CAIS Lecture Series 

Traumatic Contestations: A Struggle for a Historical Concept of Trauma in the Arab Region

Dr. Suad Joseph, Distinguished Research Professor, University of California, Davis

The idea of trauma has become globalized, universalized. It is deployed politically. It is a weapon of war and the stuff of soap operas. It risks being emptied of meaning. It risks cultural capture. It risks treatment paralysis as a result of the sheer magnitude of its mobilization in this historically transformative moment.

The violence in the Arab region has produced millions of refugees and internally displaced people. In 2020, about 55% of refugees globally originated from the Arab Region. By 2023, even with the war in Ukraine, over 40% of world refugees came from the Arab region. Over half of the refugees in the world come from Palestine, Syria, Afghanistan, South Sudan, Sudan, with the largest number coming from Palestine, Syria, and Sudan – three major Arab countries.

Organized and Moderated by Dr. Souad T. Ali, CAIS Founding Chair

On Zoom: https://asu.zoom.us/j/3813141796