Who We Are

About Us

Jasur is an academic journal for writing on the Middle East, edited by students from North Carolina Universities (Duke, UNC-Chapel Hill, and UNC-Greensboro). The journal is published biannually online and in print, and provides a platform for excellent critical scholarship on the region. All students, regardless of their home institution, are welcome and encouraged to submit any and all work. We also welcome work from recent graduates and graduate students.

Jasur Magazine is our online-only platform for all types of content, including political analyses, op-eds, photo essays, short films, and poetry. Updated regularly, the magazine includes work that don’t have to fit the technical or academic standards of the journal but still provides a valuable perspective on the region. Anyone is welcome to submit work to the magazine, and we especially encourage younger students and those looking for feedback on their writing to submit.

History

In 2009, a group of Duke undergrads published the first edition of our journal that ran inconsistently until 2013. In 2018, a new group of students rebuilt the journal from the ground up, eventually publishing the first issue of the reworked journal March 2019 under the name Juhood Magazine. In Winter 2021, Juhood Magazine was renamed to Jasūr, a word with significance in both Arabic and Persian, to reflect our changing focus and an attempt to be inclusive of non-Arabic-speaking groups from the Middle East. Presently, we’re continuing to develop collaborations with students at different universities, in the U.S. as well as in Iraq, Palestine, Lebanon, and elsewhere. Here in the Triangle, we offer space for critical discussions about the Middle East and the forces that have shaped it.

We are enthusiastic to make new friends and develop partnerships—if you’re interested in working with us or have questions, say hi!