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On Saturday, June 24, I attended the PhD defense of Miss Salma Takky at her kind invitation at the Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University in Fes. The title of her dissertation was “Gender and Religious Politics in Documentary Filmmaking Narratives: Discourses of Power, Hegemony, and Subalternity.” Salma has worked diligently for her doctorate for years, and in tandem she also engaged student groups at my alma mater of Stanford University. She was a frequent visitor to that institution and was an active participant in its meetings, lectures, and conferences. Because of her Stanford connection, it became my privilege and pleasure to observe her scholarly ascent over the years, and to watch her academic work blossom.
Here are some pictures from the defense and ceremony. The first picture shows me with Salma and her family. On this occasion, I would like to congratulate them all for her achievement, and especially her uncle, Alla Takki, who is standing to my immediate left. The second picture shows me with her examining committee and university officials. From left to right is Professor Souad Belhorma, Professor Kebir Sandy (head of the examining committee), Professor Khalid Lazaare (dean at the university), Professor Souad Slaoui (her dissertation advisor), Professor Abdelkader Merouane (Secretary General of the university), and finally Professor Khalid Bekkaoui.
The committee did a tremendous job in conducting Salma’s defense. All the members pushed her to think deeply about the theoretical contributions of her research, as well as its implications for how we think about broader power dynamics within the medium of filmmaking. Those who were present were thrilled to learn that the committee awarded Salma her doctorate with distinction.
