Department of Asian & Middle Eastern StudiesAMES Statement on the recent violence against Asians, Asian Americans, and Pacific Islanders
We, the faculty of AMES, condemn the recent escalation of incidents of violence against and harassment of Asians, Asian Americans, and Pacific Islanders in the US, together with the broader patterns of racism, xenophobia, and misogyny of which these incidents are a symptom and a result. These incidents targeting AAPI communities have been exacerbated by recent racist discourses linked to the politicization of the Covid-19 pandemic, but are also structurally grounded in an institutionalized racism in the US that has long targeted people of color. We express our heartfelt sympathy to the victims and families of these horrific incidents of racially-targeted violence, and urge all in our community to work to fight against discrimination in all its forms.
About the Department of Asian & Middle Eastern Studies
Our department explores East Asian, South Asian and Middle Eastern cultures—primarily Arabic, Chinese, Hebrew, Hindi, Japanese, and Korean—through the lens of language and literature; social movements, nationalism and diaspora; popular culture and the media; gender, visuality and feminism; film theory, cinema and aesthetics; and the implications of religion on identity and globalization.
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What We Do
Undergraduate
We offer a major where students focus on one or more languages, and chose either a Regional or Thematic pathway. A minor is also available.
Graduate
We offer a Master's track in Critical Asian Humanities. And, through a partnership with UNC-CH Religious Studies, we have a graduate certificate in Middle East studies.
Language Studies
Our course curriculum of 9 Asian & Middle Eastern languages help students fulfill their Duke University foreign language requirements.
Travel Abroad Programs
9
2020 Fulbright Recipients
3
Foreign Languages
10
Research
Our department closely examines East Asia, South Asia and the Middle East by studying the languages, cultures, literature, religions, and more that make this region unique. The intellectual focus of the department consists of 10 research fields, with many overlapping into one another.
