FLUIDITY IN COMMEMORATION  

The mourning for Karbala takes on radically different versions across cultures. By all definitions, culture provides a design.The mourning for Karbala takes on radically different versions across cultures. By all definitions, culture provides a design for living, and studies reveal a significant role of culture in how Karbala is mourned – from the “Creolization” of mourning in the Caribbean to the propagation of blood donation drives, the space for Hussaini commemorations is both fluid and contentious. This panel studies how and why culture remains such a key influence in commemoration.  Join Moderator Ali Al Nijjar , Lecturer & Fizza Joffery, Ph.D., University of Oxford.  Ali Al Najjar: Ali Al-Najjar is one of the youngest and most influential Islamic lecturers in the west. He has lectured internationally in countries including Africa, UK, Canada and the United States of America. His father Islamic scholar Husham Al-Husainy is the director and founder of the Karbala Islamic Center in Dearborn, Michigan. Al-Najjar currently resides in Dearborn, MI. He is completing his academic studies in Islamic Studies and Psychology, at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.  Fizza Joffery: Graduate student of religion and anthropology, I'm a doctoral student in the Faculty of Theology and Religion at the University of Oxford. My research interests lie at the intersection of religion, politics, and culture. My focus is specifically on Pakistani Shiism. Writer + Researcher + Accumulator of Endless Projects