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     For more than a decade, I have been conducting ethnographic field research with Kurdish  artists in IRAQI KURDISTAN. There, I have applied a qualitative approach to understanding the production of Kurdish ethnonationalist narratives, intraethnic and intracultural conflict arising from the politics of ethnicity.

     My RESEARCH  is situated at the intersection of decolonial theory, activist art, conflict, and culture. Critically considering the production of artwork, my work utilizes the work of activist-artists to better understand the nuances of Kurdish nation building.

     I engage with Kurdish activist-art because, in Iraq, Kurdish artists stand at the frontlines of several CRITICAL CONFLICTS. Some are direct, military conflicts with external forces such as ISIS. Some are internal conflicts over power relationships between Kurdish political parties. Others take the form of struggles to resist ongoing colonialism and to decolonize societal, cultural, and governmental structures within Kurdish society. Still others resist traditional patterns of leadership that have enshrined the authoritarian rule of a few, producing significant structural inequalities, continuing colonial legacies, and impeding the growth of democracy.

     My work is INTERDISCIPLINARY and engages broadly with the disciplines of International Conflict Management and Anthropology, to consider the intersections where these contiguous fields engage with the cultural dimensions of conflict and how meaning translates into ideas and behaviors, potentially, producing moments of conflict.

     ART, then, becomes a way to interrogate the contemporary products of a uniquely Kurdish heritage in Iraq.

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View My Full C.V. HERE

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Education

Ph.D., International Conflict Management, Kennesaw State University, Atlanta, GA, May 2018

Dissertation: "Art & Agency: Transforming Relationships of Power in Iraq Kurdistan"

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M.A., Anthropology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, May 2002

Master’s Thesis: "The Arabs: An American Story"

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B.A., Government and International Studies, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, December 1997

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A.A., Associate in Arts, Midlands Technical College, Columbia, SC, May 1995

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*Kurdish Language Program, Indiana University Summer Language Workshop, Bloomington, Indiana, USA, 2016

*Certificate, French Language, Universite Catholique d’L’Queste, Angers, France , 1995

Professional Experience​
  • 2022 – Current: Visiting Assistant Professor, Political Science, Agnes Scott College, Decatur, Georgia

  • 2021- 2022: Visiting Lecturer, Anthropology, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, Georgia

  • 2021 - Current: Adjunct Instructor, International Relations, Piedmont University, Demorest, Georgia

  • 2021 - Current: Managing Editor, Journal of Intersectionality and Zanj: Journal of Critical Global South Studie

  • 2019 – Current: Research Fellow, Zanj: Global South Research Consortium

  • 2018 – 2020: Guest Editor, Journal of Intersectionality, "Making Faces: Art & Intersectionality in Iraqi Kurdistan"

  • 2018 – 2019: Lecturer, Anthropology, University of North Georgia, Dahlonega, Georgia

  • 2017 – 2018: Adjunct Instructor, First Year Studies, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, Georgia

  • 2016 – 2017: Instructor of English Language, Kurd Genius School, Sulaimani, Kurdistan Region of Iraq

  • 2009 – 2018: Adjunct Instructor of Anthropology, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, Georgia

  • 2010 – 2011: Adjunct Instructor of Anthropology, Benedictine University, Chicago, Illinois

  • 2008: Consultant, Resource Development (Grant Writer), Girls on the Run Forsyth, Inc., Suwannee, Georgi

  • 2003 – 2007: Assistant to the Director, Middle East Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia

  • 2003: Adjunct Instructor of Anthropology, Georgia Perimeter College, Decatur, Georgia

  • 2002: Assistant to the Director of Development, Refugee Family Services, Clarkston, Georgia

  • 2000 – 2001: Curator / Program Coordinator for “The Arabs: An American Story” Symposium and Exhibit grant project at International Museum of Art and Design, Atlanta, Georgia

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