Profile: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Prof. Mehnaz Afridi

Dr. Mehnaz Afridi is an assistant professor of Religious Studies and the director of Manhattan College's Holocaust, Genocide, and Interfaith Education Center. Her academic interests include the Holocaust, Pakistan, Israel, interreligious identity, diaspora and transnational studies, post-genocide identity, and feminist post-colonial theory. Dr. Afridi is a member of both the American Academy of Religion and the American Comparative Literature Association.

You have lived all over the world, literally! What are your favorite places you have lived? Top 5?

1. New York

2. LA

3. Geneva

4. London

5. Dubai

*Bonus answer: United Arab Emirates

You have also had the chance to study all over the world. Where are the absolute favorite places you have studied?

Syracuse University and Hebrew University

Do you have any secret talents?

Not really. Pakistani Dance?

What is your favorite of the 5 pillars of Islam?

Sawn - FASTING

What is an idea or question you've been wrestling with lately?

Islamic Extremism

Do you have an idea that you used to hold that you've changed your mind or perspective on?

Yes. My perspective on Hinduism and the concept of God.

What is your favorite movie quote?

Amedeo Modigliani: "He was not an entertainer for the bored but an astronaut of the unknown."

What is your favorite internet cat video?

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10150820780958092&set=vb.101225828768&type=2&theater

What will you be working on in the next year?

I just came back from a symposium in Arizona called: "Muslim and Jews: Challenging the Dynamics of Hate." I did a workshop on "Anti-Semitism and Islamophobia" and presented a paper on "Nostalgia and the 'mal du siècle" in Jewish-Muslim Interaction.

Also with the partnership of YCT Rabbinical school and SelfHelp Community services, I will be working with six fellows on their work on the Holocaust and interfaith understanding.

In February, I will be going to consult on the "Committee on Religion, Ethics and the Holocaust" at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC.

This summer my project is to work on Muslim refugee status during World War I and II at the USHMM, DC through the archives and tracing services.

Finally, the Center has had a large donation of books from Debbie Zeiring whose father was a Nazi hunter and I intend to do a story/research on his life during this summer.

Interested in anything mentioned by Prof. Afridi? Feel free to stop by her office in Miguel 406 or email her at mehnaz.afridi@manhattan.edu