Papers by James Barry
International Journal of Heritage Studies
On 27 September 2020, Azerbaijan went to war with Armenia on a scale not seen since the ceasefire... more On 27 September 2020, Azerbaijan went to war with Armenia on a scale not seen since the ceasefire of 1994. The conflict ended in another ceasefire on 10 November 2020, however, in addition to the theatre of war, the conflict has been prosecuted and continues to be fought post-ceasefire, through claims to cultural heritage which are employed in international organisations to substantiate the legitimacy of territorial claims. In this paper, we specifically focus on carpets and their display in museums to unpack the relationship between carpet as an instance of instrumentalised cultural heritage and the two countries' territorial conflict and claims. Focusing on two major carpet museums in Armenian-occupied Nagorno-Karabakh (Shusha) and Azerbaijan (Baku), respectively, we will explain how ostensibly innocuous claims of cultural ownership and authenticity underline territorial claims with violent outcomes.
International Journal of Heritage Studies, 2021
On 27 September 2020, Azerbaijan went to war with Armenia on a scale not seen since the ceasefire... more On 27 September 2020, Azerbaijan went to war with Armenia on a scale not seen since the ceasefire of 1994. The conflict ended in another ceasefire on 10 November 2020, however, in addition to the theatre of war, the conflict has been prosecuted and continues to be fought post-ceasefire, through claims to cultural heritage which are employed in international organisations to substantiate the legitimacy of territorial claims. In this paper, we specifically focus on carpets and their display in museums to unpack the relationship between carpet as an instance of instrumentalised cultural heritage and the two countries' territorial conflict and claims. Focusing on two major carpet museums in Armenian-occupied Nagorno-Karabakh (Shusha) and Azerbaijan (Baku), respectively, we will explain how ostensibly innocuous claims of cultural ownership and authenticity underline territorial claims with violent outcomes.
New Eastern Europe, 2020
The recent war between two of Iran’s northern neighbours has left the Islamic Republic in a probl... more The recent war between two of Iran’s northern neighbours has left the Islamic Republic in a problematic position. If the current status quo remains, Azerbaijan will be able to exercise an increasing influence across the border inside Iran.
Sites of Pluralism, 2019
Armenian ethnic identity in the Middle East is formulated around language, religion, descent, and... more Armenian ethnic identity in the Middle East is formulated around language, religion, descent, and the concept of a diaspora–homeland relationship. The historical leadership of the Armenians, who have experienced diaspora and lack of self-rule for the better part of a millennium, has been concentrated in the Armenian Apostolic Church, a non-Chalcedonic Orthodox denomination. A synonymous relationship exists between Armenians and Christianity, which until recently (accurate at the time of writing) remained largely uncontested in the Middle East and elsewhere. Historically, Armenians who converted to another religion were outcast and no longer considered Armenian.
However, in recent decades, the “rediscovery” of Armenian Muslims has
raised a central question for Armenians in Armenia and the diaspora: can a Muslim truly be Armenian? This is further complicated by another related but more sensitive question: can an Armenian also be a Turk?
Iranian Studies, 2017
his paper incorporates a study of “re-ghettoization” among the Armenian Christians of the Islamic... more his paper incorporates a study of “re-ghettoization” among the Armenian Christians of the Islamic Republic of Iran. It focuses on how legal marginalization has led to the emergence of an entirely separate existence from the Muslim majority in Tehran among Armenians born after the revolution. By focusing on the spatial and social divisions of the hayashatner (Armenian neighborhoods) and the “social” ghetto of the Ararat Compound, this article addresses the question: what are the social implications for religious discrimination in the Muslim Middle East? This paper is based on three extensive blocks of fieldwork carried out in Iran from 2010 to 2015.
James Barry analyzes political discourse among Iranians in Iran and California and argues that co... more James Barry analyzes political discourse among Iranians in Iran and California and argues that community- and national-level discourses can be seen as competing unitary languages—counter-posed monologues—that allow for heteroglossia only in limited ways. Beginning at the national level, he observes how official language about commitment to the Revolution, and Iran’s status as an Islamic republic, attempts to generate the centripetal force that will pull the nation together. Such discourse is taken up in several ways, including enthusiastic endorsement by political leaders, qualified commentary by observers who ask why Iranians are failing to live up to their ideals, and, quite simply, being ignored as “background noise” by people who know it is fruitless to challenge what the government says. At the community level, Barry describes how leaders of the Armenian community craft unitary language to depict Armenians as people who speak a certain way, worship in a certain way (they are Christians within a nation that defines itself as Islamic), yet have displayed notable loyalty to the Iranian national ideal. The subject of ethnic groups is nettlesome for the country’s leaders; the Ayatollah Khomeini claimed that the division of Islam’s global ummah into separate nations was a colonial divide-and-rule strategy, and this idea inflects the understanding of ethnicity as a potential problem within the Islamic Republic. Nonetheless, Barry observes, the government attempts to enfold Armenians as loyal subjects by acknowledging their contributions to the Revolution and sacrifices during the 1980s war with Iraq. Ultimately, a limited space of heteroglossic identity discourse, sharply demarcated by the “red lines” of national taboo, emerges for Armenian Iranians
This article examines the role of corporate identity in Iran’s foreign
policy making. Drawing on ... more This article examines the role of corporate identity in Iran’s foreign
policy making. Drawing on interviews with Iranian stakeholders and
an analysis of Iran’s political developments, this article surveys the
three key elements of Iranian nationalism that shape Iranian foreign
policy: Iranism, Islam and Shi’ism. This article finds that each of these
is crucial in explaining the apparent contradictions in the approaches
of several significant Iranian leaders, especially in cases where Iranism
collides with religious values. By highlighting how each component
is at once unique but still intrinsically linked to the others, this article
demonstrates how Iran’s foreign policy choices can be understood in
relation to its corporate identity.
The rise and subsequent erosion of friendly relations between Iran and Turkey was a result of the... more The rise and subsequent erosion of friendly relations between Iran and Turkey was a result of their regional ambitions. While Turkey had long seen its secular system as presenting an alternative to Iran’s Islamic ideology, the alignment of their regional interests facilitated a rapport between the two states in the first decade of the twenty-first century. However, the Arab Spring proved divisive for this relationship as each state sought to advocate its model of government and secure a leadership role in the Arab world. The war in Syria widened the divide, as Iran’s long-standing support for the Bashar al-Assad regime could not be reconciled with Turkey’s desire to see President Assad out of office. Using a close reading of Persian and Turkish sources, the authors will analyse the Iran–Turkey divide, focusing specifically on how the Iranians have portrayed it as a clash of civilisations, citing Turkey’s so-called ‘neo-Ottoman’ ambitions as the primary cause.
In recent years increasing numbers of Iranians have arrived in Australia by boat seeking asylum. ... more In recent years increasing numbers of Iranians have arrived in Australia by boat seeking asylum. Differentiating them from many other groups has been a significantly higher proportion travelling as family groups. Based on interviews with 50 Iranian women who arrived in Australia by boat between 2010 and 2013 this article charts the reasons why the status of women in Iran and a range of gender related practices are informing decisions to undertake irregular migration journeys, including seeking asylum. It suggests that the status of women and gender related issues are critical to understanding decisions to make irregular migration journeys and are foundational to experiences of persecution and fear of persecution.
Ayatollah Khomeini’s 1989 fatwa against Salman Rushdie cemented Iran’s space within Western disco... more Ayatollah Khomeini’s 1989 fatwa against Salman Rushdie cemented Iran’s space within Western discourses surrounding blasphemy and Islam. The fatwa has earned its place within the polarising debate between free speech and religious tolerance which fundamentally serves the political ambitions of those involved. Therefore, in this article the author argues that to understand accusations of blasphemy in Iran, one must address the political concerns in which the accusation takes place since these reveal Iran’s tendency towards pragmatic dogma, the practice of meeting the needs of the state in accordance with its religious ideology. The responses of Iranian officials to the Charlie Hebdo killings in 2015 provides a useful case study in analyzing this pragmatic dogma, since the Islamic Republic pursued a different approach towards that magazine’s blasphemy that it had with Rushdie. Instead of condoning the killings, Iran’s political and religious elite chose to condemn the actions of both the cartoonists and the gunmen without outlining a punishment. The author will argue that this case demonstrates many of the continuing themes in Iran’s approach to blasphemy, since the Charlie Hebdo cartoons have largely been used to reinforce the Islamic Republic’s overall worldview.
For Iranian Armenians, the main incentive for emigration is the feeling of exclusion and alienati... more For Iranian Armenians, the main incentive for emigration is the feeling of exclusion and alienation from the wider society. This has largely come about by the Islamic Republic's promotion of a Shi'a-based Iranian identity which does not count minorities as full citizens. This in turn has led to the development of a sense of foreignness in Iranian society among Armenian youth. The lack of belonging makes their ties to Iran much less solid, and therefore makes migration a much less painful process. Furthermore, their parents, who were raised in the more pluralistic Iran of the last Shah, find it easier to identify as Iranians than their children.
By analysing the narratives of several Armenians on the verge of migration, collected during fieldwork in 2010, this article presents the views both of the younger generation and that of their parents by using their own voices. This migration is removing diversity from a historically multi-cultural region and therefore, it is imperative that we better understand why it is happening. By outlining the connection between identity and migration in the contemporary Middle East, I will explain why this decline continues even in the absence of security concerns.
Other by James Barry
Ethnic and Racial Studies, 2018
This article is a historical empirical study of the Albanian Muslim migrant
community of Sheppart... more This article is a historical empirical study of the Albanian Muslim migrant
community of Shepparton. Through analysing newspaper reports, the authors
discuss how these migrants were portrayed as liminal between their first
arrival and acceptance as Australians a generation later. This is characteristic
of a practice which the authors term “migrant hazing”, where a migrant group
is demonized as a threat to the society during the liminal phase. Migrant
hazing occurs in public discourse, particularly the media, and ceases with the
replacement of the group by newer migrants, who are subjected to the same
process. Furthermore, migrant hazing remains present in contemporary
depictions of Australian Muslims. In this longitudinal study, media reports on
Albanian Muslims revolved around three persistent themes: their supposed
criminality, the wrongful use of land and the threat of dual-loyalty. These
three items constituted the main weapons of the media in hazing the first,
liminal generation.
Islam - Turkey - Politics - Law by James Barry
This article evaluates the Turkish state's relations with the Alevi community through a securitiz... more This article evaluates the Turkish state's relations with the Alevi community through a securitization theory framework. It first examines the issue in its historical context, comparing Kemalist and more recent policies, and highlights that despite the ideological differences between the previous governments and the current AKP government, for Alevis much has remained the same. It then turns to the securitization of the Alevis by successive regimes, and demonstrates that the period of de-securitization begun under the AKP did not end the practice, and that political expedience led to the issue's re-securitization.
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Papers by James Barry
However, in recent decades, the “rediscovery” of Armenian Muslims has
raised a central question for Armenians in Armenia and the diaspora: can a Muslim truly be Armenian? This is further complicated by another related but more sensitive question: can an Armenian also be a Turk?
policy making. Drawing on interviews with Iranian stakeholders and
an analysis of Iran’s political developments, this article surveys the
three key elements of Iranian nationalism that shape Iranian foreign
policy: Iranism, Islam and Shi’ism. This article finds that each of these
is crucial in explaining the apparent contradictions in the approaches
of several significant Iranian leaders, especially in cases where Iranism
collides with religious values. By highlighting how each component
is at once unique but still intrinsically linked to the others, this article
demonstrates how Iran’s foreign policy choices can be understood in
relation to its corporate identity.
By analysing the narratives of several Armenians on the verge of migration, collected during fieldwork in 2010, this article presents the views both of the younger generation and that of their parents by using their own voices. This migration is removing diversity from a historically multi-cultural region and therefore, it is imperative that we better understand why it is happening. By outlining the connection between identity and migration in the contemporary Middle East, I will explain why this decline continues even in the absence of security concerns.
Other by James Barry
community of Shepparton. Through analysing newspaper reports, the authors
discuss how these migrants were portrayed as liminal between their first
arrival and acceptance as Australians a generation later. This is characteristic
of a practice which the authors term “migrant hazing”, where a migrant group
is demonized as a threat to the society during the liminal phase. Migrant
hazing occurs in public discourse, particularly the media, and ceases with the
replacement of the group by newer migrants, who are subjected to the same
process. Furthermore, migrant hazing remains present in contemporary
depictions of Australian Muslims. In this longitudinal study, media reports on
Albanian Muslims revolved around three persistent themes: their supposed
criminality, the wrongful use of land and the threat of dual-loyalty. These
three items constituted the main weapons of the media in hazing the first,
liminal generation.
Islam - Turkey - Politics - Law by James Barry
However, in recent decades, the “rediscovery” of Armenian Muslims has
raised a central question for Armenians in Armenia and the diaspora: can a Muslim truly be Armenian? This is further complicated by another related but more sensitive question: can an Armenian also be a Turk?
policy making. Drawing on interviews with Iranian stakeholders and
an analysis of Iran’s political developments, this article surveys the
three key elements of Iranian nationalism that shape Iranian foreign
policy: Iranism, Islam and Shi’ism. This article finds that each of these
is crucial in explaining the apparent contradictions in the approaches
of several significant Iranian leaders, especially in cases where Iranism
collides with religious values. By highlighting how each component
is at once unique but still intrinsically linked to the others, this article
demonstrates how Iran’s foreign policy choices can be understood in
relation to its corporate identity.
By analysing the narratives of several Armenians on the verge of migration, collected during fieldwork in 2010, this article presents the views both of the younger generation and that of their parents by using their own voices. This migration is removing diversity from a historically multi-cultural region and therefore, it is imperative that we better understand why it is happening. By outlining the connection between identity and migration in the contemporary Middle East, I will explain why this decline continues even in the absence of security concerns.
community of Shepparton. Through analysing newspaper reports, the authors
discuss how these migrants were portrayed as liminal between their first
arrival and acceptance as Australians a generation later. This is characteristic
of a practice which the authors term “migrant hazing”, where a migrant group
is demonized as a threat to the society during the liminal phase. Migrant
hazing occurs in public discourse, particularly the media, and ceases with the
replacement of the group by newer migrants, who are subjected to the same
process. Furthermore, migrant hazing remains present in contemporary
depictions of Australian Muslims. In this longitudinal study, media reports on
Albanian Muslims revolved around three persistent themes: their supposed
criminality, the wrongful use of land and the threat of dual-loyalty. These
three items constituted the main weapons of the media in hazing the first,
liminal generation.