Essays and Features

In a Statistical Vacuum, Speculating on the Arab-American Vote, 2016 vs. 2020

By

Elie Chalala

While much of the country — and even the world — focused on the last U.S. election and remained engrossed even after its results and consequences, the picture of this historic event in the Arab world was unlike anything that was happening here. Regrettably, the distorted analysis and coverage by Arab media influenced to some extent the attitudes and electoral choices of many Arab immigrants in the U.S.

Nawal El-Saadawi’s ‘Daughter of Isis’ Life and Times via the Plenitude of Her Writings

D.H. Melhem

When the distinguished Egyptian writer Nawal el-Saadawi was scheduled to speak last October at the Brecht Forum as a guest of the Forum, the Kevorkian Center of New York University, and RAWI (Radius of Arab American Writers), I attended with anticipation. As she signed the books I had just bought, I was struck by her warm smile and alert gaze. El-Saadawi wore no makeup, eschewing what she considered “a mask,” as she would note later. Like Firdaus, the heroine-narrator of her novel “Woman at Point Zero” (l983), she seemed “to look at me from the depths of her eyes,” peering below surface impressions and superficialities of language. Then it was time for her lecture.

Rose Antun: Early 20th Century Arab Feminist Journalist

How ‘Shwam’ Migration Contributed to Arab Renaissance Movement

By Naomi Pham

A new biographical book enriches the scarce literature on 19th and 20th century Lebanese and Syrian emigrants (often referred to as Shwam) who settled in Egypt and grew up to be journalists and intellectuals. Many of their contributions to the Nahda reflect the inescapable truths about the role of women in the Arab Renaissance movement.

Essays and Features

Did Assad Use Beirut’s Port To Prosecute His War Against The Syrian People?

Ongoing investigations into Beirut’s August 4 Port explosion have unearthed suspicious links between three influential businessmen with ties to Bashar al-Assad and the ammonium nitrate that exploded in Beirut’s hangar 12.

Essays and Features

Despite a Bloody Decade of Conflict, ‘Heirs’ of the Arab Spring Are Blossoming!

It has been 10 years since the Arab Spring erupted in Tunisia, toppling multiple generations of dictatorial rule and bringing hopes for an era of democracy to the Arab World. But the desired change did not come, and the Arab Spring gave way to wars and new dictators.

Essays and Features

ESSAYS & FEATURES IN FORTHCOMING AL JADID, VOL. 24, NO. 79, 2020

A Nation in an Expanding Mental Ward: Is Lebanon Now Chekhov’s Ward No. Six?

Anton Chekhov’s internationally renowned “Ward No. 6” in 1892 arose from despair over Russia’s collapse into the hands of ignorant rulers, perhaps comparing the decrepit hospital of his story to the state of the country. Over a century later, his story strikes a fresh chord — now more than ever following the Beirut Blast on August 4 that turned large parts of the city to ruin. In a recent Independent Arabia article, Lebanese poet and critic Abdo Wazen went as far as to compare the tragedy to Chekhov’s “Ward No. 6,” where the corrupted and negligent staff of a provincial mental asylum bear a painful resemblance to Lebanon’s highest office holders.

Essays and Features

Rose Antun: Recognizing The Contributions of Long Neglected ‘Shwam’ Feminist Journalist to the Arab Nahda

By

Naomi Pham

ESSAYS & FEATURES IN FORTHCOMING AL JADID, VOL. 24, NO. 79, 2020

Rifat Chadirji (1926-2020): Architect Who Integrated Traditional Iraqi And Modern Architectures, Then Turned to Life of Writer and Scholar

Iraq and the Arab world of avant-garde architecture has lost Rifat Chadirji, an architectural theorist, critic, and designer who played a pivotal role in the post-war modernization of Baghdad. He died due to coronavirus complications on April 10, 2020 in London at 93.

Like many Iraqi intellectuals, Chadirji suffered under the monarchy and Baathist dictatorship and was jailed twice before going into exile. His second arrest changed the course of his life, marking the end of his design career and his transition into theory and lecturing.

Essays and Features

Many Historic Buildings and Cultural Sites Destroyed in Beirut Explosion: Did the Blast Fatally Tear Lebanon’s Cultural Fabric?

Naomi Pham

The ‘Grand Compromise’ Between Lebanon’s ‘Strong Presidency’ and Iran’s 'Rejectionists' Hastens the Demise of Lebanon’s Economy

By

Elie Chalala

In early July, we wrote about two suicides in Lebanon while holding off on a third until we fact-checked it. Subsequently, the Beirut-based Al Modon newspaper wrote about a total of four suicides, including the two reported here. The article’s author deliberately stressed the reasons behind the suicides were not personal, but rather related to deteriorating economic conditions and the loss of dignity.

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