Philadelphia, PA — The Dhimmitude Institute, a new initiative hosted by the Middle East Forum (MEF), invites submissions for its inaugural research series on “Dhimmitude in the Contemporary World.”
About the Institute
The Dhimmitude Institute honors and extends the pioneering work of Bat Ye’or, whose scholarship exposed the theological and political mechanisms that subordinated non-Muslim communities under Islamic rule. Building on her legacy, the Institute seeks to document how these hierarchies and attitudes continue to shape interreligious relations, governance, and civic culture in the twenty-first century.
The term dhimma refers to the classical Islamic system that granted limited protection to non-Muslims in exchange for political and social submission.
The Dhimmitude Institute applies this concept more broadly to analyze how similar patterns of hierarchy, restriction, and conditional tolerance continue to influence intercommunal relations and state policies in the modern world.
The Institute integrates historical scholarship with field-based research to examine how enduring systems of religious hierarchy and coercion manifest in both Muslim-majority and Western societies.
Research Focus and Thematic Areas
The Institute welcomes empirically grounded, policy-relevant papers addressing topics such as:
- Contemporary Expressions of Dhimmitude: Legal, administrative, or social restrictions placed on non-Muslim citizens and residents in Muslim-majority societies.
- Case Studies of Discrimination and Coercion: Differential taxation, restrictions on religious practice or construction, employment barriers, and segregation in public life.
- Religious Minorities and the State: The treatment of Christians, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, Yazidis, and others under regimes influenced by Islamic law or custom.
- Dhimmitude in the West: The spread of deferential or self-censoring attitudes toward Islamist pressure within democratic societies.
- Gender and Hierarchy: How patriarchal and communal structures reinforce unequal status and constrain religious and civil freedoms.
- Muslim Voices for Reform: Internal critiques advocating equality, pluralism, and universal human rights within Islamic contexts.
- Dhimmitude and Global Stability: How the persistence of dhimmitude practices promotes tension in the international arena—destabilizing Western democracies, deepening communal divisions, and hindering economic and social development in Muslim-majority countries across the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia.
Geographic Scope
Following initial planning discussions among project leaders, the first phase of commissioned research will focus on: Iran, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Pakistan, Lebanon, Turkey, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Gulf states (including Saudi Arabia).
These ten focal regions encompass both historic centers of Islamic governance and modern societies where non-Muslims—citizens, expatriates, and migrant workers—encounter varying forms of inequality, exclusion, and coercion.
Submission Guidelines
- Abstracts: 300–500 words outlining the topic, sources, and methodology.
- Full Papers: 5,000–8,000 words.
- Style: Chicago Manual of Style; footnotes required.
Submissions will undergo review and editorial oversight by MEF research staff and external experts. Selected works will appear on the Dhimmitude Institute’s digital platform and may later be included in a printed volume.
How to Submit
Send abstracts, CVs, and completed papers to Dexter Van Zile at vanzile@meforum.org.
