This short video shows an insight of what equestrianism means to the Qatari culture and the subculture of female riders. Female horse riders are challenging the societal gender norms in Qatar by conforming to their culture and traditions, yet at the same time, 're-fashioning' what it means to be a woman.
We should also keep in mind that, treatment of women in Islam has changed according to the patriarchal system and solely because male scholars have interpreted most texts.This video examines how women have accommodated their role in society and still manage to take part of equestrianism.
This short video explores the work of a semester long subculture study. I am a fan of Hip Hop and chose to study the rap music scene in Qatar, more precisely a rap crew called L.O.T, which stands for Leaf of Trust. It is composed of 4 young rappers from Egypt and Sudan, and their Qatari Manager.
These young rappers aim to guide society into a better and more optimistic understanding of life. They aim to do so through their music and lyrics. I studied L.O.T by observing them and interviewing them in their own surroundings, which include the home studio they record in and the Student Center in Qatar Foundation. I was very welcomed into their "circle of trust" and got to know them all on a more personal level. This video shows what I have collected from my field work, so sit back enjoy, listen, and watch rap stardom getting raised in this tough and closed minded society.
This semester we were instructed to observe a subculture in Qatar. The subculture I observed were a group of metal heads; people who have a passion for metal music. The metal heads proved to be a subculture because they stood out and apart from the larger culture in Qatar. Also, they have sets of ideals, beliefs and practices that differ from the dominant culture. The subculture consisted of seven members. However, in the multimedia project I focused on one of the members and his activities. The subculture I studied meet up to “jam” once a week. They’re often seen as deviant by the larger culture so they’ve created a free space to hang out and unwind. I observed, took field notes, attended jamming sessions and interviewed members of the subculture. For my final project I focused on how the subculture resist the culture in Qatar. They resist through playing music, writing songs, dress and alienation. They subculture are aware that some people associate them with being devil worshipers and/or troublemakers. Do to the clash between their way of living and the conservative culture in Qatar the subculture feel shunned out. Although the project took me out of my comfort zone I’m fortunate to have interacted with such a great group of people who have taught me a lot.
This video is about the Qatar National Women's Cricket team. For the project, we studied the interactions, the performance practices and the cultural resistance of this small group of female Cricket players in Doha. The video was shot at the Qatar Cricket Association's (QCA) Cricket ground, that is located in the Industrial Area in Qatar. We attended a practice session and a championship game to collect our material for this particular video. We focus on the various different performance practices such as the dressing, the language and styles etc and we also look closely at the means of cultural resistance. i.e. form, medium, interpretation and the activity. It's interesting to see how the styles and actions of the team in some ways really unique to themselves and the interactions that they have despite their varied backgrounds are really interesting to watch. Also note the relationships that exist within the team and the interaction between the coaches and players in the video. Hope you enjoy it!
Well, I apologize in advance if the title is misleading, so let me clarify what I actually mean by the title itself. By cultural resistance, I intend cultural resistance to the stagnant situation of the Middle-East; where no major world sporting event has taken place in the last few decades (with the exception of the Doha Asian Games 2006). In this post, I'm going to analyze the move to organize the FIFA World Cup in 2022 in Qatar using the various means of cultural resistance.
Looking at the history of middle-eastern countries, particularly that of GCC countries, one can observe that there haven't been any major world sporting events in the past. Qatar has been the front runner when it comes to bidding for the organization of such events. The Doha Asian Games in 2006 was perhaps the largest sporting event organized in the GCC till date. Why has there been a lack of such events in the past in this region? Maybe it's just that the countries were not ready for it from the infrastructure point of view. Or maybe, the countries weren't ready for it culturally?
In terms of infrastructure, there are a few cities that are equipped with great facilities. For instance, Dubai has always been the leading city when it comes to the development of buildings and stadiums etc.
File photo of Dubai City in 2011
Saudi Arabia has some of the largest football stadiums in the area and spends huge amounts yearly on their local club leagues. In my view, it's always been the cultural aspect. There have always been doubts about the strong cultural exchange that happens in such world class events and the locals were worried about the morals and values that exist in the traditional Islamic society in the GCC. In the past, we have seen various Football world cups being held around the globe. It is a huge spectacle that consists of not just Football, but also a lot of forms of entertainment, recreation and travelling are associated with it.
Qatar, I believe is attempting to resist to this cultural resistance that all other neighboring countries put up. It takes a lot of courage and ambition to bid to organize a FIFA World Cup and Qatar has done a great job by accomplishing this. As we discussed earlier this week in the Duncombe reading, cultural resistance has 4 major means: Content, Form, Interpretation and Activity.
In terms of content, Qatar's bidding committee spent a lot of time and money focusing on the importance of organizing the event. The various presentations that were organized can be seen as the content of this cultural resistance. Along with it, the various proposals, documents etc. can all be categorized as the content.
Qatar 2022 Bid CEO, Hassan Al-Thawadi delivering a keynote at an event
In terms of form, the medium of communication is really important to note. The various advertisement campaigns and television ads etc. are examples of forms of cultural resistance to the otherwise bland and to some extent conservative culture. Interpretation is where all the controversy kicks in. Different people all over the world interpret signs and symbols differently. Some people were really worried about the associated culture shock in the form of excessive alcohol consumption during the world cup and indecent dressing styles.
Sweden's soccer fans drink beer and sing at the Euro 2012 fan zone in Kiev
Others were concerned about how Qatar's values would be overshadowed by the western styles and values. However, it is through their activities that the bidding committee was able to successfully manage kinds of views on this issue. The bidding committee ensured the citizens that this growth would be really beneficial and that the event would be organized keeping in mind the cultural preferences of Qatar as well. From a sociological perspective, this balance between cultural preferences of the locals and the visitors is what Qatar will have to work on in the coming years.
We also touched on the importance of politics in culture and it's important to note here that the Bid for the 2022 World Cup was supported strongly by the political heads of the state.
The final presentations were attended by the Emir of Qatar, His Highness Shiekh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani and we also witnessed the presentation being delivered by Her Highness Shiekha Mozah Bint Nasser Al-Misned.
The below video shows the celebrations that erupted at Carnegie Mellon University's Qatar campus after the announcement was made.
