KD Thompson
@katrinadalythompson.com
Evjue-Bascom Professor in the Humanities at UW-Madison | Religious Studies | Director, SLA Doctoral Program | Researching language, identity & Islamic media in East Africa
May all beings find peace.
May all beings find peace.
My latest article is out in JAAR! "A Woman Is Not Created Mute" explores how Muslim women in Tanzania navigate theological debates about the female voice as 'awrah while working at an Islamic radio station. First piece with photos! 📻 (Message me for a copy.)
Book coming soon, Inshallah.
Book coming soon, Inshallah.
A Woman Is Not Created Mute: An Ethnography of Gender and Voice on Islamic Radio in Tanga, Tanzania
ABSTRACT. This article explores how Muslims in Tanga, Tanzania, navigate theological and social constraints on the female voice through participation in Is
doi.org
February 4, 2026 at 1:49 AM
My latest article is out in JAAR! "A Woman Is Not Created Mute" explores how Muslim women in Tanzania navigate theological debates about the female voice as 'awrah while working at an Islamic radio station. First piece with photos! 📻 (Message me for a copy.)
Book coming soon, Inshallah.
Book coming soon, Inshallah.
Reposted by KD Thompson
✒️ A Calligraphic Composition by Ottoman Sultan Mustafa II, c. 1700 "In the Name of God, the All-Merciful, the All-Compassionate"
February 4, 2026 at 12:08 AM
✒️ A Calligraphic Composition by Ottoman Sultan Mustafa II, c. 1700 "In the Name of God, the All-Merciful, the All-Compassionate"
UPDATE! IHRA (AB446/SB445) is likely to be passed in both houses and come down to a veto from Gov Evers. Wisconsinites! Please call and email the governor's office to urge him to veto this threat to academic freedom, free speech, and the right to protest.
Wisconsin's SB445 would silence classroom discussion about Palestinian rights & legislate political speech. The public hearing is Jan 28—we need your voice.
I testified against the assembly bill last fall. Now it's back. Read more & find out how to take action:
open.substack.com/pub/phdevian...
I testified against the assembly bill last fall. Now it's back. Read more & find out how to take action:
open.substack.com/pub/phdevian...
Wisconsin's SB445 Threatens Free Speech on Campus and Beyond—Here's How You Can Stop It
Senate Bill 445 (SB445) would codify a controversial definition of antisemitism into state law—one that’s been widely criticized for chilling free speech, especially on college campuses.
open.substack.com
February 3, 2026 at 9:56 PM
UPDATE! IHRA (AB446/SB445) is likely to be passed in both houses and come down to a veto from Gov Evers. Wisconsinites! Please call and email the governor's office to urge him to veto this threat to academic freedom, free speech, and the right to protest.
My review of Wikke Jansen's excellent Queer Mobilities in Indonesia is now out. Her "insistence on queerness" framework shows how class, gender, & geography determine whose queerness can be publicly visible without devastating consequences & challenges a Western emphasis on visibility.
www.tandfonline.com
January 30, 2026 at 3:57 PM
My review of Wikke Jansen's excellent Queer Mobilities in Indonesia is now out. Her "insistence on queerness" framework shows how class, gender, & geography determine whose queerness can be publicly visible without devastating consequences & challenges a Western emphasis on visibility.
Reposted by KD Thompson
The MEGA Act violates the Second Precept: taking what isn’t given—our voting rights. May we protect access to the ballot box for all beings.
Text SIGN PBBMMV to 50409
resist.bot/petitions/PB...
#EngagedBuddhism #VotingRights
Text SIGN PBBMMV to 50409
resist.bot/petitions/PB...
#EngagedBuddhism #VotingRights
January 30, 2026 at 12:09 PM
The MEGA Act violates the Second Precept: taking what isn’t given—our voting rights. May we protect access to the ballot box for all beings.
Text SIGN PBBMMV to 50409
resist.bot/petitions/PB...
#EngagedBuddhism #VotingRights
Text SIGN PBBMMV to 50409
resist.bot/petitions/PB...
#EngagedBuddhism #VotingRights
My review of Frédérick Madore's book on Christian & Muslim student activism in Togo and Benin (1970-2023) is out in JMAS. He offers valuable documentation of faith-based organizing and elite formation in West African universities. #AfricanStudies #ReligiousStudies
Religious Activism on Campuses in Togo and Benin: Christian and Muslim Students Navigating Authoritarianism and Laïcité, 1970–2023 by Frédérick MadoreBerlin: De Gruyter, 2025. Pp. xiii + 259. €79.99 (...
Religious Activism on Campuses in Togo and Benin: Christian and Muslim Students Navigating Authoritarianism and Laïcité, 1970–2023 by Frédérick MadoreBerlin: De Gruyter, 2025. Pp. xiii + 259. €79.99 (...
doi.org
January 27, 2026 at 3:36 PM
My review of Frédérick Madore's book on Christian & Muslim student activism in Togo and Benin (1970-2023) is out in JMAS. He offers valuable documentation of faith-based organizing and elite formation in West African universities. #AfricanStudies #ReligiousStudies
Wisconsin's SB445 would silence classroom discussion about Palestinian rights & legislate political speech. The public hearing is Jan 28—we need your voice.
I testified against the assembly bill last fall. Now it's back. Read more & find out how to take action:
open.substack.com/pub/phdevian...
I testified against the assembly bill last fall. Now it's back. Read more & find out how to take action:
open.substack.com/pub/phdevian...
Wisconsin's SB445 Threatens Free Speech on Campus and Beyond—Here's How You Can Stop It
Senate Bill 445 (SB445) would codify a controversial definition of antisemitism into state law—one that’s been widely criticized for chilling free speech, especially on college campuses.
open.substack.com
January 23, 2026 at 3:07 PM
Wisconsin's SB445 would silence classroom discussion about Palestinian rights & legislate political speech. The public hearing is Jan 28—we need your voice.
I testified against the assembly bill last fall. Now it's back. Read more & find out how to take action:
open.substack.com/pub/phdevian...
I testified against the assembly bill last fall. Now it's back. Read more & find out how to take action:
open.substack.com/pub/phdevian...
Reposted by KD Thompson
📢 Call for Applications
ACIP Ivan Karp Doctoral Research Awards 2026
For African PhD students enrolled at South African universities (humanities & humanistic social sciences).
💰 Up to ZAR 50,000
🗓️ Deadline: 1 May 2026
🔗 gs.emory.edu/guides/students/acip.html
#PhDFunding #AfricanStudies #SouthAfrica
ACIP Ivan Karp Doctoral Research Awards 2026
For African PhD students enrolled at South African universities (humanities & humanistic social sciences).
💰 Up to ZAR 50,000
🗓️ Deadline: 1 May 2026
🔗 gs.emory.edu/guides/students/acip.html
#PhDFunding #AfricanStudies #SouthAfrica
January 20, 2026 at 1:57 AM
📢 Call for Applications
ACIP Ivan Karp Doctoral Research Awards 2026
For African PhD students enrolled at South African universities (humanities & humanistic social sciences).
💰 Up to ZAR 50,000
🗓️ Deadline: 1 May 2026
🔗 gs.emory.edu/guides/students/acip.html
#PhDFunding #AfricanStudies #SouthAfrica
ACIP Ivan Karp Doctoral Research Awards 2026
For African PhD students enrolled at South African universities (humanities & humanistic social sciences).
💰 Up to ZAR 50,000
🗓️ Deadline: 1 May 2026
🔗 gs.emory.edu/guides/students/acip.html
#PhDFunding #AfricanStudies #SouthAfrica
Reposted by KD Thompson
Join us for "Religion and America at 250," an AAR webinAAR series that will engage central questions around the meaning of religion, the meaning of America, and the intersections of those terms, with special consideration of the 250th anniversary of the United States. aarweb.org/events/event...
January 17, 2026 at 3:02 PM
Join us for "Religion and America at 250," an AAR webinAAR series that will engage central questions around the meaning of religion, the meaning of America, and the intersections of those terms, with special consideration of the 250th anniversary of the United States. aarweb.org/events/event...
Reposted by KD Thompson
January 15, 2026 at 5:03 PM
Wisconsinites! Please read, contact your legislators, and share widely.
Why Every Wisconsinite Should Urge Their Legislators to Oppose AB 672
Wisconsin stands at a dangerous crossroads.
substack.com
January 11, 2026 at 6:00 PM
Wisconsinites! Please read, contact your legislators, and share widely.
So proud of my doctoral student Gengqi Xiao! His new article “Translanguaging Silence and Humor” just published in The Modern Language Journal examines how multilingual speakers use silence, timing, & playful creativity as communicative resources. Beautiful work pushing the field of SLA forward. 🎉
<em>The Modern Language Journal</em> | NFMLTA Journal | Wiley Online Library
This article adopts a translanguaging and flows perspective to explore how a graduate course instructor constructs a “quiet student” identity through a historical speech event to explain academic con...
doi.org
January 10, 2026 at 3:02 PM
So proud of my doctoral student Gengqi Xiao! His new article “Translanguaging Silence and Humor” just published in The Modern Language Journal examines how multilingual speakers use silence, timing, & playful creativity as communicative resources. Beautiful work pushing the field of SLA forward. 🎉
Be nice to librarians.
January 9, 2026 at 10:21 PM
Be nice to librarians.
Reposted by KD Thompson
In Memoriam: Bennetta Jules-Rosette (1948–2025). AfAA mourns the loss of a pioneering scholar of African religious movements and expressive culture. Read the obituary by her longtime friend and collaborator, J.R. Osborn, on our website.
In Memoriam: Bennetta Jules-Rosette (1948 – 2025)
Written by J.R. Osborn
A powerful and wonderful spirit, Bennetta Jules Rosette passed away on Sunday 7 December, 2025 at her home in Encinitas, California. Bennetta was a passionate academic with an i...
afaa.americananthro.org
January 9, 2026 at 5:30 PM
In Memoriam: Bennetta Jules-Rosette (1948–2025). AfAA mourns the loss of a pioneering scholar of African religious movements and expressive culture. Read the obituary by her longtime friend and collaborator, J.R. Osborn, on our website.
Reposted by KD Thompson
This is a vetted fundraiser for the family of Renee Good, the woman who was killed by ICE in Minneapolis.
www.gofundme.com/f/support-fo...
www.gofundme.com/f/support-fo...
Donate to Support for Renee Good’s wife and son, organized by Mattie Weiss
Please support the wife and son of Renee Good as they grapple with the devastating … Mattie Weiss needs your support for Support for Renee Good’s wife and son
www.gofundme.com
January 8, 2026 at 2:29 AM
This is a vetted fundraiser for the family of Renee Good, the woman who was killed by ICE in Minneapolis.
www.gofundme.com/f/support-fo...
www.gofundme.com/f/support-fo...
Madisonians! Please show up or write this moning!
The First Precept calls us to protect all beings from harm. Stand with trans Wisconsinites TODAY at 9:30am, Room 412 East, WI Capitol against AB311 & AB400. Can’t attend? Submit testimony to [email protected]. Compassion requires action. #EngagedBuddhism
January 8, 2026 at 12:14 PM
Madisonians! Please show up or write this moning!
Definitely Six Feet Under
January 7, 2026 at 12:02 PM
Definitely Six Feet Under
Reposted by KD Thompson
📢 Call for Abstracts! AfAA–University of Ibadan Conference 2026: Theory & Praxis: Rethinking Anthropological Engagements in Africa. 🗓 July 2–5, Ibadan, Nigeria. Deadline: Feb 20. Details 👉 afaa.americananthro.org/call-for-abs... #AfAA #Ibadan2026
Call for Abstracts: AfAA–University of Ibadan Conference 2026
The Association for Africanist Anthropology (AfAA), in collaboration with the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, invites scholars to submit abstracts for ...
afaa.americananthro.org
January 5, 2026 at 3:22 PM
📢 Call for Abstracts! AfAA–University of Ibadan Conference 2026: Theory & Praxis: Rethinking Anthropological Engagements in Africa. 🗓 July 2–5, Ibadan, Nigeria. Deadline: Feb 20. Details 👉 afaa.americananthro.org/call-for-abs... #AfAA #Ibadan2026
Reposted by KD Thompson
Right Speech calls us to protect all voices. WI AB 672 threatens free expression, targets activists, criminalizes dissent. The First Precept demands we oppose harm to speech & community. Text SIGN PGTKAO to 50409 🙏 resist.bot/petitions/PG... #EngagedBuddhism
January 5, 2026 at 12:13 PM
Right Speech calls us to protect all voices. WI AB 672 threatens free expression, targets activists, criminalizes dissent. The First Precept demands we oppose harm to speech & community. Text SIGN PGTKAO to 50409 🙏 resist.bot/petitions/PG... #EngagedBuddhism
Yesterday I had the beautiful experience of seeing one of my graduate students get married and welcoming her new husband to our extended family. May they be blessed with many years together!
January 4, 2026 at 2:23 PM
Yesterday I had the beautiful experience of seeing one of my graduate students get married and welcoming her new husband to our extended family. May they be blessed with many years together!
“Could ritual be something that isn’t handed down from ancient days from generation to generation, from grandmother to grandchild, but something that I make from nothing for my own self?”
— Rakesfall by Vajra Chandrasekera
— Rakesfall by Vajra Chandrasekera
January 4, 2026 at 3:58 AM
“Could ritual be something that isn’t handed down from ancient days from generation to generation, from grandmother to grandchild, but something that I make from nothing for my own self?”
— Rakesfall by Vajra Chandrasekera
— Rakesfall by Vajra Chandrasekera
In celebration of Mamdani's first day in office, the map from our 2016 NYC atlas celebrating Queens as the most linguistically diverse place on earth. (800 languages spoken in NYC, according to NY's Endangered Language Institute, which collaborated with us on this map.
January 3, 2026 at 12:21 PM