Speaker: Dr Stéphane Lacroix, Sciences Po
Discussant: Dr Steffen Hertog, LSE, author of 'Princes, Brokers and Bureaucrats: Oil and the State in Saudi Arabia'
Chair: Professor John Sidel, LSE
Monday 16 May 2011
18:00 - 19:30
Wolfson Theatre, NAB.LG.01, New Academic Building, LSE
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Since the events of 9/11, Saudi Islamists have attracted considerable attention. However, given the opacity of the Saudi Kingdom, very little is known about them. Who are those activists who challenge in the name of Islam a regime whose claims to legitimacy are based on religion? And how have they managed to expand their influence and mobilize in depth into Saudi society? Finally, although the regime has until now resisted their challenges, could those Islamists take advantage of the current revolutionary impulse in the Middle East?
Stéphane Lacroix is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at Sciences Po. In 2008-2009, he was a Postdoctoral Scholar at Stanford University. His recent book 'Awakening Islam: The Politics of Religious Dissent in Contemporary Saudi Arabia', based on extensive fieldwork in the Saudi Kingdom, was published in April 2011 by Harvard University Press. Lacroix's current research examines the transnationalization of salafism and its effects on the movement's ideology and practices. He has recently spent time in Cairo as a visiting researcher and is working on a new book on Egypt, with a focus on the salafi movement there.
Steffen Hertog is Lecturer in Comparative Politics in the Department of Government at LSE. He is the author of 'Princes, Brokers and Bureaucrats: Oil and the State in Saudi Arabia' (Cornell University Press, 2010).
This lecture is open to all and registration is not required.
Admission is on a first come first served basis.