Recent debates on gender and sexuality in Islam have centered on the shift in attitudes towards gender equity and sexual orientation within contemporary Muslim communities. This is due in large part to the range of policies and legal reforms that regulate and redefine gender relations for individuals and families across changing political and social environments in many Muslim-majority countries. Given the intricate, intervening forces of neoliberalism, mass migration, global commerce, and the expansion and use of social media technologies, there is heightened media, academic and political attention to changing norms and dynamics within Muslim societies. Yet this higher profile does not adequately capture how issues of desire, belonging, identity, intimacy, and queerness are variously understood, experienced, and practiced across diverse Muslim communities. Nor does it illuminate other pertinent discussions about women’s pleasure, queer activism, minority rights, and deconstructing Islamic masculinity, and other topics that are already taking place in Muslim contexts.
IRCPL will bring together academics, journalists, activists, human rights advocates, faith-based leaders, artists, and others who have contributed to expanding and diversifying knowledge about sexualities in Islam. “Intimacies I” will consist of panels dedicated to exploring conceptual and empirical understandings of Muslim and/or Islamic sexualities, and “Intimacies II” will explore queer issues in Islam. We hope that the diversity of the group will spark fresh, lively discussion about different aspects of Muslim sexualities, as we examine issues related to sexual identity, LGBTQ social movements, and sexual and reproductive health in diverse Muslim contexts here and abroad.
Intimacies I: Sexualities in Contemporary Muslim Societies
(April 13th, Presidential Room at Columbia Faculty House)
Breakfast // 9:00am - 9:30am
Opening Remarks // 9:30am - 9:45am
Panel 1: Muslim Sexualities: Exploring Definitions and Concepts // 9:45am - 11:45am
with Homa Hoodfar, Gul Ozyegin, Sofian Merabet, Scott Kugle, and Moderator: K. Soraya Batmanghelichi
Keynote Speaker: Mona Eltahawy // 11:50am - 12:45pm
Lunch // 1:00pm - 2:00pm
Panel 2: Let's talk about Sex: On the Ground Perspectives of Muslim Sexuality // 2:00pm - 4:00pm
with Eman Abedelhadi, Mashuq Deen, Urooj Arshad, Mahboubeh Abbasgholizadeh, and Moderator: Samira Mohyeddin
Coffee Break 4:00pm - 4:15pm
Intimacies I Roundtable: Coming Out Muslim // 4:15pm - 5:30pm
with Leila Mouri, Shep Glennon, Hinasahar Muneeruddin, and Wahiba Abu-Ras
Reception and Samra Habib Photo Exhibition // 5:30pm - 7:00pm
Intimacies II: Queerness in Muslim Contexts/Communities
(April 14th, Lerner 569)
Breakfast // 9:30am - 10:00am
Panel 1: Queer Social Movements // 10:00am - 11:45pm
with Samra Habib, Tynan Power, Faisal Alam, and Moderator: Sima Shakhsari
Lunch // 11:45am - 1:00pm
Panel 2: "Variant" Muslims: Gender Pluralism & Ambiguity // 1:00pm - 3:00pmwith Faris Khan, Sima Shakhsari, Asli Zengin, Ali Mian, and Moderator: Durba Mitra
Coffee Break // 3:00pm - 3:15pm
Intimacies II Roundtable: Sexual Violence // 3:15pm - 4:45pm
with Leila Mouri, Ayah Eldosougi, Wahiba Abu-Ras, and K. Soraya Batmanghelichi
Closing Remarks // 5:00pm
Registration is strongly suggested. Please RSVP to this free conference at Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/intimacies-i-ii-sexualities-in-muslim-societies-tickets-33344744027?aff=es2