This panel examines how art in the Arab world today has become a powerful mode of resistance against authoritarianism and all forms of human rights violations. Presenters will investigate various modes of resistance such as graphic novels, graffiti, films, and music that were published in the Arab world over the past decade. This period of time deems to be crucial in the history of the Arab world due to the various social, economic, cultural and political transformations that the Arab world has undergone. Drawing from the specific examples they use, the presenters in this panel argue that these forms of artistic resistance are cultural genres that ‘articulate’ the mood of the Arab populace under their respective despotic regimes, and are used as vehicles to 'articulate' political messages that advance the power of the Arab populace by giving them hope and optimism in their collective struggle, and critiquing and ridiculing the respective regimes.

Specifically, “Arab Resistance and the Graphic Novel” by Esra Mirze Santesso pursues a comparative analysis of two graphic narratives set in the Arab world that engage with violence and unrest: Hamid Sulaiman's Freedom Hospital (2016) and Sherine Hamdy'sLissa (2017). In Freedom Hospital, Sulaiman takes the reader through the contested territories of the Syrian revolution as various military operations create an unprecedented humanitarian crisis. Hamdy’s Lissa sheds light on the Egyptian uprisings against government corruption by focusing on the friendship between an American and Egyptian girl. Santesso concludes by showing how these two texts still instill hope for the future generations; finding voice through visual and textual representation of the atrocities experienced by Muslim populations provide an act of witnessing that has repercussions beyond the national borders. Speaking of the Syrian revolution, “Ibrahim Qashoush’s Revolutionary Popular Songs” by Sadam Issa examines the forms and understanding of resistance in the Syrian uprising setting by analyzing Ibrahim Qashoush’s popular songs that he performed at the advent of the ongoing Syrian revolution in 2011. Issa’s study uses two theoretical concepts that cultural studies helped to introduce to the study of popular culture: “articulation” and “affect” (Rodman, 2015) in the analysis of Qashoush’s songs. Issa argues that Qashoush’s songs used revolutionary musical texts as an inspiration and a vehicle to 'articulate' political messages that advance the power of the Syrians by giving them hope and optimism in their collective struggle, and critiquing and ridiculing the regime. Similarly, “Addressing the Syrian Regime’s Insecurities through Art” by Mohammed Kadalah analyses the music and visual art (i.e. slogans and banners) proliferated by the Syrian regime during the Syrian revolution in attempt to instill patriotism in the Syrian people and to counter attack the visual art modes produced by the revolution. Kadalah argues that the visual art produced by the revolution aims at exposing the regime’s insecurities in public spaces, both on the ground and online, in order to encourage more people to join the revolution and break their barrier of fear. “Ironic Resistance” by Dina Mahmoud examines the visual memorialization of the current construction of the Separation Wall as an attempt to resist the ongoing erasure of Palestinian struggles and legitimate land ownership by Israeli and Western historical archives. The paper analyzes Sharif Waked’s short film Chic Point: Fashion for Israeli Checkpoints (2003) and Samar Hazboun’s documentary photography collection “Beyond Checkpoints” (2015). The paper traces the instances of absences that paradoxically expose the repression of the traumatic wound in Palestinian land and memory, as well as the suppression of universal guilt.

The presenters attempt show how oppressed people have used visuality and pop music to rebel against hegemonic power, and how they constitute an emotional armory that fuel Arab nationalism. The presenters will attempt to show how these artistic forms are engaged with violence and unrest in hope for of reshaping the political and social structure in some Arabic countries.

Each presenter will be given 15 minutes to present his/her paper followed by about a half an hour of discussion and question/answer from the audience.