The Arab Uprisings: Sociological Perspectives And Geographical Comparisons

International Symposium:  The Arab Uprisings:Sociological Perspectives and Geographical Comparisons -- 20th and 21th of March 2012   Venue: Auditorium A, West Hall, American University of Beirut   Department of Sociology, Anthropology & Media Studies (SOAM) - American University of Beirut (AUB) Lebanese Sociological Association (LSA) Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) (Lebanon) International Sociological Association (ISA) Qatar University     Organizing Committee: Sari Hanafi (SAOM-AUB), Chebib Diab (LSA), Michael Burawoy (ISA), Samir Farah (FES).   Open to Public Languages: Arabic and English (with simultaneous translation)   Day 1 (Tuesday, 20th of March) 09:00 – 09:30 Opening and Welcoming Notes: Patrick McGreevy, Dean, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, AUBMichael Burawoy, President, ISAChebib Diab, President, LSASamir Farah, Director, FES- LebanonSari Hanafi, Prof., SOAM- AUB   Session 1: Problematizing the Uprisings (09:30 – 11:30) Chair: Nabil Dajani, AUB The Arab Spring and “Democratic Transitions”: Their Different Meaning and Their Different Trajectories Göran Therborn, University of Cambridge, UK Reclaiming Democracy: Lessons from Wall Street and Liberty SquareMarkus S. Schulz, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USAReflections on the Post Revolution in EgyptMona Abaza, American University in Cairo 11:30 – 12:00          Coffee Break Session 2: Actors in Transition (12:00 – 13:15) Chair: Maha Kayal, Lebanese University Negotiating transitions: Arab armies in politicsYezid Sayigh, Carnegie Middle East Center, Beirut The Arab Revolutions: The Emergence of the Reflexive IndividualismSari Hanafi, AUB 13:15 – 14:15             Lunch break 14:15 – 15:15            Political Change in South America: from ‘Democratic Transitions’ to Social Transformation Edgardo Lander, Venezuelan Central University, CaracasLatin America: Recent Transitions to the Obstacles to New ChangeRaquel Sosa Elízag, National Autonomous University of Mexico   16:15 – 16:45   Coffee Break Session 3: Social Media and Collective Actions (16:45 – 18:45)Chair: Livia Wick, AUB Role of New Communicative Media in the Dynamism of Arab RevolutionsNadim Mansouri, Lebanese UniversityAnarchist Civic Traditions and the Culture of Arab Revolutions Mohammed A. Bamyeh, University of Pittsburgh, USAThe Textures of Contemporary Resistance in IndiaKalpana Kannabiran, Council for Social Development, Hyderabad, India Day 2 (Wednesday, 21thth of March) Session 4:  Uprisings and Social Justice (09:00 – 11:00) Chair: Najib Issa, Lebanese UniversityWorld Economic Crisis and their Impact on Arab RevolutionsBotrous Labaki, Lebanese University Riding off Into the Sunset? Perspectives on the South Africa Transition to Democracy       Tina Uys, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa The Arab Spring: Why should we talk about revolutions?Nahla Chahal, Sociologist and writer, Al-safeer  11:00 – 11:30              Coffee Break Session 5: Tribalism, Sectarianism and Islamism (11:30 – 13:30) Chair: Melhem Chaul, Lebanese UniversityCivic Life and Citizenship in QatarJustin Gengler, Darwish Al-Emadi and Ali Al-Shawi, Qatar UniversityBahrain: Another Trajectory of the Arab SpringAbdulhadi Khalaf, Lund University, SwedenIslamist Movements in the Post-Revolutionary Era Abdel Ghani Imad, Lebanese University 13:30 – 14:30             Lunch Break Session 6: Uprisings and Women Movements (14:30 – 16:30)Chair: Azza Charara BaydounThe Role of Arab Women in Revolution and TransitionFatima Kubaissi, Qatar UniversityGender Blind Democratization in the Age of Arab Spring: Possible Lessons from Turkish Democratization HistoryDilek Cindoglu, Bilkent University Ankara, TurkeyWomen, Girls and Democratic TransitionsJan Marie Fritz, University of Cincinnati, JohannesburgTransition to Democracy and Elite FormationMounir Saidani, University of Safaks, Tunisia 16:30 – 17:00             Wrap-up