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Alex Shams

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Opinion Uncategorized

Corona Ya Corona: Arabic Pop Music Takes on the COVID-19 Pandemic

Posted on April 5, 2020 by alexrezashams

Originally published by Ajam Media Collective on April 5, 2020. In times of crisis, musicians use their craft to make sense of realities confronting society. They help others come to

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Opinion

Poetry fills Tehran streets as Iranians adapt Nowruz rituals to Corona restrictions

Posted on March 24, 2020 by alexrezashams

Originally published by Ajam Media Collective on March 24, 2020. This is the second article in a series about how Iranians are adjusting their lives as they enter the second

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Opinion

Happy Nowruz from Ajam: 1398 in Review

Posted on March 20, 2020 by alexrezashams

Originally published by Ajam Media Collective on March 20, 2020. Happy Nowruz from all of us here at Ajam Media Collective! With the arrival of the first day of spring

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Opinion Uncategorized

Quarantine Kitchen: Iranians share recipes, flavors, and joy despite the threat of coronavirus

Posted on March 15, 2020 by alexrezashams

Originally published by Ajam Media Collective on March 15, 2020. Tehran has been under a state of semi-quarantine for 20 days. For weeks, millions have avoided leaving the house for

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Opinion

Muscat: Where the Arab World Meets the Indian Ocean

Posted on August 27, 2019 by alexrezashams

Originally published by Ajam Media Collective on August 27, 2019. In Muscat’s souq, Arabic, Baluchi, Urdu, Hindi, and Malayalam mix freely, alongside a variety of fruits and flowers like tamarind,

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Iran Opinion

Tehran is not just “LA with minarets”: Against cliches of Third World cities on the brink of disaster

Posted on January 14, 2019 by alexrezashams

The Guardian covered Tehran in its recent article series, “The next 15 mega cities,” an examination of metropolises across Asia and Africa that will soon hit the 15-million population mark.

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Opinion

Bulgarian Habibi: How Orientalist Stereotypes in Chalga Music Recover Memories of the Balkans’ Ottoman Past

Posted on January 10, 2019 by alexrezashams

Originally published by Balkanist on January 10, 2019. The tension inherent to chalga and turbofolk music – is it local or foreign? – hints at the deeper paradox beneath contemporary

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India Iran Opinion

How Nowruz is Celebrated Around the World

Posted on March 21, 2018 by alexrezashams

Originally published by Ajam Media Collective on March 21, 2018. Nowruz is an ancient festival marking the arrival of Spring that is celebrated in parts of the Middle East, Central

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Opinion Palestine

How Trump ruined Christmas for Palestinian Christians

Posted on December 25, 2017 by alexrezashams

Originally published by Middle East Eye on December 25, 2017. American support for Israel is helping drive Palestinian Christians out Christmas is a special time of the year in Palestine.

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Opinion Palestine

How Israeli control over Jerusalem destroyed its holiest sites

Posted on December 18, 2017 by alexrezashams

Originally published by Middle East Eye on December 18, 2017. Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital serves to legitimise ethnic cleansing of Palestinians – Christian and Muslim alike

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About me

Alex Shams is an Iranian-American writer and a PhD student of Anthropology at the University of Chicago.

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Recent posts

  • Corona Ya Corona: Arabic Pop Music Takes on the COVID-19 Pandemic
  • Poetry fills Tehran streets as Iranians adapt Nowruz rituals to Corona restrictions
  • Happy Nowruz from Ajam: 1398 in Review
  • Quarantine Kitchen: Iranians share recipes, flavors, and joy despite the threat of coronavirus
  • Muscat: Where the Arab World Meets the Indian Ocean
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About

Alex Shams is an Iranian-American writer and a PhD student of Anthropology at the University of Chicago. He was based in Bethlehem, Palestine from 2013-2015, where he worked for Ma'an News Agency, the largest independent Palestinian news agency. He previously received his master's from Harvard University in Middle Eastern studies. His work focuses on the intersections of gender, religion, politics, and urban space in the modern Middle East. He is an editor-in-chief of Ajam Media Collective (AjamMC.com), a platform focused on culture and society throughout Iran as well as Central and South Asia.

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  • Bulgarian Habibi: How Orientalist Stereotypes in Chalga Music Recover Memories of the Balkans’ Ottoman Past
    Bulgarian Habibi: How Orientalist Stereotypes in Chalga Music Recover Memories of the Balkans’ Ottoman Past

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