Serra M Hakyemez
301 19th Ave S
Minneapolis,
MN
55455
Serra M. Hakyemez is an assistant professor in the Department of Anthropology and the Institute for Global Studies at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. She is currently a visiting professor at the Mogadishu University (Spring 2026), and previously worked at the University of Edinburgh and Brandeis University. Hakyemez is the recipient of numerous awards from the McKnight Foundation, the ACLS/Mellon Foundation, the Wenner-Gren Foundation, and the National Science Foundation.
Hakyemez's research focuses on decolonization at the politico-psychic register through collective indigenous struggles. From counterterrorism to humanitarianism, her research tackles different neo-colonial formations and defiant subjectivities in the Middle East and the Horn of Africa. Her first book, Deadly Refusals: Kurdish Decolonization in Times of Counterterrorism (University of Minnesota Press, 2026), explores the decolonization struggle of Kurds in Turkish counterterror courts and maximum security prisons. She is currently conducting research for her second book on the role of humanitarian aid and development in reconstructing "post-conflict" Somalia. Hakyemez is also the author of journal articles and opinion pieces on prison resistance, counterterror law, and feminist and Palestine solidarity.
With the arrival of spring after Minnesota’s long winters, Hakyemez can often be found on motorcycle rides near Zumbrota.
Educational Background
- Ph.D. : Cultural Anthropology, Johns Hopkins University, 2016
- MA: Cultural Anthropology, Johns Hopkins University, 2013
- MA: Sociology and Anthropology, Central European University, 2008
- MSc: Social Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), 2006
- BA: Political Science & Business Administration, Bogazici University, 2005
Specialties
- Carcerality
- Colonialism and Decolonial Studies
- Extractivism
- Humanitarianism
- Political Violence
- Psychoanalysis
- Subjectivity
- Middle East Studies
- East Africa Studies