Deborah Julia Al-Najjar
Curriculum Vitae
Department of American Studies & Ethnicity
University of Southern California
Kaprillian Hall, KAP 458
Los Angeles, CA 90089-4033
debnajor@gmail.com
EDUCATION
Doctoral Candidate, Department of American Studies & Ethnicity
University of Southern California, 2007Dissertation: “Around 1991: Performing Iraq and Militarized Masculinity”
Advisor: Sarah Gualtieri
MA, American Studies & Ethnicity
University of Southern California, Los Angeles (2009)
MA, English, “Daughters of Hagar” (collection of fiction)
Wayne State University, Detroit (1990)
BA, English
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (1987)
AREAS OF INTEREST
Race and ethnicity, comparative ethnic studies, Arab American studies, Asian American studies,
African American literature, performance studies, queer/feminist theory, fiction/non-fiction
PUBLICATIONS
EDITED BOOK
Sensing Iraq: Aesthetics and Politics in a Time of War
Co-Editors Dr. Nadje Al-Ali, Deborah Al-Najjar
Our book manuscript includes fiction writers, poets, artists, activists, and academics.
They represent a multiplicity of Iraqi voices inside Iraq and from the Diasporas.
Contributors include Alise Alousi, Hashim Al-Tawil, Nada Shabout, Sinan Anton, Maysoon
Pachachi, Ella Shohat, Sinan Antoon, Wafaa Bilal, and many others.
Syracuse University press (under contract)
PUBLISHED FICTION
“No News” in Banipal: Magazine of Modern Arab Literature (UK) Issue 38 (2010)
Special issue on Arab American Authors
“Mariam Athra” Artenews Ed. Maymanah Farhat (May 2006)
http://www.arteeast.org/artenews/artenews-articles2006/story-athra.html
“A Cup of Tea” ForkRoads Ed. David Kherdian (Spring 1995)
“Selma’s Weddings” Michigan Quarterly Review Ed. Anton Shammas (Fall 1992)
“Painful Discourse” Kenyon Review Ed. Marilyn Hacker (Spring 1991)
“Bebe Khomee” Indiana Review Ed. Charles Baxter (Winter 1988)
NON-FICTION
"Three Pieces of My Heart" in Sensing Iraq (Forthcoming)
INTERVIEWS
“The Stuff the Movement is Made of”: An Interview with Neelam Sharma in Make/Shift:
Feminisms in Motion May 2008
“Fragments of Hope: An Interview with Lisa Suhair Majaj”
International Feminist Journal of Politics September 2007
FELLOWSHIPS, HONORS, AND AWARDS
Nomination for Excellence in Teaching Assistantship in American Studies & Ethnicity (2009)
College Merit Fellowship 2009-2010
Annenberg Fellowship 2007-2008
American Studies and Ethnicity Department
University of Southern California, Los Angeles
Participant in the Jerusalem-Dearborn Institute program
"Connecting Dearborn and Jerusalem: Collaborative American and Arab
American Studies Programs," Al-Quds University in Palestine,
Sponsored by Center for Arab American Studies, UM-Dearborn, June 2006
Distinguished Student Club Faculty Advisor, Club Achievement Award for
Community Service Student Club, Henry Ford Community College, 2005
Champions Program, Henry Ford Community College, 2002-04
Research Assistantship for DeRoy Chair, Wayne State University, 1995-96
Runner – up for the Charles Johnson Fiction Award, 1995
Humanities Center Fellowship, Wayne State University, 1995
Volunteer of the Year Award, Arab American Arts Council, Cultural Arts program, 1994
Albert Feigenson Scholarship Award, Wayne State University, 1994
Thomas C. Rumble Fellowship, Wayne State University, 1993-94
TEACHING/PROFESSIONAL EMPLOYMENT
TA in American Studies “America, the West, and the Frontier for Professor G Sanchez fall 2010
TA in Gender Studies (SWMS 210) for Professor J Halberstam Spring 2009
TA in Gender Studies (SWMS 215) for Professor S Velasco Fall 2008
Henry Ford Community College: 2001 – 2007
Tenured faculty member of the English Division
Developmental English, Introduction to Essay writing, Research writing course in U Compass with
special topic on Arab and Arab American writing, Business and Technical Writing
Oakland University, Special Lecturer, 1999 – 2001
Department of Rhetoric, Communications & Journalism
Introduction to Composition; Research Writing
Introduction to Women’s Studies
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Wayne State University, Graduate Student Teaching 1989-1994
Department of English
Freshman Composition, Introduction to Creative Writing, Introduction to African American
Literature, Advanced Rhetoric and Writing for Professionals
ACADEMIC PRESENTATIONS
Not So Disciplined:
Challenging Ethnic and Area Studies through Queer, Arab/SWANA Scholarship
Roundtable organized by Charlotte Karem Albrecht
Critical Ethnic Studies and the Future of Genocide:
Settler Colonialism/Heteropatriarchy/White Supremacy
University of California, Riverside March 2011
“Performing Iraq: Mediations, Meditations on Art/Politics”
Co-organized with Nadje Al-Ali Respondent: Deborah Al-Najjar
Middle East Studies Association San Diego November 2010
“Iraq is Not the New Black: Racial Acrobatics and Ethnic Narcissism”
Pro Forma: Balancing Vested Interests of Blackness in Performance
American Studies Association San Antonio TX November 2010
“The Marks of Occupation: Performative Grammar in Sinan Antoon’s I‘Jaam”
Reading across Genres: Arab American Literature and the Politics of Form
Radius of Arab American Writers, Inc. (Rawi) Ann Arbor, June 2010
“Racial/Sexual Terror: Alan Ball and Alicia Erian’s Towelhead”
American Studies Association Washington D.C. November 2009
“Palestine and American Passports: Privileges and Protocols” Co-authored with Sriya Shrestha
and Kenny Garcia (presented by Sriya Shrestha) San Francisco State University 40 Year
Anniversary Ethnic Studies Conference San Francisco October 2009
Organizer: BDS Palestine Solidarity Strategy Meeting
Crossing Borders Ethnic Studies Graduate Student Conference
University of Southern California Los Angeles March 2009
Roundtable organizer and participant on Afrofuturism
Imagining America Conference, USC, Los Angeles October 2008
“The Negation of the Negation: Kara Walker’s Queer Cuts”
Los Angeles Queer Studies Conference, UCLA, October 2008
“Iraqi Cultural Production” Roundtable co-organizer with Nadje Al-Ali
Middle East Studies Association, Montreal, Canada November 2007
“Arab American Sitings in Cyberspace: The Aesthetics of Mohja Kahf and Lalia Lalami”
Middle East Studies Association Boston November 2006
"An Iraqi Community's Search for Identity & the Limitations of Sectarianism"
Feminisms & War Conference Syracuse University, Syracuse October 2006
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“Facing Apartheid Israel in Academic Palestine: Racial profiling and the Destruction of self &
culture” Witnesses to War, Anti-war committee at Wayne State University, Invited speaker Detroit,
Michigan September 2006
"It's Sex, Stupid! Academic Representations of Arab Sexualities"
World Congress of Middle East Studies Amman, Jordan June 2006
“Writing Arab Ethnicity and Exiling the Self” Ramallah, Palestine, the Jerusalem Institute,
June 2006
Women of Color Workshop participant at “Where is home: Gender, Sexuality, and
Transnationalism” conference with Jacqui Alexander, Chandra Mohanty, and Lamia Ben Yousef
Zayzafoon Organized by Rabab Abdulhadi, Center for Arab American Studies & Women &Gender
Program, University of Michigan-Dearborn March 9-10, 2006
“Arab Identities: Recent Literary and Academic Constructions” Arab Culture in the US panels (new
area in SWPC) Southwest/Pop Culture Conference Albuquerque, NM February 2006
“Religious Barriers: Crossing the Cultural Lines in Arab Communities” Council of American
Cultures Forum, Henry Ford Community College Dearborn, Michigan February 2005
Do Good Fences Make Good Neighbors? A teach-in on Politics & Peace
“Activist Scholarship and Feminist Politics: Perspectives on Violence, War, and Peace” panel
Center for Arab American Studies Dearborn, Michigan December 2004
“Muslim and Christian Relations: Communities in the New World”
Community College Humanities Association, Dearborn, Michigan October 2004
“Critical Thinking and Teaching Composition” Michigan College English Association
Dearborn, Michigan November 2002
“Selling Cultural Violence and Ethnic Betrayal” Humanities Center Fellows Conference
Wayne State University, Detroit, MichiganJanuary 1996
“Princess Sultana: the Selling of Cultural Violence” Middle East Studies Association
San Diego December 1995
“Women in the Fiction of Hanan Al – Shaykh” Middle East Studies Association
November 1993
“A ‘Western’ Presence in Arab Culture” American Studies Association
Boston November 1993
“Deconstructing Middle Eastern Female Identity” Popular Culture Association
New Orleans April 1993
COMMUNITY/CLASSROOM PRESENTATIONS AND FICTION READINGS
“The Iraq War: Conquest Continued”, Invited guest, Dr. Lata Murti undergraduate seminar
Legacies of Vietnam (Am Studies course), November 30, 2010
Iraq under Occupation, Invited guest, David Lloyd’s undergraduate seminar
Occupation: Art, Literature, and History Course (ARLT 100g)
March 3, 2010
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“Mobilizing against this War: Who’s ‘Left’?” Invited speaker at an anti-war rally by Muslim Student
Association, UM-Ann arbor students and Arab women’s anti-war group July 22, 2006
"Baghdad: My Mother Yearns for Home" Commentator on film About Baghdad
Arab Diasporas/Comparative Diasporas Film Series at Center for Arab American Studies
March 21, 2006
“Who are Chaldeans?” Community presentation Arab American National Museum
April 2006
“Chaldean Identity: Personal Reflections” New Detroit Coalition at the Arab American National
Museum August 2005
University of Michigan – Dearborn, Arab American Writers’ Series: March 2003
Lawrence Technological University, Writers’ Forum. July 1998
Mask Space, Hamtramck, sponsored by Poets & Writers. March 1994
Southfield Manor Sponsored by the Chaldean Federation and ACCESS September 1993
English Department Colloquia, Wayne State University:
April, 1991. April, 1990. November, 1989. November 1988
Union Street Bar, Detroit, February, 1990
The Women’s Space, Detroit, October 1989
ACADEMIC COMMITTEE WORK
University of Southern California, Los Angeles
Graduate student representative, Graduate Admissions, 2009-2010
Graduate student representative, Asian American Studies Committee 2009-2010
Graduate student representative, Gender Studies Advisory Board 2009-2010
PASEO Co-Chair, American Studies and Ethnicity Graduate Student Organization, 2008-2009
Henry Ford Community College-Dearborn, Michigan
English Division
Peer Mentor Committee, 2006–2007
Arabic language committee at HFCC, Ad-Hoc committee, 2004–2007
Chair of the Barrett Creative Writing Contest Committee, 2004– 2006
English 135: Business and Technical Writing Committee, 2003–2007
English 131: College Writing Committee, 2002 – 2004
English 132: Research Writing Committee, 2002–2007
Developmental English Committee, 2001 – 2005
College Wide Committees
Faculty Advisor for Community Service Club, 2002–2005
Co – Chair of Professional Issues Conference, 2003 – 2004
Council of American Cultures, 2002–2006
Orientation Task Force, 2003 – 2004
Political Action Committee, 2002
Retention Committee, 2002
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University of Michigan-Dearborn
Women and Gender Studies Advisory Board, 2004 – 2007
Center for Arab American Studies, 2004– 2006
Wayne State University-Detroit, English Division
Speak Appeals Committee, Wayne State University 1993 – 1994
Graduate Committee, 1992 – 1993
Calendar and Events Committee, English Department, 1991 – 1992
Faculty Appointments Committee, English Department, 1990 – 1991
Miles Modern Poetry Committee, English Department, 1989 – 1990
COMMUNITY, ARTS, ACTIVIST WORK & COMMITTEES
Association of Middle East Women Studies, Planning Committee Feb 2010-Nov 2010
Association of Middle East Women Studies, Nominations Committee Nov 2006-March 2007
Incite! Women of Color against Violence, Ann Arbor chapter, November 2006–Feb 2007
Arab American No to War and Racism (NOWAR) Committee, August 2006– Dec 2006
Arab Movement of Women Arising for Justice (AMWAJ), 2006
Secretary, Conference Co-Chair, Radius of Arab American Writers, Inc., 2005–2007
Arab American National Museum Dearborn, library committee, book club, 2005-2007
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
American Studies Association
Modern Language Association
Middle East Studies Association
Association of Middle East Women’s Studies Association
Radius of Arab-American Writers, Inc. (RAWI)
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