Cartographies of supranationalism: Creating and silencing territories in the “Arab Homeland”

In the predominately Arab states of north Africa and southwest Asia, a geopolitical entity exists that is rather uncommon elsewhere in the world. The “Arab Homeland,” as it is referred, is a readily accepted cartographic discourse throughout much of this extensive region. The construction of this entity emerged at the same time as the pan-Arab movement of the mid-twentieth century, which was fueled and motivated by 20th century geopolitical conflicts between Arabs and European imperialists, and between Arabs and Israelis. Through a critical reading of its cartographic construction since the fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1919, I provide unique insights into the numerous, complex, and even contradictory geopolitics of the construction of the Arab Homeland. My analysis of several hundred maps produced in eight different states of the Arab Homeland reveals that from the mid 1950s onward that the Arab Homeland was not only commonplace, but also how this supranational territorial entity confused and at times defied generally accepted divisions of the world. Expanding upon literature on supranational entities and the state, I show that territory is not only still important in our globalized world, but that it also has a complex and at times contradictory relationship with the concepts and scales of the state and the supranational. In emphasizing the role of territory in its construction, I also inject the importance of geography and territory for the pan-Arab movement, which is a factor that has been greatly under-theorized.     

Property,boundary, exclusion: Making sense of hetero-violence in safer spaces

This paper focuses on research conducted over a period of thirty months as part of a wider ESRC-funded initiative on violence. It focuses on the sustainability of safer gay space. This paper shows how the generation of the fear of the 'heterosexual other' functions to enable certain claims to be made on the space from a proprietorial aspect which includes recourse to purity, danger and respectability. This shows how property relations become articulated as a property of the person, demonstrating how entitlement to space is formed. It also explores how boundaries are being constructed and maintained in different (and often novel) ways and shows how different intelligibilities are constructed for understanding one's place through concepts of property and propriety that relate to forms of investment and movement through space. It thus challenges traditional ideas on boundary formation and maintenance. Ultimately it foregrounds how these understandings of bodies in space influence current articulations of citizenship and poltical participation. Cet article analyse des recherches effectuées au cours d'une période de trente mois dans le cadre d'une étude plus large sur la violence, subventionnée par ESRC. Le thème principal est celui de la viabilité des espaces sans risque. Nous démontrons comment le maintien d'une peur de 'l'autre hétérosexuel' sert à fonder certains droits envers ces espaces, droits qui sont reliés à un sens de la propriété faisant appel à des notions de pureté, danger et respectabilité. Notre analyse indique comment ces relations de propriété sont exprimées en fonction de la personne, démontrant ainsi comment se formule l'accès à l'espace. Elle démontre aussi les divers modes de construction et maintien des frontières, et comment ceux-ci élaborent des cadres de perception permettant de comprendre la place de l'individu au sein des concepts de 'rectitude' et 'propriété' qui sont liés à des formes d'interaction avec l'espace. Finalement, notre étude questionne les idées traditionnelles quant à la formation et au maintien des frontières, signalant ainsi comment l'analyse des corps dans l'espace ouvre de nouvelles voies d'étude ayant trait à la citoyennetéet àl'exercise de droits politiques. El enfoque de este papel es una investigación elaborada durante un período de 30 meses como parte de una iniciativa más amplia sobre la violencia fundada por ESRC. El enfoque es sobre la sotenibilidad de sitios más seguros para gays. Este papel demuestra como la generación de miedo del 'Otro heterosexual' facilita ciertas reclamaciones sobre un espacio. Estas reclamaciones incluyen nociones de pureza, peligro y respetabildad y demuestran la manera en que las relaciones propietarias llegan a ser articuladas como propiedad de la persona y de ahí, cómo es formado el derecho a un espacio. También examina como límites están siendo construidos y mantenidos de diferentes maneras (muchas veces nuevas) y indica como uno construye diferentes inteligibilidades para mejor entender su lugar a través de conceptos de propiedad y tenencia vinculados a formas de inversión y movimiento en un espacio. Así desafía las ideas tradicionales de la formación y mantenimiento de límites. Por último destaca la manera en que este entendimiento de 'cuerpos en un espacio' influye en las ideas actuales de ciudadanía y participación política.     

Monkey business: human–animal conflicts in urban Singapore

Ongoing human–long-tailed macaque (Macaca fascicularis) conflicts in Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, Singapore, have seen native macaques significantly affected, as residential development encroaches into animals' habitat, destroying important wildlife corridors. The search for a more humane treatment of these transgressive animals can be seen as an attempt to extend and include non-human animals within humanistic notions of ethics and care, in the process destabilizing the assumed divide between human/animal. Yet, a feasible solution is difficult to reach as National Parks Board (NParks), the state agency overseeing the conservation of reserves and wildlife, has to negotiate constantly between their goal of maintaining biodiversity and appeasing the complaining residents. The paper seek to understand urban–wilderness conflicts between human–macaque, showing that the divide between tamed/wild is multi-sited, ambiguous and constantly shifting. In this regard, we are especially interested in the role of intermediaries in initiating actions to ‘make discursive as well as material space’ for macaques in the reserve. Intermediaries, here referring to NParks and animal activists, are actors who do not reside near the reserve thus having no frequent encounters with wildlife, yet are enrolled as mitigators during instances of human–animal conflicts.     

Is technology the enemy of culture?

This article examines how changes in technology affect the strategies various national governments have adopted to protect their respective cultures. The focus is primarily on national policies toward film and television. National quota systems that limit the import of American entertainment products will soon be made impossible to enforce, thanks to new digital and satellite technologies. Economic incentives will still make American products attractive to proliferating private television channels, but narrow‐casting and cable distribution will offer new opportunities for locally produced shows and movies. Increasingly, those countries that wish to continue to protect their cultures from the homogenizing trends of global markets dominated by American films and television programs, will need to move away from quotas and toward subsidies. Moreover, they will have an interest in promoting technologies that are favorable to the promotion of national culture. Financial instruments that reduce risk to local producers may also be appropriate.     

Constituting "The People": National Identity Under William H. Taft and Richard M. Nixon

This project is focused on the long-term constitutive elements of presidential discourse; in other words, how rhetoric helps frame and determine national identity. Seemingly innocuous, and appearing in both ceremonial and policy addresses, presidential language concerning national identity helps shape the context, and thus sets the terms for more substantive, issue-laden debates. While one cannot measure the impact of this type of rhetoric in terms of specific issues and time frames, its influence is apparent in a broader and more diffuse perspective. This research compares the public rhetoric of presidents William H. Taft and Richard M. Nixon specifically in terms of their definitions of national identity. Both Republicans, albeit with very different political contexts and time periods, exhibited marked similarities in their strategies for defining the American polity, particularly with respect to their view of the president as the national representative, the idea that the nation is a unified whole, the belief that the nation follows the greatest good for the greatest number, the belief that each citizen occupies a natural place in the hierarchy of American society, and finally, the conviction that liberty is the most important foundational value of the country. The evidence suggests that rhetorical conceptions of national identity are important over time in the United States. Enjoying a broad audience, the president has the ability to shape national debate according to which groups and issues he includes or excludes from the polity.