Podcasts about southwest asian

Today on Speaking Out of Place we talk with Professor Persis Karim, co-producer and co-director of a new documentary film, The Dawn is Too Far: Stories of Iranian-American Life. She is joined by Roya Ahmadi, a student at Stanford who interned at the Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies at San Francisco State University and was part of the production team for the film. The film captures the lives of young Iranian-Americans who come to the San Francisco Bay Area around the time of the Iranian Revolution, and find themselves involved with, and helping to shape, a vibrant, international culture of politics and art. We talk about both the similarities and differences between those days and today—especially with regard to diasporic identity formation in different historical times, and the persistent need to resist racism and bigotry and act in solidarity with others. Persis Karim is the director of the Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies at San Francisco State University, where she also teaches in the Department of Humanities and Comparative and World Literature. Since 1999, she has been actively working to expand the field of Iranian Diaspora Studies, beginning with the first anthology of Iranian writing she co-edited, A World Between: Poems, Short Stories and Essays by Iranian-Americans. She is the editor of two other anthologies of Iranian diaspora literature: Let Me Tell You Where I've Been: New Writing by Women of the Iranian Diaspora, and Tremors: New Fiction by Iranian-American Writers. Before coming to San Francisco State, she was a professor of English & Comparative Literature at San Jose State where she was the founder and director of the Persian Studies program, and coordinator of the Middle East Studies Minor. She has published numerous articles about Iranian diaspora literature and culture for academic publications including Iranian Studies, Comparative Studies of South Asian, African and Middle East Studies (CSSAMES), and MELUS: Multi-Ethnic Literatures of the United States. “The Dawn is Too Far: Stories of Iranian-American Life,” is her first film project (co-directed and co-produced with Soumyaa Behrens). She received her Master's in Middle East Studies and her Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from UT Austin. She is also a poet.Roya Ahmadi is a senior at Stanford University studying Human Biology with a self-designed concentration in Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) Women's Health and a minor in Interdisciplinary Arts. She is interested in Muslim and SWANA women's sexual and reproductive health and culturally/religiously sensitive pregnancy care. Roya is a co-chair for the Stanford Institute for Diversity in the Arts Undergraduate Fellowship and a video and sound installation artist who has presented work in group shows across the US. Roya interned for the Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies at SFSU for two summers when she was in high school; the Center has had a deep impact on her artwork and her identity as an Iranian-American.Trailer:https://vimeo.com/1002914645

There are so many cool Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) performance artists out there! Since this performance art season only had ten episodes to talk to artists directly, this last episode wraps up the season and goes through a whole bunch of other contemporary artists that hosts Marina Johnson and Nabra Nelson are excited about.Kunafa and Shay is a podcast produced for HowlRound Theatre Commons by co-hosts Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson. Kunafa and Shay discusses and analyzes contemporary and historical Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) theatre from across the region. Kunafa and Shay highlights MENA/SWANA plays and theatremakers, spotlights community-engaged work in the region and diaspora, and analyzes the past, present, and future of MENA/SWANA theatre in the United States and beyond. Theatre artists and scholars Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson bring their own perspectives, research, and special guests in order to start a dialogue and encourage further learning and discussion. The name, Kunafa and Shay, invites you into the discussion in the best way we know how: with complex and delicious sweets like kunafa, and perfectly warm tea (or, in Arabic, shay). Kunafa and Shay is a place to share experiences, discuss ideas, and sometimes engage with our differences. In each country in the region, you'll find kunafa made differently. In that way, we also lean into the diversity, complexity, and robust flavors of MENA/SWANA theatre. 

Palestinian filmmaker Basma al-Sharif dives into her award-winning pieces to discuss film as performance art. This discussion leads into the role of activism in the arts and the ways film responds to and comments on current events.Kunafa and Shay is a podcast produced for HowlRound Theatre Commons by co-hosts Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson. Kunafa and Shay discusses and analyzes contemporary and historical Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) theatre from across the region. Kunafa and Shay highlights MENA/SWANA plays and theatremakers, spotlights community-engaged work in the region and diaspora, and analyzes the past, present, and future of MENA/SWANA theatre in the United States and beyond. Theatre artists and scholars Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson bring their own perspectives, research, and special guests in order to start a dialogue and encourage further learning and discussion. The name, Kunafa and Shay, invites you into the discussion in the best way we know how: with complex and delicious sweets like kunafa, and perfectly warm tea (or, in Arabic, shay). Kunafa and Shay is a place to share experiences, discuss ideas, and sometimes engage with our differences. In each country in the region, you'll find kunafa made differently. In that way, we also lean into the diversity, complexity, and robust flavors of MENA/SWANA theatre. 

This episode analyzes narrative podcasts as a form of performance. Hosts Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson and guest multi-hyphenate artist Laila Abdo utilize Laila's latest project The Great Pyramid Scheme to discuss how comedy can be used as a powerful form of representation.Kunafa and Shay is a podcast produced for HowlRound Theatre Commons by co-hosts Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson. Kunafa and Shay discusses and analyzes contemporary and historical Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) theatre from across the region. Kunafa and Shay highlights MENA/SWANA plays and theatremakers, spotlights community-engaged work in the region and diaspora, and analyzes the past, present, and future of MENA/SWANA theatre in the United States and beyond. Theatre artists and scholars Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson bring their own perspectives, research, and special guests in order to start a dialogue and encourage further learning and discussion. The name, Kunafa and Shay, invites you into the discussion in the best way we know how: with complex and delicious sweets like kunafa, and perfectly warm tea (or, in Arabic, shay). Kunafa and Shay is a place to share experiences, discuss ideas, and sometimes engage with our differences. In each country in the region, you'll find kunafa made differently. In that way, we also lean into the diversity, complexity, and robust flavors of MENA/SWANA theatre. 

Palestinian performance artist Riham Isaac discusses her site-specific performances, which understand performance as a medium for change. She shares insights into her pieces like Stone on Road and the profound symbolism of resistance in Palestinian art. Kunafa and Shay is a podcast produced for HowlRound Theatre Commons by co-hosts Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson. Kunafa and Shay discusses and analyzes contemporary and historical Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) theatre from across the region. Kunafa and Shay highlights MENA/SWANA plays and theatremakers, spotlights community-engaged work in the region and diaspora, and analyzes the past, present, and future of MENA/SWANA theatre in the United States and beyond. Theatre artists and scholars Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson bring their own perspectives, research, and special guests in order to start a dialogue and encourage further learning and discussion. The name, Kunafa and Shay, invites you into the discussion in the best way we know how: with complex and delicious sweets like kunafa, and perfectly warm tea (or, in Arabic, shay). Kunafa and Shay is a place to share experiences, discuss ideas, and sometimes engage with our differences. In each country in the region, you'll find kunafa made differently. In that way, we also lean into the diversity, complexity, and robust flavors of MENA/SWANA theatre. 

This episode explores Arab experimentalism and futurism with artist Leyya Mona Tawil, also known as Lime Rickey International. Leyya discusses her dynamic body of work and the power of art as a tool for exploring diasporic experiences and envisioning complex futures.Kunafa and Shay is a podcast produced for HowlRound Theatre Commons by co-hosts Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson. Kunafa and Shay discusses and analyzes contemporary and historical Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) theatre from across the region. Kunafa and Shay highlights MENA/SWANA plays and theatremakers, spotlights community-engaged work in the region and diaspora, and analyzes the past, present, and future of MENA/SWANA theatre in the United States and beyond. Theatre artists and scholars Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson bring their own perspectives, research, and special guests in order to start a dialogue and encourage further learning and discussion. The name, Kunafa and Shay, invites you into the discussion in the best way we know how: with complex and delicious sweets like kunafa, and perfectly warm tea (or, in Arabic, shay). Kunafa and Shay is a place to share experiences, discuss ideas, and sometimes engage with our differences. In each country in the region, you'll find kunafa made differently. In that way, we also lean into the diversity, complexity, and robust flavors of MENA/SWANA theatre. 

Hosts Marina Johnson and Nabra Nelson are joined by poets Fargo Tbakhi and George Abraham to explore the intersection of poetry and performance art. They discuss live expression, their collaborative process, and how performance can challenge norms and spark conversations about identity, diaspora, and revolution.Kunafa and Shay is a podcast produced for HowlRound Theatre Commons by co-hosts Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson. Kunafa and Shay discusses and analyzes contemporary and historical Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) theatre from across the region. Kunafa and Shay highlights MENA/SWANA plays and theatremakers, spotlights community-engaged work in the region and diaspora, and analyzes the past, present, and future of MENA/SWANA theatre in the United States and beyond. Theatre artists and scholars Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson bring their own perspectives, research, and special guests in order to start a dialogue and encourage further learning and discussion. The name, Kunafa and Shay, invites you into the discussion in the best way we know how: with complex and delicious sweets like kunafa, and perfectly warm tea (or, in Arabic, shay). Kunafa and Shay is a place to share experiences, discuss ideas, and sometimes engage with our differences. In each country in the region, you'll find kunafa made differently. In that way, we also lean into the diversity, complexity, and robust flavors of MENA/SWANA theatre. 

Hosts Marina Johnson and Nabra Nelson interview Palestinian African trans drag artist Mama Ganuush. They discuss the vibrant drag scene in San Francisco, Mama Ganuush's journey into drag, and the intersection of activism, identity, and performance.Kunafa and Shay is a podcast produced for HowlRound Theatre Commons by co-hosts Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson. Kunafa and Shay discusses and analyzes contemporary and historical Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) theatre from across the region. Kunafa and Shay highlights MENA/SWANA plays and theatremakers, spotlights community-engaged work in the region and diaspora, and analyzes the past, present, and future of MENA/SWANA theatre in the United States and beyond. Theatre artists and scholars Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson bring their own perspectives, research, and special guests in order to start a dialogue and encourage further learning and discussion. The name, Kunafa and Shay, invites you into the discussion in the best way we know how: with complex and delicious sweets like kunafa, and perfectly warm tea (or, in Arabic, shay). Kunafa and Shay is a place to share experiences, discuss ideas, and sometimes engage with our differences. In each country in the region, you'll find kunafa made differently. In that way, we also lean into the diversity, complexity, and robust flavors of MENA/SWANA theatre. 

This episode dives into the performance art of Lebanese artist Rima Najdi. From Hollywood's portrayal of Arab women to navigating complex personal and political landscapes, this thought-provoking discussion highlights the power of performance art in creating social change.Kunafa and Shay is a podcast produced for HowlRound Theatre Commons by co-hosts Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson. Kunafa and Shay discusses and analyzes contemporary and historical Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) theatre from across the region. Kunafa and Shay highlights MENA/SWANA plays and theatremakers, spotlights community-engaged work in the region and diaspora, and analyzes the past, present, and future of MENA/SWANA theatre in the United States and beyond. Theatre artists and scholars Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson bring their own perspectives, research, and special guests in order to start a dialogue and encourage further learning and discussion. The name, Kunafa and Shay, invites you into the discussion in the best way we know how: with complex and delicious sweets like kunafa, and perfectly warm tea (or, in Arabic, shay). Kunafa and Shay is a place to share experiences, discuss ideas, and sometimes engage with our differences. In each country in the region, you'll find kunafa made differently. In that way, we also lean into the diversity, complexity, and robust flavors of MENA/SWANA theatre. 

Lebanese multidisciplinary artist Khansa shares his artistic journey, blending traditional Middle Eastern music with modern avant-pop, and offers a behind-the-scenes look at his creative process. This episode delves deep into the power of art as a medium for cultural fusion and storytelling.Kunafa and Shay is a podcast produced for HowlRound Theatre Commons by co-hosts Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson. Kunafa and Shay discusses and analyzes contemporary and historical Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) theatre from across the region. Kunafa and Shay highlights MENA/SWANA plays and theatremakers, spotlights community-engaged work in the region and diaspora, and analyzes the past, present, and future of MENA/SWANA theatre in the United States and beyond. Theatre artists and scholars Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson bring their own perspectives, research, and special guests in order to start a dialogue and encourage further learning and discussion. The name, Kunafa and Shay, invites you into the discussion in the best way we know how: with complex and delicious sweets like kunafa, and perfectly warm tea (or, in Arabic, shay). Kunafa and Shay is a place to share experiences, discuss ideas, and sometimes engage with our differences. In each country in the region, you'll find kunafa made differently. In that way, we also lean into the diversity, complexity, and robust flavors of MENA/SWANA theatre. 

Live artist Tania El Khoury discusses her creative process, the ways audience participation cultivates solidarity and awareness of social justice issues, her role as the director of the Center for Human Rights and the Arts at Bard College, and the intersection of art and activism in her work.Kunafa and Shay is a podcast produced for HowlRound Theatre Commons by co-hosts Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson. Kunafa and Shay discusses and analyzes contemporary and historical Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) theatre from across the region. Kunafa and Shay highlights MENA/SWANA plays and theatremakers, spotlights community-engaged work in the region and diaspora, and analyzes the past, present, and future of MENA/SWANA theatre in the United States and beyond. Theatre artists and scholars Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson bring their own perspectives, research, and special guests in order to start a dialogue and encourage further learning and discussion. The name, Kunafa and Shay, invites you into the discussion in the best way we know how: with complex and delicious sweets like kunafa, and perfectly warm tea (or, in Arabic, shay). Kunafa and Shay is a place to share experiences, discuss ideas, and sometimes engage with our differences. In each country in the region, you'll find kunafa made differently. In that way, we also lean into the diversity, complexity, and robust flavors of MENA/SWANA theatre. 

Habibi Festival, the annual celebration of music from the Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) region, returns to Joe's Pub this week. Organizers Meera Dugal and Alex Knowlton give some highlights alongside Algerian percussionist Karim Ziad, who performs live in our studio. Habibi Festival runs October 8-12.

Join Aliza Imran and Jessica Shona-Stewart as they discuss recent Sac State news.Imran discusses the announcement last Thursday that winter commencement will be held at the Golden 1 Center on Dec. 14. She also talks about Sac State's increase of Latinx/Chicanx representation, the Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) Center opening and the Sacramento Reptile Show. Shona-Stewart talks about the financial instability that Sac State students are experiencing from delays in the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, as well as the Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Policy Summit and President Luke Wood's fee increase approval. Show notes:FAFSA delays and changes threaten Sac State's financially vulnerable studentsBREAKING: Sac State President Luke Wood announces 4 of 5 student fee increases approvedSac State hosts the inaugural Asian American Pacific Islander Statewide Policy SummitBREAKING: Sac State to host winter commencement at Golden 1 CenterSacramento Reptile Show delivers an un-frog-gettable fall expositionCHLFSA calls on Sac State to increase Latinx/Chicanx representation and leadership

In the last episode of the fourth season of Kunafa and Shay—which was a historical and classical Middle Wastern and North African (MENA) and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) theatre season—Marina Johnson and Nabra Nelson reflect on the season, give some additional insight, and provide a broader overview of their framework for historical and classical theatre.

"My place of rebirth was New York." The DJ and producer discusses Brooklyn's queer ballroom scene and advocating for Munich's queer community at BLITZ Club. BASHKKA is a name you might recognise from festival lineups. In fact, it seems to be everywhere these days. The Munich-based artist has seemingly blown up in the past 24 months, but her ascent is well-deserved. The Munich-based DJ has been a resident at BLITZ Club for two years since returning from a decade-long stint in New York, where she quickly found family with Brooklyn's trans community. While she's now living back in Germany, the experience ignited a lifelong commitment to her advocacy for the cultural, political and de-colonial advancement of electronic music. She is an activist for Southwest Asian and North African artists across the scene, especially those from queer femme backgrounds or who have been otherwise marginalised from the mainstream dance music narrative. In this interview with the Exchange's senior producer Chloe Lula, BASHKKA talks about her roots and how the dichotomy of growing up to a Turkish family in Bavaria—and then living within the trans community in New York—has shaped her creativity and her outlook on family and life. She also talks about her debut EP, Maktub, on Nene H's label Umay, where she explores a mixture of ballroom, ghetto tech, house and the legacy of her years in New York. According to the artist, it's a "hot stew of seduction"—and it's only a prelude of what's to come. Listen to the episode in full.

Students at Hamline University are setting up an encampment, protesting the Israel-Hamas war, and University of Minnesota students will be re-starting protests on campus today. We spoke with two student journalists — one from each university — about free speech on campus.Dr. Jon Hallberg drew connections between art and medicine, plus he addressed the new price of cigarettes in Minneapolis.We celebrated the Timberwolves' win with a look back at the game.A local author shared the contrasting beauty and danger of the Boundary Waters.And we learned about the local non-profit Mizna, which is celebrating 25 years of amplifying the voices of Minnesota's Arab, Southwest Asian and North African artists.

At a dance studio in Minneapolis recently, Leila Awadallah reflected on what Mizna means to her. “When I found Mizna, that's when I unlocked this portal into this beautiful world of Arab Americans and of stories from countries that I longed to know deeper,” Awadallah said. The choreographer and dancer is half white, half Palestinian and grew up in South Dakota. She's one of the many artists who say they've found a place of belonging and cultural connection through Mizna.Kathy Haddad and Saleh Abudayyeh founded Mizna in the late ‘90s as a platform for contemporary literature, film, art and cultural production — highlighting the work of Arab, Southwest Asian and North African, or SWANA artists.Its cornerstone event is the annual Arab Film Festival. As the organization marks its 25th anniversary in the Twin Cities, Haddad looks back on what motivated her to start it all. “I wanted to see stories about our experience, about my experience. I read, and was inspired by Asian American writers, African American writers and lots of writers. And I didn't see any Arab American writers,” Haddad said.Mizna Executive and Artistic director Lana Barkawi is Palestinian and joined the organization in 2011. She says the organization has played a critical role in connecting creatives to their cultural identity.“The things that motivated the establishment of the organization still hold true today that we exist in a cultural context that marginalizes us and really, you know, boxes us into stereotyped ideas of who we are,” Barkawi said. Since its founding, Mizna, the Arabic word for ‘a desert cloud that holds the promise of rain,' has featured more than a thousand Arab and SWANA writers in its literary journal both locally and internationally. One of those writers is Marlin M. Jenkins — a half Lebanese, half Black writer and high school English teacher who's been published by Mizna.“I think Mizna has really helped me find that I think there's a lot of what I have learned about myself and about the world of what it means to be from Southwest Asia that wasn't able to come from my immediate family. A lot of that comes through the arts, especially through writing and poetry,” Jenkins said. Awadallah says she was visiting family in the Palestinian town of Beit Jala in the occupied West Bank in October but had to leave and come back to the U.S. She says she feels her body is still in her ancestral land. A recent performance for Mizna helped connect her to the part of herself that's still in Palestine. “My body started coming back and my voice started coming back and I was held by the Mizna community and so many others, the room was so full of people who are just ready, you know, to sob and to let the feelings be real together,” Awadallah said.Barkawi says times have been exceptionally tough for the organization and its artists. “Well, you know, we're marking our anniversary, and it feels difficult to be in a very celebratory mood because we're witnessing a shattering and grotesque cruelty in Gaza,” she said.Her hope is that she no longer feels the need to emphasize a heightened importance of the organization's work. “We're more than our traumas, we're more than the portrayals of us,” Barkawi said.She says the goal is to reclaim narratives and tell stories without always responding to tragedy, and to create an unburdened place for artists to create work on their own terms. 

Assassin's Creed Mirage is bringing this iconic video game franchise back to its roots in more ways than one. Perhaps most significantly, by setting this installment in West Asia (the Middle East) once again, like the original Assassin's Creed, Ubisoft has moved the franchise forward by taking it back to its roots. By giving us another Arab Assassin protagonist (after Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad) in Basim Ibn Ishaq (Lee Majdoub) in Assassin's Creed Mirage.  When we interviewed the game's star, Lee Majdoub, and the game's narrative director, Sarah Beaulieu, our conversation explored the creative development of Mirage and the significance of this role for Majdoub. It was clear through our conversation that Majdoub was in a collaborative, supportive, and culturally respectful environment, one that unfortunately remains rare for actors of Southwest Asian or North African (SWANA) backgrounds. The dedication that Beaulieu, her narrative team, and the Ubisoft developers took to make 9th Century Baghdad as culturally meaningful and intriguing for players, for Arab and other SWANA players to feel represented in, and for players outside these cultures to learn about.

Ariana Sarfarazi (she/her) (LI:@arianasarfarazi)(IG:@sarfariana) is a transactional entertainment attorney specializing in theater, a theater producer, and the Executive Director of Noor Theatre, a NYC-based non-profit theatre with the mission of supporting, developing, and producing the work of artists of Middle Eastern, North African, and Southwest Asian descent. As a theatrical attorney, Ariana represents producers and investors in the development, production, and financing of live stage productions; counsels not-for-profit theater companies and related theatrical organizations; and advises a wide range of creative talent including Tony Award-winning bookwriters, composers, lyricists, directors, choreographers, and actors. As an Executive Director, Ariana leads overall operations at Noor, including programming, fundraising, and financial planning— in addition to overseeing the theatre company's strategic planning, developing institutional partnerships, managing Board relations, and leading operational support for the rest of the team. Once a proud “theatre kid” herself, Ariana is passionate about marrying her legal education with her deep-rooted love of the arts and social justice to support an evolving industry. Ariana serves on the board of Broadway for Arts Education, a nonprofit organization that uses arts education to dismantle systemic barriers to success for underserved youth, is a member of Theatre Producers of Color (TPOC), and is proud to serve as a volunteer pro bono attorney with Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts. She is a graduate of U.C. Berkeley and The George Washington University Law School. 

With Indiana Jones and The Dial of Destiny coming out soon, we discuss the long and torrid history of the franchise's use of Orientalism and racism against Southwest Asian, North African, and South Asian (SWANASA) peoples, and whether we think the new film will continue that trend. Why is Orientalism and white saviorism so foundational to this popular franchise? How did this affect modern day storytelling in film and tv? We delve into all our honest thoughts on this, give our recommendations, and much more. Read Swara's Feature for The New Arab, 'Can Indiana Jones overcome its Orientalist Past?" Where you can donate to help Earthquake Victims: Heyva Sor (Kurdish Red Moon) Mercy Corps Doctors Without Borders Syrian Emergency Task Force CARE International Syrian American Medical Society Islamic Relief USA Decolonize Palestine Our music is composed by Ashley Hefnawy. You can find more of her music here. We are a proud member of the Hard NOC podcast family. Follow us on Twitter: @TheMiddleGeeks, @MaeAbdu, @spiderswarz Follow us on Instagram @TheMiddleGeeks Subscribe to The Middle Geeks on Hard NOC Media Please support us on Patreon!

Geoff and Katrina talk Turkish Tales! A collector of tales over a hundred years ago tried to determine if tales from Turkey are more European in flavor or Southwest Asian. This leads to conversation we had in our Zora Neale Hurston episode where she was quoted talking about universality of stories but the flavors that ever region adds. These tales are richly flavored and extremely entertaining. Join Us on Patreon to Support Our Endeavors!

This is a Wolfson History Prize 2022 Special! In this special interview we chat with Professor Frances Stavrakopoulou (@ProfFrancesca) about her new book 'God: An Anatomy'. This was a nominee for the 2022 Wolfson History Prize. The description of the book is here:Three thousand years ago, in the Southwest Asian lands we now call Israel and Palestine, a group of people worshipped a complex pantheon of deities, led by a father god called El. El had seventy children, who were gods in their own right. One of them, a minor storm deity known as Yahweh, had a body, a wife, offspring and colleagues. He fought monsters and mortals, gorged on food and wine, wrote books, and took walks and naps. He would become something far larger and far more abstract: the God of the great monotheistic religions.The Bible has shaped our ideas about God and religion, but also our cultural preferences about human existence and experience; our concept of life and death; our attitude to sex and gender; our habits of eating and drinking; our understanding of history. Examining God's body, from his head to his hands, feet and genitals, Francesca Stavrakopoulou shows how the Western idea of God developed. She explores the places and artefacts that shaped our view of this singular God and the ancient religions and societies of the biblical world. She analyses not only the origins of our oldest religions, but also the origins of Western culture.For terms of use, please visit www.versushistory.com

Finland and Sweden appear to be on their way to NATO membership, causing vocal opposition from Turkey and a more muted response from Russia. Tom Collina talks with Charles Kupchan, senior fellow at the Council for Foreign Relations and professor at Georgetown University. He discusses NATO expansion, the war in Ukraine, and what it all means for the future of diplomacy with Russia On Early Warning, Hale Fellow Angela Kellett sits down with Nastaran Far, former Win Without War policy & advocacy fellow. She discusses her podcast miniseries “Calling Others” which features stories from Southwest Asian and North African American creatives and advocates.

Caitlin Abadir-Mullally (kt) is a Coptic-American installation and social practice artist based in Philadelphia. She works to create communities for those who live between spaces. Her research dives into fear, hybridity, queerness, collective thinking, grief, and cultural loss. Caitlin Abadir-Mullally works in sculpture, performance, and relationship building. Caitlin Abadir-Mullally is pursuing a master's degree in library and information science with a focus in archival studies. She is passionate about documenting diasporic queer Southwest Asian and North Afrikan joy and complexity, and the agency of the living to decide how their narratives are preserved. We were so excited to have Caitlin…

While many traditions regard God to be incorporeal, some three thousand years ago in the Southwest Asian lands, a group of people worshipped a complex pantheon of deities, led by a father god called El. El had seventy children, who were gods in their own right. One of them was a deity, known as Yahweh. Yahweh had a body, a wife, offspring and colleagues. He fought monsters and mortals. He gorged on food and wine, wrote books, and took walks and naps. But he would become something far larger and far more abstract: the God of the great monotheistic religions.Author of ‘God: An Anatomy' and Professor of Hebrew Bible and Ancient Religion at the University of Exeter, Francesca Stavrakopoulou is today's guest on the podcast. Examining God's body, from his head to his hands, feet and genitals, Francesca and Dan discuss how the Western idea of God developed, the places and artefacts that shaped our view of this singular God and the ancient religions and societies of the biblical world and not only the origins of our oldest monotheistic religions, but also the origins of Western culture.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

While many traditions regard God to be incorporeal, some three thousand years ago in the Southwest Asian lands, a group of people worshipped a complex pantheon of deities, led by a father god called El. El had seventy children, who were gods in their own right. One of them was a deity, known as Yahweh. Yahweh had a body, a wife, offspring and colleagues. He fought monsters and mortals. He gorged on food and wine, wrote books, and took walks and naps. But he would become something far larger and far more abstract: the God of the great monotheistic religions.Author of ‘God: An Anatomy' and Professor of Hebrew Bible and Ancient Religion at the University of Exeter, Francesca Stavrakopoulou is today's guest on the podcast. Examining God's body, from his head to his hands, feet and genitals, Francesca and Dan discuss how the Western idea of God developed, the places and artefacts that shaped our view of this singular God and the ancient religions and societies of the biblical world and not only the origins of our oldest monotheistic religions, but also the origins of Western culture.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this edition of ST, we learn about Arab Film Fest Tulsa, which opens tomorrow (10/21) at Circle Cinema here in Tulsa and runs through Sunday (10/24). A joint presentation of Tulsa Artist Fellowship, Circle Cinema, and Mizna, an Arab American arts/cultural organization based in Minnesota, this festival will offer several feature-length movies (as well as a few shorts) of Southwest Asian or North African (as in, "SWANA") origin. The films will explore various aspects of art, identity, community, and family in order to convey the diversity and complexity of Arab and Arab American experiences. Our guests are Moheb Soliman, a TAF Fellow, and Lana Barkawi, the executive/artistic director of Mizna. (For more on Arab Film Fest Tulsa, please visit the Circle Cinema website .)

On this edition of ST, we learn about Arab Film Fest Tulsa, which opens tomorrow (10/21) at Circle Cinema here in Tulsa and runs through Sunday (10/24). A joint presentation of Tulsa Artist Fellowship, Circle Cinema, and Mizna, an Arab American arts/cultural organization based in Minnesota, this festival will offer several feature-length movies (as well as a few shorts) of Southwest Asian or North African (as in, "SWANA") origin. The films will explore various aspects of art, identity, community, and family in order to convey the diversity and complexity of Arab and Arab American experiences. Our guests are Moheb Soliman, a TAF Fellow, and Lana Barkawi, the executive/artistic director of Mizna. (For more on Arab Film Fest Tulsa, please visit the Circle Cinema website.)

Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) is an increasingly popular term to identify people from countries such as Afghanistan, Egypt, Iran, and Syria. In the U.S., SWANA communities toddle between invisibility due to the U.S. Census Bureau's decision not to develop a distinct SWANA race and/or ethnicity category and hypervisibility due to stereotypical depictions of SWANA people as violent and barbaric (ever listen to the introductory song of that popular Disney movie Aladdin?). In this episode, we unpack SWANA invisibility/hypervisibility with Sama Sahibi, M.A., program coordinator for the Women in Engineering program at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Today we have the chance to speak with Sharon Mansur and to learn more about her recent work in 1001 Arab Futures, An intimate outdoor site-specific dance performance and visual installation that contemplates imaginative visions, past reckonings, embodied truths and other future potentials from the Arab diaspora. Sharon Mansur created this work in collaboration with Yara Boustany, Andrea Shaker, and Metta Loulou Von Kohl.While this effort weaves through the materials, memories, and lived experiences of this Arab diaspora across generations and continents, it's being presented in Sharon's home community of Winona, a Mississippi River town located in southeastern Minnesota on the the traditional lands of the Oceti Šakowiŋ, Sauk, and Meskwaki peoples Sharon Mansur is a dance and interdisciplinary experimental artist, educator, and curator. Her creative practices weave movement making, improvisation, visual environments, food, screendance, and audience participation to offer multi-sensory and immersive experiences rooted in the body, imagination, and environment. In recent years, Sharon has received support for her work from the McKnight Foundation, Minnesota State Arts Board, and Springboard for the Arts – and she was a 2019 National Arts Strategies Creative Community Fellow. Sharon is currently the Director of The Cedar Tree Project, presenting and amplifying regional, national, and international creative voices of the Southwest Asian and North African diaspora. Just as Sharon's creative practice arches across many disciplines, and welcomes many individuals and audiences as collaborators, so to does her own creative path in contemporary dance extend across urban and rural communities. Thus, while, Sharon has lived in Washington DC in the aftermath of 9/11, and created work that meditates on the erasures, violence, and misunderstandings directed toward Arab individuals, her recent work has brought those opportunities for experience and exchange to the rural upper Midwest – and has opened up a space for folks beyond the city to sit more deeply, more intimately, with racial and cultural difference. In a moment when the COVID-19 pandemic has created headlines about urban outmigration to rural areas, Sharon's work underscores the immense potentials for sustained intercultural exchange on the local level. Just as her work supports a meditative space to sit with expanded understandings of Arab identity and diaspora, it also presents an exciting opportunity to think again about what we mean when we say “rural” or “rural art,” and how the ever-shifting movements of people and culture can enrich our understanding of how we are in relationship with others.We are grateful for the support of the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts in making this endeavor possible – and we welcome folks to check out and subscribe to these conversations on their favorite podcast platforms.To learn more about Sharon Mansur's work pleases visit:http://www.mansurdance.com/To learn more about the artists, exhibitions, and publications involved with the High Visibility initiative, please visit:https://inhighvisibility.org/High Visibility is a longterm collaboration between Art of the Rural and Plains Art Museum:http://artoftherural.org/https://plainsart.org/

Fikri and Ezzah return in the 75th episode of Thoughts on Films to talk about the SWANA Film Festival! Focusing on Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) films, it was curated by Christina Hajjar and hosted by the School of Art, University of Manitoba in February 2021. In addition to a poetry reading by Hala Alyan, Fikri and Ezzah take in two films from the event's second week, Suha Araj's ‘Rosa' and ‘Though I Am Silent, I Shake' by Sophie Sabet.

South and Southwest Asian regional rivalries play out in cyberspace. Election interference could move from disruptive influence operations to actual vote manipulation. Someone is spearphishing leaders in Germany’s PPE task force. Nations move to restrict dependence on foreign companies in their infrastructure. Justin Harvey from Accenture on the train of thought behind breach disclosure. Our own Rick Howard on DevSecOps. And Washington State recovers some, but not all, of the unemployment funds lost to fraud. For links to all of today's stories check out our CyberWire daily news brief: https://www.thecyberwire.com/newsletters/daily-briefing/9/110

This week, join CODEPINK's national co-director and co-founder, Medea Benjamin, as she interviews two experts on two different Southwest Asian nations. In the first half of the hour, she chats with Matthew Hoh, senior fellow for the Center for International Policy, about the forever war in Afghanistan. After that, she discusses ongoing efforts by the peacemaking community to end the brutal war in Yemen. Her guest for the second half of the hour is Hassan el-Tayyib, Legislative Representative on Middle East Policy for the Friends' Committee on National Legislation. You can get involved with CODEPINK's efforts to fight the war in Yemen through our Boycott Saudi Campaign here. Upcoming CODEPINK Events: December 13th: Firedrill Friday with Jane Fonda in Washington, DC December 14th: Lush Out of Saudi Demonstration in Chicago December 14th: CODEPINK Co-Founder Jodie Evans Presents at a Free Online Summit December 15th: December Bridge Walk for Peace in San Francisco

  Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. Whereas interpreting undoubtedly antedates writing, translation began only after the appearance of written literature; there exist partial translations of the Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh (ca. 2000 BCE) into Southwest Asian languages of the second millennium BCE. Translation is performed by translators. Unlike what many people think, translation and interpretation are different jobs and require different skills & competencies. Today, translation is […]

In recent months, the Trump administration’s plan to add a citizenship question on the 2020 US census, has garnered significant controversy and media attention. For now the supreme court decide to bloc the question but the decision is not yet final. The census is supposed to count all people living in the United States regardless of citizenship status, and is crucial for determining how federal funds are distributed and how congressional districts are drawn. The legal challenge to the citizenship question sites concern of an undercount, especially in immigrant communities. But there are other critical questions left out of this conversation, like, why is the Trump administration refusing to add a box for the Middle Eastern and North African-identifying peoples on the upcoming 2020 census form? Today, the exact number of people of Southwest Asian or Middle Eastern and North African background in the United States isn't exactly known. Arabs alone are estimated to be more than 3 million in the US, and according to a report in the LA Times, in the last census, about 80% of people from the MENA region were forced to self-identify as white because the census has no special box they can check. The other option for these communities has been to choose "other", which many have resisted doing! For years, the Arab and Middle Eastern community organizations have advocated for a special box, and they were close to getting one until the Trump administration came into power. So, why is the census important? and why is it so important to Arab and Middle Easterners in the US? To get some answers to these questions, and to learn more about the history of racialization of this community, I spoke with Loubna Qutami. She is a post-doctoral fellow in Ethnic Studies at the University of California, Berkeley and the former executive director of the Arab Cultural and community center in San Francisco.

With the dramatic decision taken by President Trump to withdraw US forces from Syria -- a clear rejection of the neo-con doctrine of perpetual war -- along with the continuing emergence of the New Silk Road dynamic coming out of China, the strategic geometry of the entire Southwest Asian region has changed. We are joined today by a distinguished panel to discuss what must be done to finally end the reign of geopolitics and bring "peace through development" to this region: Hussein Askary (Southwest Asia Coordinator for the Schiller Institute); Ulf Sandmark (Chairman of the Schiller Institute in Sweden); and Carl Osgood (Military Affairs Correspondent for Executive Intelligence Review).

  Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. Whereas interpreting undoubtedly antedates writing, translation began only after the appearance of written literature; there exist partial translations of the Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh (ca. 2000 BCE) into Southwest Asian languages of the second millennium BCE. Translation is performed by translators. Unlike what many people think, translation and interpretation are different jobs and require different skills & competencies. Today, translation is […]

In today's podcast, we hear how the NSA is revising its interpretation of Section 702 collection, to the general approval of privacy advocates. WikiLeaks drops another alleged tool from Vault7—this one looks like garden-variety data-loss-prevention beaconing. The UK and France are on alert for influence operations, and the US Congress takes testimony on such marketing-in-battledress. South and Southwest Asian governments move to block or censor social media. Prof. Awais Rashid from Lancaster University describes some of the risks of the cloud. The DarkOverlord returns, extorting TV and movie content owners over shows stolen from a third-party post-production company.

The relationship between European, North African, and Southwest Asian nations that border the Mediterranean stretches back to antiquity and reflects a long tradition of trade, colonialism, and acculturation. Yet, by the end of World War II, Europe had come to dominate the region politically and militarily. When did this long-symbiotic relationship transform into one of imperialism and colonization? In this first of a two part podcast, guest and co-host Christopher Rose from UT’s Center for Middle Eastern Studies walks us through the beginnings of European imperialism in the Middle East.

This session will provide a brief introduction to the Islamic faith, culture, and worldview of health and illness. Particular emphasis will be given to obstetrical and women’s health issues encountered among an unreached people of a Southwest Asian country where the speaker, a Family Nurse Practitioner, is presently involved in ministry. Equipped with a general knowledge about the culture of Islam and the Islamic worldview of health and illness, health care providers are better prepared to interact with their Muslim clients and their families and will be able to provide care that is accepted by the client. This in turn can lead to a decrease in the amount of racial and ethnic disparities that occur in health care in our society today.