Arab Youth

In 2011, Arab youth took to the streets in their thousands to demand their freedom. Although it is too early to speculate on the ultimate outcome of the uprisings, one auspicious feature stands out: they reveal the genesis of a new generation sparked by the desire for civil liberties, advocacy for human rights, and participatory democracy. This unique volume explores some of the antecedents of the upheavals and anticipates alternative venues of resistance that marginalized youth - from Lebanon, Syria and Palestine to Saudi Arabia, Morocco and Iran - can mobilize to realize their emancipatory expectations. Themes covered include the forging of meaningful collective identities in times of risk and uncertainty; youth militancy, neighborhood violence and youth gangs; the surge of youthful activism; and youths’ expressive outlets through popular arts and street music.

Auteur
Samir Khalaf is Professor of Sociology and Director of the Center for Behavioral Research at the American University of Beirut. He has held academic appointments at Princeton, Harvard, MIT, and New York University. Among his books are Sexuality in the Arab World (with John Gagnon), The Heart of Beirut, Cultural Resistance and Lebanon Adrift, all by Saqi Books. Roseanne Saad Khalaf is Associate Professor of English and Creative Writing at the American University of Beirut. She is the author and editor of five books, among them Hikayat: Short Stories by Lebanese Woman (Telegram), Transit Beirut and Arab Society and Culture, co-edited with Samir Khalaf (both by Saqi Books).

Contenu
Contents: Introduction 7 Samir Khalaf and Roseanne Saad Khalaf Part 1: Youth as a Social Category 33 Youth as a Social Category and as a Social Process 35 Johanna Wyn Reclaiming Youthfulness 47 Asef Bayat The Negotiation of Waithood: The Political Economy of Delayed Marriage in Egypt 67 Diane Singerman The Demographic Youth Bulge and Social Rupture 79 Youssef Courbage; Part 2: Negotiating Identity in Times of Risk; 89 Social Learning and Community Participation: Youth at Risk in Two Marginalized Urban Neighborhoods in Amman, Jordan; 91 Curtis N. Rhodes, Jr., Haytham A. Mihyar, and Ghada Abu El-Rous; Saudi Youth: Initiative and Inertia 112 Mai Yamani Between Silences and Screams: The Lebanese Postmemory Experience 127 Craig Larkin Part 3: Representation and Self-Perception 147 The Politics of Fun in the Islamic Republic of Iran: Re-creation of Recreation; 149 Pardis Mahdavi; Idealistic and Indignant Young Lebanese; 162 Roseanne Saad Khalaf n Good Times or Bad? Discourse on the National Identity of Lebanese Upper Class Youth 176 Nicolien Kegels Part 4: Militancy and Street Violence 195 Male Gender and Rituals of Resistance in Palestinian Intifada: A Cultural Politics of Violence 197 Julie Peteet; Revenge of the Wretched: Islam and Violence in the Bab al Tabaneh Neighborhood of Tripoli 220 Mohammad Abi Samra; Neighborhood Violence among Youth Gangs in the Southern Suburbs of Beirut (Chiah) 236 Fidel Sbeity; Part 5: Voluntarism and Civil Society 261 Uniforms and Salutes: Fascism and Youth Politics in Syria and Lebanon under French Rule; 263 Jennifer Dueck; Youth Networks, Space, and Political Mobilization: Lebanon's Independence Intifada; 277 Christian Gahre; Part 6: Popular Culture and Music; 301 Sanctioned Pleasures: Youth Negotiations of Leisure Sites and Morality in al-Dahiya; 303 Lara Deeb and Mona Harb; European Muslim Youth: Towards a Cool Islam?; 319 Miriam Gazzah; Music Consumption and the Navigation of Identities: Transnational Moroccan Youth in Britain; 337 Carolyn Landau; Scratch the Past - this is OUR Soundtrack: Hip-Hop in Lebanon; 359 Angie Nassar; About the Contributors; 387 Bibliography; 391 Acknowledgments; 409 Index ;411