• About me
  • Reporting
  • Opinion
  • Academic Work
  • Contact me

Alex Shams

  • About me
  • Reporting
  • Opinion
  • Academic Work
  • Contact me
Search for:

Alex Shams

  • About me
  • Reporting
  • Opinion
  • Academic Work
  • Contact me
Search for:
Category:

Opinion

Opinion

München und die Sehnsucht, weiß zu sein

Posted on July 27, 2016 by Alex Shams

Originally published on Carta on July 27, 2016. Translated from the English original, which can be found here. Warum flehte uns der Münchener Amokläufer an, ihn als Deutschen zu betrachten?

  • Share
Opinion

Why Did The Munich Killer Beg Us To See Him As German?

Posted on July 23, 2016 by Alex Shams

Originally published by MuslimGirl.net on July 23,2016. Republished on Huffington Post and Hummus for Thought. Translated to German and republished on Magna. Around and around we go. Yesterday, an 18-year old

  • Share
Opinion

Yara Shahidi, the Iranian-American Star of ‘Black-ish,’ Is Breaking Stereotypes On & Off Screen

Posted on June 3, 2016 by Alex Shams

Originally published on Muftah on June 3,2016. Over the last two years, the hit ABC sitcom “Black-ish” has deftly explored issues of race, class, and gender in the United States

  • Share
Israel Opinion

‘Broad City’ Didn’t Just Go on Birthright — It Spent 21 Minutes Mocking It

Posted on April 18, 2016 by Alex Shams

Originally published on The Forward on April 28, 2016. Written by Alex Shams. When Ilana and Abby from “Broad City” announced last week that they were going on Birthright Israel,

  • Share
Opinion

Bahrain’s Detention of American Journalists Reveals Ongoing Assault on Freedom of Speech

Posted on February 17, 2016 by Alex Shams

Originally published on Huffington Post. On Sunday, police in the tiny Persian Gulf monarchy of Bahrain arrested four American journalists as they were reporting on the political situation in the

  • Share
Opinion

Neither Taharrush Gamea Nor Sexism Are Arab ‘Cultural Practices’

Posted on January 25, 2016 by Alex Shams

Originally published on Huffington Post.   In recent days, a new term has suddenly appeared in the media to describe a supposedly Arab cultural practice: “taharrush gamea.” The term, which

  • Share
Opinion

Killing of Mentally Ill Palestinian Swimming Off Gaza Coast Highlights Maddening Effects of Israel’s Siege

Posted on December 28, 2015 by Alex Shams

Originally published on Huffington Post. In the video, a naked young man slowly swims in the ocean, wading his way bit by bit through the waves to reach the other

  • Share
Opinion Palestine

This Christmas, Remember the Embattled Little Palestinian Town of Bethlehem

Posted on December 24, 2015 by Alex Shams

Originally published in the Huffington Post. This week, more than 1.5 billion Christians around the world will celebrate the Christmas message of hope. But in the little hilltop town where

  • Share
Opinion

Congress Is About to Pass a Dangerously Racist Bill. Our Response Must Be Solidarity Against Islamophobia.

Posted on December 14, 2015 by Alex Shams

Originally published on the Huffington Post. The last few weeks have seen a dangerous escalation of rhetoric targeting Muslims and Middle Eastern-Americans, as the national media and Republican presidential hopeful

  • Share
Opinion

Sacralizing a Shia Public Sphere: Muharram Commemorations Across Iran

Posted on December 1, 2015 by Alex Shams

Originally published by Ajam Media Collective on December 1, 2015. The following is a photo essay by Ali Karjoo-Ravary, a PhD candidate in Religious Studies at the University of Pennsylvania.

  • Share
previous 1 2 3 4 5 … 8 next

About me

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

follow me on

Recent posts

  • ‘We Have Broken the Wall of Fear’: Iranian protesters on what brings them back to the streets four weeks in
  • Iran has a long history of protests. This time it’s different
  • What Role Does Religion Play in Iran’s Protests?
  • Inside Mexico’s deep and unexpected legacy of Iranians
  • Feats of Strength and Street Politics in Tehran – مواقع القوة وسياسات الشارع في طهران
Search for:

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.

follow

Popular posts

  • In photos: Hiking the ruins of Lifta
    In photos: Hiking the ruins of Lifta
  • The Arab heart of Mexico City
    The Arab heart of Mexico City
  • Israeli discourse of sexualized violence rises amid Gaza assault
    Israeli discourse of sexualized violence rises amid Gaza assault
  • Are Iranians People of Color? Persian, Muslim, and Model Minority Race Politics
    Are Iranians People of Color? Persian, Muslim, and Model Minority Race Politics
  • إيران “فارسية” ؟: تحديات الأسطورة الآرية والتعصب العرقي الفارسي
    إيران “فارسية” ؟: تحديات الأسطورة الآرية والتعصب العرقي الفارسي
  • When Persian was an Indian Language: The Fables of Jameh ul-Tamseel from Medieval Hyderabad to Modern Iran
    When Persian was an Indian Language: The Fables of Jameh ul-Tamseel from Medieval Hyderabad to Modern Iran
  • Quiet but healthy: reflections on Lebanon’s unrecognized Baha’i community
    Quiet but healthy: reflections on Lebanon’s unrecognized Baha’i community

Archive

Categories

  • Academic Work
  • Arab World
  • El Salvador
  • India
  • Iran
  • Iraq
  • Israel
  • Lebanon
  • Mexico
  • Opinion
  • Pakistan
  • Palestine
  • Reporting
  • USA
Back to top
Copyright © 2009–2022 Alex Shams