LLC51: The Middle East and the Question of Evidence

Collaborative Goals

In an age of armed conflict, surveillance, and closed borders, when travel to the region has become increasingly restricted, this working group will consider ways of doing research in and on the Middle East. Points of discussion will include conceptual and methodological innovations in the face of restrictions, engaging with non-academic discourses, and possible lessons from post-colonialism in an increasingly inchoate world. The question of evidence will be of particular importance as traditional sources and methodologies becomes less available to us. Put differently, should we broaden our understanding of what counts as a legitimate source, and how might this affect knowledge production as a whole? What possibilities can digital worlds provide, and how can we account for the obvious shortcomings (i.e. the question of anonymity, who has access to the internet, etc.)? How can we forge relationships with interlocutors when travel is limited or even impossible? What are the ethical implications for doing research “from afar?” How might be document “absences” or “impossibilities” in the archive? These are just some of the questions that we hope to explore as we navigate this very difficult period for the region. While conducting research in the Middle East is currently not an easy task, the alternative, abandoning scholarly inquiry of these peoples and places altogether, is not an option to us.