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Heavy Metal Islam: Rock, Resistance, and the Struggle for the Soul of Islam
November 17, 2008 @ 12:00 am
Monday, October 27 / 4:30 PM DATE CHANGE (10/23): rescheduled to November 17McCune Conference Room, 6020 HSSB
Mark LeVine: Heavy Metal Islam: Rock, Resistance, and the Struggle for the Soul of Islam
An eighteen-year-old Moroccan who loves Black Sabbath. A twenty-two-year-old rapper from the Gaza Strip. A young Lebanese singer who quotes Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song.” They are as representative of the world of Islam today as the conservatives and extremists we see every night on the news. Why, despite governmental attempts to control and censor them, do these musicians and fans keep playing and listening? Partly, of course, for the joy of self-expression, but also because, in this region, everything is political.
In a talk based on his new book, Heavy Metal Islam, Professor Mark LeVine explores the influence of Western rock music on the Middle East through interviews with musicians and fans, introducing us to young Muslims struggling to reconcile their religion with a passion for music and a desire for change. Levine takes us on a surprising foray into a historically authoritarian region where music just might be the true democratizing force. Mark LeVine is professor of modern Middle Eastern history, culture, and Islamic studies at UC Irvine. He is the author of several books about the Middle East, including Overthrowing Geography: Jaffa, Tel Aviv and the Struggle for Palestine, 1880-1948, and Why They Don’t Hate Us: Lifting the Veil on the Axis of Evil.
Website: https://www.history.ucsb.edu/projects/ccws/
Sponsored by the Center for Cold War Studies, Center for Middle East Studies, and the Department of History.
hm 10/22; 10/23, 11/12