Rubina Ramji
Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies
Cape Breton University
1250 Grand Lake Road, Room CC241
Sydney, Nova Scotia Canada B1P 6L2
Phone: (902) 563-1264
e-mail: ruby_ramji@cbu.ca
ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS
PhD in Religious Studies, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario (December 2003)
Thesis title: The Centrality of Veiling and Invisibility: The Construction of the Muslim Woman Identity in Contemporary Discourses and Media
Master of Arts in Religion and Culture, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario (1992)
Qualifying Year in Religion and Culture, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario(1990)
Bachelor of Arts, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario (1990)
Major: Psychology; Minor: Fine Arts
ACADEMIC EXPERIENCE
2006 – Present
Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Cape Breton University, Nova Scotia
§ Responsible for teaching all courses on Religious Studies including world religions, mentoring students and administrative duties of the university
§ In charge of creating a new Women and Gender Studies program at CBU
§ In charge of creating a 4-year Religious Studies program at CBU
2005 (Winter)
John W. Altman Humanities Scholar-in-Residence, Department of Comparative Religion and the Faculty of the Middle East and Islamic Studies, Miami University of Ohio
§ Responsibilities include two public lectures on Muslims and North American mass media, conducting workshops on religion, gender and film, religion and violence, representations of Arabs and Muslims in world media, Islamic women and film, alternative traditions in film and incorporating new technologies such as film and the internet into the teaching of religion in the classroom
2004 – 2006
Postdoctoral Fellow, Religion Among Immigrant Youth in Canada: Department of Classics and Religious Studies, University of Ottawa
§ Performing a first of its kind, in-depth ethnographic study of Muslim, Buddhist and Hindu immigrant youth in Canada, by conducting interviews and collating information to understand ethnicity and transmigration, integration, gender and religious issues of second generation youth within Canadian society
1998 – 2006
Part-time Professor, Department of Classics and Religious Studies, University of Ottawa, ON
(see page five/six for all university courses taught)
1999
Knowledge Expert, Understanding Death and Dying, HungryMinds Inc., ww.hungryminds.com
2003 – 2004
Research Assistant, Department of Classics and Religious Studies, University of Ottawa, ON
1993 – 1998
Teaching Assistant, Department of Classics and Religious Studies, University of Ottawa, ON
1991 – 1992
Research and Teaching Assistant, Department of Religion and Culture, Wilfrid Laurier University, ON
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
2001 – 2006
Public Policy Analyst, Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Federal Government of Canada
Gender Based Analysis Unit (2004-2006)
- Prepare reports and memoranda providing analytical expertise from a Gender Based Analysis (GBA) perspective to the department and other organizations
- Develop a new approach to the GBA training workshops, including the creation of a new manual and implementation of new features to training modules
- Provide GBA input for the Annual Report to Parliament and the Refugee Reform process
- Member and coordinator of various working groups and committees dedicated to gender and migration issues, including the Interdepartmental Working Group on Trafficking in Persons which is creating a new federal strategy
Executive Assistant to the Director General, Admissibility Branch (2003)
Public Policy Analyst, Admissibility and Enforcement Branch (2001-2003)
§ Performed policy analysis and research; prepared reports, briefing notes, and memoranda; developed recommendations on policies, programs and legislation
§ Provided advice for senior officials on enforcement, admissibility and security issues
§ Assisted in all aspects of the work required to implement changes to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations on travel documents and visa requirements, including analysis of crime prevention, enforcement and admissibility regarding CIC policies
2000 – 2003
Peer Reviewer, Religion Section, Nupedia: The Open Concept Encyclopedia, Larry Sanger (ed), www. nupedia.com
1999
Post-Secondary Education Policy & Research Consultant, Alex Usher Consulting, Ottawa
PUBLICATIONS AND PAPERS
ACADEMIC – BOOK CHAPTERS
Will the End of the World Take Place in your Living Room? “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” – The Prophecy Continues, in Small Screen Revelations: Apocalypse and Prophecy in Contemporary Television, Ed., Marcus O’Donnell. Sheffield Phoenix Press. forthcoming 2010 – In progress [peer reviewed]
Muslims in the Movies, in The Continuum Companion to Religion and Film, Ed., William Blizek. Continuum Press, pp. 177-187; 396-399, September 2009 – In press [peer reviewed]
Being Muslim and Being Canadian: How Second Generation Muslim Women Create Religious Identities in Two Worlds, in Women and Religion in the West: Challenging Secularization, Eds., Kristin Aune, Sonya Sharma and Giselle Vincett. Ashgate Publishing: Aldershot, April 2008, pp. 195-205 [peer reviewed].
The Global Migration of Sufi Islam to South Asia and Beyond, in Globalization, Religion and Culture, Eds., Peter Beyer and Lori Beaman. Brill Academic Publishing, October 2007, pp. 473-485 [peer reviewed].
Representations of Islam in American News and Film: Becoming the ‘Other’, in Mediating Religion: Conversations in Media, Religion and Culture, Eds., Jolyon Mitchell & Sophia Marriage. T&T Clark: London, 2003, pp. 65-72.
Building Community Word by Word: Religion in the Virtual World, in God in the Details: American Religion in Popular Culture, Eds., Kate McCarthy & Eric Michael Mazur. Routledge Press: New York, 2001, pp. 267-280.
ACADEMIC - ARTICLES
Young Muslims in Canada: Individualistic, Integrated and Devout, Nuorisotutkimus-Finnish Journal of Youth Research, Vol 23, No. 3, forthcoming Fall 2009.
Creating A Genuine Islam: Second Generation Muslims Growing Up In Canada, in Canadian Diversity/Diversité Canadienne, Vol 6, No. 2, Spring 2008, pp. 104-109.
News, Popular Media, and Orientalist Islam, in Spotlight on Teaching: News, Media and Teaching Religion, Ed., Tazim R. Kassam. American Academy of Religion - Religious Studies News, Vol 22, No. 3, May 2007, vi.
Sex and Gender in the Study of Anthropology, in The Encyclopedia of Sex and Gender, Ed., Fedwa Malti-Douglas. Macmillan Library Reference: Thomson Gale, 2007.
From Navy Seals to The Siege: Getting to the Know the Muslim Terrorist, Hollywood Style, in The Journal of Religion and Film, Ed., Paul Williams, Vol. 9, No. 2, October 2005 (online journal at http://www.unomaha.edu/jrf/Vol9No2/RamjiIslam.htm).
Anthropology, in The Encyclopedia of Women and World Religion, Ed., Serenity Young. Macmillan Reference USA: New York, 1999.
“Executive Decision”: Just Another Hijacking Thriller?, in Islam in America, The Olduvai Humanities Library: Olympia, Washington, Vol. 4, No. 1, Spring 1997, pp.21-24.
SECONDARY ACADEMIC
Review of David Morgan’s The Lure of Images: A History of Religion and Visual Culture in America, in Church History: Studies in Christianity and Culture, Eds., John Corrigan & Amanda Porterfield (forthcoming Nov. 2009).
Review of Elizabeth Poole and John E. Richardson’s (Eds.) Muslims and the News Media, in Contemporary Islam: Dynamics of Muslim Life, Ed., Daniel Varisco, July 2008.
Film Reviews of “Be Like Others”, “Dinner with the President: A Nation’s Journey”, “George A. Romero’s Diary of the Dead”, Half-Life”, “North Starr”, “Order of Myths”, “Phoebe in Wonderland”, “Slingshot Hip Hop”, “Towelhead”, “Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden”, “Yasukuni”, at Sundance Film Festival, Park City, Utah, January 17-27, 2008, in Journal of Religion and Film, Ed., Paul Allen Williams, Vol 12, No. 1, Spring 2008.
CBC Radio Interview, Follow-up to Sundance, on CBC Information Morning: Cape Breton with Steve Sutherland, January 29, 2008.
CBC Radio Interview, It’s Not Hollywood, It’s Sundance, on CBC Information Morning: Cape Breton with Steve Sutherland, January 14, 2008.
CBC Newsworld Interview, Elections Canada and the Right of Veiled Muslim Women to Vote, on CBC News: Morning with Heather Hiscox, September 11, 2007.
CBC Radio Interview, The Aga Khan and the Centre for Pluralism in Canada, on All in a Day with Adrian Harewood (national coverage), October 25, 2006
Review of Loukia K. Sarroub’s All American Yemeni Girls: Being Muslim in a Public School, in The Sociology of Religion: A Quarterly Review, Ed., Nancy Nason-Clark (forthcoming Fall 2006).
Review of Janja Lalich’s Bounded Choice: True Believers and Charismatic Cults, in The Sociology of Religion: A Quarterly Review, Ed., Nancy Nason-Clark, Vol 67, No. 1, Spring 2006, pp.118-119.
Review of S. Brent Plate and David Jasper’s (Eds.) Imag(in)ing Otherness: Filmic Visions of Living Together, in The Journal of Religion and Film, Eds., Bill Blizek & Ronald Burke, 2000.
Review of Erin P. Moore’s Gender, Law, and Resistance in India, in Religious Studies Review, Ed., Frank Korom, 2000.
NON-ACADEMIC (Chair of Canadian Graduate Council)
Sustaining Canada as an Innovative Society Revisited: Challenges for an Innovation Society, May 1999.
Closing the Gap: Investing in Knowledge for a Better Canada, October 1998.
Post-Secondary Education Initiatives, January 1998.
Renewing Student Assistance in Canada II: Key Elements, November 1997.
Sustaining Canada as an Innovative Society: An Action Agenda, September 1997.
Renewing Student Assistance in Canada: The Student Assistance Reform Initiative, January 1997.
CONFERENCE PAPERS
What Religion Are You? Understanding How Second Generation Immigrant Youth Negotiate and Construct their Own Religious Identity, American Academy of Religion, Montreal, QC, November 10, 2009 (scheduled).
What is Authentic? How Second Generation Muslim Women Define Islam For Themselves, Canadian Society for the Study of Religion Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC, June 2, 2008.
Brought up in Canada but Different in Religion: Classifying Styles of Religious Involvement among Buddhist, Hindu, and Muslim Youth, with Peter Beyer, Canadian Society for the Study of Religion Annual Meeting, Saskatoon, SK, May 28, 2007.
Second Generation Muslims in Canada: From Salafists to Non-Believers, Canadian Society for the Study of Religion Annual Meeting, Toronto, ON, May 31, 2006.
Religion and Popular Culture Roundtable : A Critique of David Chidester’s Authentic Fakes: Religion and American Popular Culture, Canadian Society for the Study of Religion Annual Meeting, Toronto, ON, May 29, 2006.
Religious Attitudes and Identities of Second Generation Immigrant Muslim Youth in Canada: An Investigation in Progress, Hawaii International Conference on Arts and Humanities, Honolulu, HI, January 2006.
Religion Among Second Generation Immigrant Youth in Canada: Preliminary Results From an Investigation in Progress, Canadian Society for the Study of Religion Annual Meeting, London, ON, May 28, 2005.
From Navy Seals to The Siege: Getting to the Know the Muslim Terrorist, Hollywood Style, Religion and Media Workshop, American Academy of Religion, Atlanta, GA, 2003.
The Role of Religious Iconography in “The Matrix”, American Academy of Religion, Nashville, TN, November 18, 2000.
Western Media and Muslim Women: Image and Counterimage, International Association for the History of Religions XVIII Quinquennial Congress, Durban, South Africa, August 10, 2000.
Where Do Muslim Women Pray? Creating Their Own Space for Salat, Divina et Femina III: Sacred Domesticity Colloquium, Ottawa, ON, May 21, 2000.
Western Images of Muslim Women: How Do They Configure National Identity?, American Academy of Religion, Boston, MA, November 22, 1999.
Passions and Conflicts: Readings of Deepa Metha’s “Fire”, American Academy of Religion, Boston, MA, November 22, 1999.
Representations of Islam in North American Mass Media: Becoming the ‘Other’, Third International Conference on Media, Religion and Culture, Edinburgh, Scotland, July 21, 1999.
Mother as Sacred in Islam: Worship or Oppression? Divina et Femina II Colloquium, Ottawa, ON, May 23, 1999.
Reflections of the Religious ‘Otherness’ of Islam in Popular Visual Culture, American Academy of Religion, Orlando, FL, November 24, 1998.
Narratives of Islamic Women in North American Mass Media, Canadian Women Studies Association, Ottawa, ON, May 30, 1998.
Media and the Construction of Stereotypes of Islam, Isma’ili Tariqa Religious Education Board Canada--Aga Khan Foundation, Vancouver, BC, May 1, 1998/Calgary, AB, May 3, 1998/Toronto, ON, May 23, 1998 (Invited).
Multi-User Domains in Projecting Religious Worldviews, American Academy of Religion-Eastern International Region, Toronto, ON, April 18, 1998 (Invited).
The Power of the Internet as a Tool for Projecting Worldviews, American Academy of Religion, San Francisco, CA, November 23, 1997.
Understanding the Effects of Western Culture on the Women of Islam, 37th Northeastern Anthropological Association Meeting, Montebello, QC, April 11, 1997.
“Terminator 1 & 2”: A Cinematic Construction of Religion in Popular Culture, American Academy of Religion, New Orleans, LA, November 24, 1996.
Conceptions and Challenges of the Internet Within the Religious Community, American Academy of Religion, New Orleans, LA, November 24, 1996 (Invited).
PRESENTATIONS
Invited Guest Speaker, Manufacturing and Exploiting an Image: The Muslim Woman as a Western Cultural Product, Religious Tolerance – Opportunity, Obligation, Responsibility Conference, Tartu, Estonia, August 30-31, 2007.
Guest Speaker, Landing a Job with a Degree in Religion Inside and Outside the Academy Panel, Canadian Society for the Study of Religion Annual Meeting, Saskatoon, SK, May 28, 2007.
Invited Guest Speaker, Second Generation Youth in Canada: Specific Communities – Muslims, Second Generation Youth in Canada Conference: A Research Network Event, Metropolis Project, Strategic Research and Statistics, and the Multiculturalism Program (Canadian Heritage), Ottawa, ON, March 20, 2007.
Guest Speaker, The Visual Subjugation of One Sex: The Invention and Exploitation of the Islamic Woman, Muslims and the Media Forum, Miami University at Ohio, February 10, 2005.
Invited Guest Speaker, Media Images of Islam: The Social Construction of Racism, Department of Religion, University of Vermont, April 26, 2001.
Guest Lecturer, Women in Islam: Tradition vs. Contemporary Thought, Sociology of Religion, Religious Studies Department, University of Ottawa, March 19, 1998.
“Half Sister”, AAR Arts Series, American Academy of Religion, San Francisco, CA, November 24, 1997 (Invited).
(Mis)Managing the University? The U. Of O. Perspective, Graduate Studies Workshop, University of Ottawa, ON, March 13, 1997 (Invited).
“Dead Man Walking”, Continuum Arts Series, American Academy of Religion, New Orleans, LA, November 25, 1996 (Invited).
“Daughters of the Dust”, Continuum Arts Series, American Academy of Religion, Philadelphia, PA, November 19, 1995 (Invited).
Guest Speaker, Women's Human Rights in Islam, Human Rights in the Social Sciences: Department of Interdisciplinary Studies, Carleton University, Ottawa, ON, October 20, 1994.