Gewarges Riva E.
Riva E. Gewarges
Contract and Sessional Faculty
Department of Political Science
Area(s) of Interest:
Biography
I specialize in International Relations with a focus on Decolonial Theories, Postcolonial theories, and Indigeneity politics. My doctoral research, which has been shaped by my background as an Assyrian woman from Iraq, focuses on examining indigeneity in the Middle East. Specifically, I analyze the precarious case of the Assyrian people of Iraq.
My Master’s Major Research Paper entitled “(de)colonizing International Relations – An Assyrian Perspective,” interrogated traditional International Relations theories by analyzing the erasure of Iraq’s indigenous minority, the Assyrians, following the 2003 invasion. I obtained my undergraduate degree in Philosophy and Politics from York University and also have a Bachelor in Education from the University of Ottawa.
My general research interests include critical International Relations theories, specifically, Decoloniality, Postcolonialism, Critical Race Theory, and Indigeneity. She is an immigrant-settler in Canada, raised and currently residing on Anishinaabeg and Haudenosaunee territory.
Supervisor: Dr. Alina Sajed
Research Interests
- Critical International Relations
- Decolonialization
- Postcolonialism
- Indigenous Theories and Knowledges
- Critical Race Theory and Subaltern Studies
- Political Theory
- Critical Security Studies
Education
2015-Present: PhD in Political Science, International Relations - McMaster University
2014-2015: Master of Arts in Political Science, International Relations - McMaster University
2011-2012: Bachelor of Education - University of Ottawa
2010-2014: Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Philosophy (Minor) - York University
Teaching
Teaching Assistant
Fall 2017: POL SCI 3KK3: Genocide: Sociological and Political Perspectives
Sept. 2016 - April 2017: POL SCI 2O06: Political Theory
Sept. 2015 - April 2016: POL SCI 1G06: Politics and Government
Sept. 2014 - April 2015: POL SCI 1G06: Politics and Government
Occasional Teacher
2012 - Present: York Catholic District School Board, Occasional Teacher
Research
Publications Peer-Reviewed:
Under Review, Co-authored with Mariam Georgis, "Violence on Iraqi Bodies: Decolonizing Economic Sanctions in Security Studies," Third World Quarterly.
Conference Presentations:
Presentation (Invited), May 2017, Professional Development Workshops, “Wellness and Resilience in the Academy.”
- Organized by ISA Canada. Canadian Political Science Association, Toronto, ON.
Paper, Co-authored with Mariam Georgis, May 2017, “Violence on Iraqi bodies: The Effects of Economic Sanctions.”
- Canadian Political Science Association, Toronto, ON
Paper, Co-authored with Mariam Georgis, March 2017, “Violence on Iraqi bodies: The Effects of Economic Sanctions.”
- International Studies Association (ISA): 57th Annual Conference, Baltimore, MD.
Paper, November 2016, “A Postcolonial Perspective on Iraqi Nationalism: The Erasure of Assyrian Peoples’ Identity.”
- Middle East Studies Association, Boston, MA.
Discussant, October 2016. Panel entitles, “Intersections of Social Reproduction and State Borders.”
- Dis/Placing the Borders of North America, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON.
Paper, July 2016, “The Exclusion of Assyrians in Iraq: A Postcolonial Examination of Nationalism.”
- Canadian Political Science Association, Calgary, AB.
Paper, July 2016, “Indigeneity as the State of Exception in International Relations.”
- Canadian Political Science Association, Calgary, AB.
Paper, February 2016, “The Exclusion of Assyrians in Iraq: A Postcolonial Examination of Nationalism.”
- International Studies Association (ISA), 58th Annual Conference, Atlanta, GA.
Paper, February 2016, The Struggle for ‘Canadian’ Identity: Canada and its Internal Foreigners.”
- Mapping the Global Dimension of Policy Conference, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON.
Paper, June 2015, “Unrecognized: The Exclusion of the Assyrian Identity in Modern Iraq.”
- “Sayfo 1915 – The Genocide of Assyrians/Arameans,” Freie Universitat, Berlin, Germany.
Paper, June 2015, “Exclusions of IR: A Postcolonial Framework of International Relations.”
- Unsettling Colonial Modernity Conference, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB.
Presentation, March 2012, The Journey to Canada: Our Stories to a ‘New Life.’
- Faculty of Education: AQ Course: ESL Part I, II, III, York University, Toronto, ON.
Presentation, October 2011, “Right to Education: An Aboriginal Perspective (Attawapiskat First Nation)”
- Teaching Choices Symposium, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON.