min read

Current Analysis

The Sub-Saharan African Turn in Moroccan Literature

With the increasing presence of sub-Saharan African migrants in North Africa over the past decade, public discussions of race and prejudice are losing their taboo. Moroccan writers are encouraging a broader awareness of structural racism by including more Black characters in their novels and by depi

Brahim El Guabli • 9 min read

Current Analysis

Anti-Racism and Political Contagion From Save Darfur to Black Lives Matter

Fifteen years after his classic essay for Middle East Report, “Slavery, Genocide and the Politics of Outrage: Understanding the New Racial Olympics” Hisham Aïdi reflects on what has changed, and what has not, in the intertwined dynamics of Islamophobia, solidarity movements and anti-racism in the Un

Hisham Aïdi • 13 min read