CUSAS: Dr Mustahid Husain (University of Toronto), “Book Launch: Double Truths”

                             Dr Mustahid Husain (University of Toronto), “Book Launch: Double Truths”

 

Mustahid Husain's debut novel, Double Truths, examines postcolonial identity and reconstruction. It is based on his ethnographic research at the World Bank, where he witnessed the harsh realities of development aid to impoverished countries, in particular, the enrichment of large-scale cronyist enterprises,  wealthy clients, and aid facilitators and donors at the expense of those truly in need; and the continuing legacies of colonialism structuring the attitudes and relationships of 'aidland'. Dr. Husain transforms these ethnographic insights into an emotionally powerful narrative.

In conversation with Joe Beadle (PhD student & CUSAS postgraduate president), Dr. Husain will discuss his novel, its ethnographic foundations, and his approach to fiction as a form of public anthropology that bridges academic scholarship with the aesthetic richness of storytelling. Following cultural historian Saidiya V. Hartman's methodology of 'critical fabulation', Dr. Husain aims to “displace the received or authorized account” while exploring “what beauty might make possible in the world”.

 

Dr. Mustahid Husain (মুস্তাহিদ হুসাইন) is an Adjunct Lecturer in the Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto. His research and pedagogy explore the relationship between the unconscious and broader social conditions, engaging fresh perspectives in psychoanalysis to illuminate the subjective experiences of racialized immigrants. Published in Bengali and English, his interdisciplinary work spans global political economy, mental health across gender identities, and community-engaged scholarship. Dr. Husain's publications include Development, Neoliberalism, and Islamism in South Asia: The Case of Bangladesh (Palgrave 2022), Masculinity and Mental Health of Muslim Men of Colour: Diaspora and Intersectionality of Canadian Youth(Palgrave 2024), and an internationally acclaimed debut novel, Double Truths. His work has received press coverage by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Foreign Policy, and Times Higher Education. Dr. Husain’s forthcoming book, Unquiet Minds: Agency, Inclusivity, and Mental Health in Racialized Muslim Canadian Youth, is under contract with the University of Toronto Press. Dr. Husain completed his doctoral and postdoctoral research at the University of British Columbia, where he received the university's Future Alumnus Award. Before becoming an anthropologist, he worked in international banking, energy, telecommunications, and at a major international development agency.