Ayse Irem Karabag
Doctoral student in English at York University, researching critical refugee studies, queer/gender studies, and world literature.
About
I am a doctoral student and teaching assistant in the Department of English at York University, specializing in critical refugee studies, queer and gender studies, and world literature. My research examines narratives of resistance and refugee worldmaking, exploring how displaced communities use storytelling to reclaim agency and build new forms of belonging.
I also work as a project writer at the Local Engagement Refugee Research Network (LERRN) at Carleton University. My work has been published in Diyalektolog and the Canadian Review of Comparative Literature. I hold an MA in English and Transcultural Studies from Heidelberg University and a BA from Bogazici University (2017).
Research Interests: Critical Refugee Studies, Queer & Gender Studies, World Literature, Narratives of Resistance, Refugee Worldmaking
Recent Publications
Letter to Kwe / Kwe ekedetle niye -- Letter to my future self / Gelecekteki kendime mektup
A collaborative work combining essay and poetry that explores themes of displacement, colonialism in academic institutions, and indigenous language reclamation. The piece features components in English, Dene, and Turkish.
Ragged Men on the Move: Poverty, Inertia and Friendship in Latife Tekin's Swords of Ice (1989/tr.2007)
This article examines the relationship between two protagonists from Istanbul's impoverished outskirts in Latife Tekin's novel Swords of Ice. The study explores how friendship represents a transgression of class boundaries...
German-Turkish Rap in the Context of Transculturality
The article examines how rap music gained global popularity while exploring German-Turkish rap's emergence in the 1990s. It critiques the application of 'hybridity' as a theoretical framework, arguing this concept...
Research & Activism
Voices of Resistance Archive
A digital archive of activist literature, oral histories, and community narratives documenting social justice movements in immigrant communities across Canada.
Community Literacy Initiative
A community-based literacy program providing free reading, writing, and storytelling workshops for immigrant and refugee families in the Greater Toronto Area.
From My Newsletter
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Recent Blog Posts
Language, Literature, and the Fight for Justice
I have spent my career at the intersection of two callings that many people treat as separate: literary scholarship and social justice activism. In the academy, we analyze texts. In...