Assistant Professor (Teaching Stream), University of Toronto

Wafaa Hasan (Ph.D., English and Cultural Studies) is an Assistant Professor (Teaching Stream) in the Women and Gender Studies Institute at the University of Toronto-St. George campus. She is an international lecturer and author who has taught in the Centre for Women and Gender Studies at Brock University, the Historical and Cultural Studies Department at the University of Toronto-Scarborough Campus and in the Gender Studies and Feminist Research Program at McMaster University since 2016. Her publications examine topics such as Islamophobia in Canada; globalized Islamophobia; contemporary trends of globalization in the Middle East; relations between Arab-Canadian leaders/organizations and the Harper government in Canada; Palestinian childhood in Canadian literature; and global practices of resilience in displacement in Countering Displacements: The Creativity and Resilience of Indigenous and Refugee-ed Peoples (U of A Press, 2012). Her research is primarily focused on decolonial feminist theory. That is, her teaching and research is focused on articulating and recovering modes of feminism that uproot and dismantle some prominent feminisms’ able-ist, racist, imperialist, classist, and faithist histories. Wafaa’s anti-oppression work is deeply invested in decentre-ing whiteness and white, liberal, colonial cultures as well as marking these cultures as distinct and uniquely wedded to particular priorities rooted in capitalism. Wafaa is often invited into community to speak about the relationship between Islamophobia and Western (often colonial) feminisms. She also works in community on racism in public school education. Her academic expertise lies in cultural studies theory, articulations of transnational feminisms and decolonial/anti-racist feminist allyship. She also passionately teaches about indigenous and anti-oppressive research methods, modeled in her own on-the-ground interview practices in Palestine and in Canada. Hasan currently serves on the board of the Canadian Arab Federation (CAF).

Wafaa’s dissertation, “Orientalist Feminism: Eastward Pedagogies in Israeli-Palestinian Feminist Dialogues” was nominated for the Governor General’s Academic Medal and the Canadian Association for Graduate Students’/University of Microfilms International’s CAGS/UMI Distinguished Dissertation Award at McMaster University. She is regularly sought out to speak about this research for international/local keynotes and featured presentations.

Wafaa arrived in Canada as a Humanitarian Refugee following the Gulf War and the ensuing mass displacement of Palestinians from Kuwait. Having been raised by a single mother in a government housing complex in Toronto, Wafaa is deeply committed to the value of social services, such as affordable housing, women’s shelters, anti-racist GBV initiatives, public healthcare and an equitable education system.

“Dr. Hasan carries such a tremendous amount of passion for what she lectures about, and it is extremely evident through her detailed notes, the relevant and interesting readings, guest speakers and even through her own experiences. She has created a classroom environment that I have never had during my 4 years as a sociology student.”

”Women Transforming the World,” McMaster University