#HASTalks: Can Depression Be a Form of Protest?

#HASTalks is a seminar series curated by The Department of Health, Aging & Society at McMaster University.

Arij Elmi holds a contractually limited appointment in the School of Social Work at McMaster University. Her research focuses on two streams: Muslim psychic life and the relationship between pedagogy and the family. Arij is a co-author on the forthcoming paper, Islamophobia as an affective field: Death and elimination.

Can Depression Be a Form of Protest? Exploring the links between Muslim Mental Health and political subjectivity

Recent research demonstrates that Muslim diaspora communities in the West experience higher levels of distress in comparison with other groups. While higher levels of distress have been attributed to a lack of social and economic integration, this seminar will explore whether psychoanalytic thought, particularly the work of Jacques Lacan can offer a different explanation. This seminar will explore the possibility of depression as a form of political subjectivity, making the case that symptom can be a form of protest against recognition under liberalism.

ALL are welcome to attend this FREE session! Register for this event via Zoom

Please note: This session may be recorded. Please be aware that any materials entered, exchanged, or viewed by participants during the session may be recorded.