Farid Hafez and Ümmü Selime Türe: Presentation and discussion
Organized by the Studio for Art and Intervention | Concept, Professor Marina Gržinić in collaboration with Asma Aiad and Anahita Neghabat (PhD candidates in Philosophy, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna).
Farid Hafez (USA, Austria)
How I Was Declared a Public Enemy: Operation Luxor and the Crusade Against “Political Islam”
This book tells the story of one of Austria’s largest and most racist police operations, which specifically targeted Muslims. It explores the background of how such an operation came to be and why there was so little public resistance to this political development in Austria. The book also links Operation Luxor with the so-called “Project Ballhausplatz,” the Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ), and the political style of Sebastian Kurz. It delves into the involvement of foreign actors and examines the conduct of the judiciary and so-called “Islam experts.”
Farid Hafez teaches International Relations in the United States and is a Senior Fellow at The Bridge Initiative at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.
Ümmü Selime Türe (Austria)
Antimuslim Racism Report 2024: A Decade of Resistance and Documentation in Austria
Ümmü Selime Türe is the co-founder and vice chair of the Documentation and Counseling Center for Islamophobia (2014) and Anti-Muslim Racism Austria, a community-based counselling and research center that collects and generates data for the annual report.
Ümmü Selime Türe (she/her) is a culture- and social anthropologist with expertise in psychosocial counselling and transformative and healing justice. She completed her Master's at the Department for Cultural and Social Anthropology and the University of Vienna on media representation of racialized communities. She is a part of the anthology 'Therapie Intersektional', an intersectionality informed therapy & counselling book with experts from Austria, Germany, and Switzerland. Her work focuses on Self and Collective Care, Intersectionality as well as Transformative & Healing Justice and works in projects supporting people affected by racism, and she has experience of about fifteen years of teaching in social and academic contexts.
Moderation
Asma Aiad is an artist and researcher based in Vienna. Her work focuses on the representation of Muslim identities, anti-Muslim racism, and the politics of visibility. She is currently a PhD candidate in Philosophy at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna.
Anahita Neghabat is a social anthropologist, artist, and activist working on critical education, (anti-Muslim) racism, postmigrant identities, and memes. She is currently a PhD candidate in Philosophy at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna.