From the Editors

Jadaliyya Revamps Arabic Section . . . click here

Jadaliyya Launches Arabian Peninsula Page . . . Click here!

الآن . . . القسم العربي بحلة جديدة

The Culture Page Returns . . . . click here

Jadaliyya launches its new Syria page . . . Click here.

Want to find out about new books? Visit our expanding NEWTON page. Click here.

Call for Photos: Become a Contributing Photographer at Jadaliyya

Internship Opportunities at ASI (Jadaliyya, Arab Studies Journal, FAMA). Click here!

The Jadaliyya Egypt Elections Watch page archives! Click here for comprehensive coverage.

Interested in writing a Review for Jadaliyya? Visit our Call for Reviews here.

Jordan

Jordan: The Limits of Comparison

3 Feb 02 2011 by Ziad Abu-Rish

[Recently appointed Prime Minister, Ma'rouf al-Bakhit. Image from unknown archive]

On Tuesday, February 1, 2011, Prime Minister Samir al-Rifa’i submitted his resignation and that of his cabinet. Such developments come in the wake of three consecutive Fridays, wherein protesters throughout Jordan decried the existing economic conditions and called for the resignation of Samir al-Rifa'i’s government. The persistence of protesters week after week and the subsequent resignation (i.e., dismissal) of al-Rifa’i’s entire cabinet – despite various government attempts to appease the public – have led many to lump Jordan within the broader wave of social and political unrest that has swept the Arab world (most notably Tunisia and Egypt). However, a close ...

Keep Reading »

Jordan's "Day of Anger"

0 Jan 14 2011 by Ziad Abu-Rish

[Protesters at Jordanian Day of Anger. Image from Reuters.]

On Friday, January 14th 2011, protests of varying sizes were held across Jordan as part of a call for a “Jordanian Day of Anger.” While undoubtedly a response to the failed promise of economic reforms enacted in Jordan over the past twenty years, the call specified the series of government increases in the price of gasoline, diesel, and gas. Government control of these commodity prices are some of the last vestiges of the social safety guarantees offered by the Jordanian state in the face of economic reforms underpinned by neoliberal prescriptions that “privilege markets over communities.” Thus, while the social unrest in other Arab states - most notably Tunisia - ...

Keep Reading »

Liberal Elite Discourse and the "Realities" of Jordan

21 Dec 03 2010 by Ziad Abu-Rish

For over a decade now, a diverse array of English-language publications have emerged in Jordan, which in turn have reflected and facilitated discussions amongst the country’s liberal elite circles. Despite a diversity of specializations as well as differences in readership, these publications, which include magazines and blogs, have coalesced around a dominant narrative about contemporary dynamics in Jordan. This narrative, which I refer to as the liberal elite discourse, positions Jordan (its government and society) as moving towards modernity through the implementation of neo-liberal economic reforms and the expansion of the parameters of permissible speech. In ...

Keep Reading »

Slogans and Posters of the 2010 Jordanian Parliamentary Elections

0 Nov 08 2010 by Ziad Abu-Rish and Lena Ghannam

In November 2009, King Abdullah II of Jordan dissolved the Jordanian Parliament (elected in 2007) and called for early elections to be held on November 9th, 2010. These new elections feature various amendments to the previous set of laws governing elections. However, several opposition groups, including the Islamic Action Front (IAF), have boycotted the 2010 elections citing the lack of an independent monitoring mechanism and bias in the redistricting of the electorate that continues to provide rural areas (traditionally supportive of the regime) greater representation than they deserve. The Jordanian National Assembly is comprised of an elected lower house (Majlis ...

Keep Reading »

Protests and Economic Development in Jordan

3 Jan 21 2011 by Ziad Abu-Rish

For the second week in a row, a diverse array of Jordanians mobilized in the streets of Amman and other cities to protest economic conditions in Jordan. Similar to last week’s Jordanian Day of Anger, the recent protests were organized and followed through with despite government attempts to appease popular discontent in the days preceding the planned protests. Contrary to last week’s mobilizations which focused on rising prices, protesters this week were much more direct in decrying “policies that ...

Keep Reading »

Football and Violence in Jordan

2 Dec 31 2010 by Ziad Abu-Rish

On Friday December 10, 2010, Jordanian and international media reported on “clashes” after a football match between two teams that make up the biggest rivalry in the Jordanian Football Association (JFA): al-Faysali and al-Wihdat, both of which serve as the main recruiting pools for Jordan’s national team. Popular support for each of the teams is at least as indicative of political allegiances as it is of football appreciation. The al-Faysali team has popularly come to represent Jordanians of East Bank ...

Keep Reading »

Jordan, Liberalism, and the Question of Boycott

4 Nov 09 2010 by Ziad Abu-Rish

In the build-up to the 2010 Jordanian parliamentary elections (see slogans and posters here), a lively debate has taken place in Jordan about the efficacy of elections as a form of political practice. This article will discuss some of the major issues animating such debates, with a particular interest in critiquing the discourse emanating from the liberal elite circles in Amman (most represented by a diverse array of English-language magazines and blogs). The Jordanian liberal discourse posits the ...

Keep Reading »

On Being Addicts in Amman

1 Oct 12 2010 by Ziad Abu-Rish

We don’t recall how our day started, but we do remember being out of the house with none of our usual spots in sight. Everything was different that day: the number of people in the street, the look in their eyes, and the closed-up stores. Amman isn’t the place to take big risks. The consequences, especially for those of us without wasta, would have been severe should we have been caught. Even without wasta, there was sure to be family drama as well. They always suspected, but never knew for ...

Keep Reading »

Infomous

New Pages

Hot on Facebook

"We Didn't Know It Was Impossible, So We Did It": The Quebec Student Strike Celebrates Its 100th Day

About Last Night

Egypt's Working Class and the Question of Organization

Egypt's Presidential Election: Meet the Contenders

"We are All Palestinian Prisoners": Exclusive Interview with Artist Hafez Omar (VIDEO)

Al-Jazeera's (R)Evolution?

Without Principle, There is Nothing: On the Undignified Politics of the American Task Force on Palestine

سنان أنطون: العراق تعمق فيه تشويه التاريخ

I wondered why they did not appreciate that I was fighting against my mother...That was a turning point in my life. I realized that I was simultaneously discriminated against in my life and in my family.

click me | أنقرني email quote to a friend