Wednesday, January 14, 2026

Randa Abdel-Fattah - Wikipedia

Randa Abdel-Fattah - Wikipedia
Abdel-Fattah in 2024

Randa Abdel-Fattah

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Randa Abdel-Fattah

Abdel-Fattah in 2024
Born6 June 1979 (age 46)
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
OccupationWriter, lawyer, academic
CitizenshipAustralia
Alma materMelbourne University (B.A.)
Macquarie University (Ph.D)
GenreFiction, school story, sociology
SubjectIslamophobia, Islam, Muslims
Notable worksDoes My Head Look Big in This?
Notable awardsKathleen Mitchell Award
Children4
Website
randaabdelfattah.com

Randa Abdel-Fattah (Arabic: رندة عبد الفتاح; born 6 June 1979) is an Australian sociologist, lawyer, and writer of fiction and non-fiction. She is an advocate for Palestinian people and human rights in general. Much of her work focuses on identity and what it means to be Muslim in Australia. 

Her debut novel, Does My Head Look Big in This?, was published in 2005, and Coming of Age in the War on Terror was published in 2021.

Early life and education

Randa Abdel-Fattah was born on 6 June 1979[1] in Sydney, New South Wales,[2] to a Palestinian father and an Egyptian mother.[3][4] She grew up in Melbourne, Victoria and attended a Catholic primary school and then King Khalid Islamic College.[2] She wrote her first "novel", based on Roald Dahl's Matilda, when she was in sixth grade.[1] She started writing the first draft of a semi-autobiographical novel at age 15, which was completed and published ten years later as Does My Head Look Big in This?[4]

In 2002, Abdel-Fattah gained a BA and LLB from the University of Melbourne.[2][5] She was the media liaison at the Islamic Council of Victoria, writing about Muslims in Australia.[6]

In 2016, Abdel-Fattah obtained her PhD on Islamophobia from the Department of Sociology at Macquarie University.[5] Her thesis Islamophobia and Everyday Multiculturalism in Australia was published by Routledge in 2018.[7][8]

Career

Law

Abdel-Fattah worked as a solicitor for various firms, including the Slater and Gordon (2001-2003), Lander and Rogers (2003-2006), Thompson Playford Lawyers (2006-2009), and Hicksons Lawyers (2009-2012).

As of September 2025 she is a lawyer of the NSW Supreme Court. She is patron of the Racial Justice Centre, the first Community Legal Service focussed on racial justice in Australia.[9]

Writing and research

In 2018, Abdel-Fattah received two research fundings from the Australian Research Council in the form of their Discovery Early Career Research Award, for studying sociological condition of modern Muslim and non-Muslim youth. Her three-year project was based at Macquarie University with Amanda Wise as her collaborator.[10][11] Her findings were published by New South Publishing in 2021 as Coming of Age in the War on Terror, and as a paper in the Journal of Sociology in 2024.[12]

Abdel-Fattah has published research articles in the Journal of Sociology,[12] the Sociological Research Online and the Journal of Intercultural Studies.[13][14]

She has written books for children and young adults, and created a series aimed at early readers called Our Stories, written and illustrated by diverse authors and illustrators. Her research inspired another project for young children, leading to Australia's first Black-Palestinian picture-story book collaboration, 11 Words For Love (2023).[9]

She has also published many novels. Her new novel, Discipline (2025) was published in August 2025.[15]

She has written articles for the Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, The Guardian, Overland, Meanjin, Al Jazeera English online, Le Monde, New Matilda and The New Arab.[5][16]

Sociology research

As of September 2025 Abdel-Fattah is a Future Fellow in the Department of Sociology at Macquarie University. Her research areas cover Islamophobia, race, Palestine, the war on terror, youth identities and social movement activism.[9]

Views and media appearances

Abdel-Fattah describes herself as a feminist and has written critical pieces on the situation of women in Saudi Arabia. She states that women should retain the right to wear what they want.[17][18] She has stated that she no longer discusses the veil, on the basis that it constitutes flogging a dead horse and detracts from the discussion of other issues.[18]

On Australian television, she has appeared on: Insight (SBS), First Tuesday Book Club (ABC), Q & A (ABC TV),[6] Sunrise (Seven Network) and 9am (Network Ten).[19]

In 2022, the Australian Research Council (ARC) granted Abdel-Fattah their Future Fellowship[20] on a research project titled "Arab/Muslim Australian Social Movements since the 1970s: A hidden history". Abdel-Fattah is the Primary Chief Investigator and would work from 2023 until 2027 with the total fund of $870,269.[21][22] During the course of the Gaza War that started in 2023, she has been a vocal critic of the Israeli Government,[23] accusing it of committing a "Palestinian holocaust" at Gaza.[24]

At an academic symposium organised by the Queensland University of Technology’s Carumba Institute, Abdel-Fattah spoke of how she, instead of organising an academic conference as mandated by her ARC grants, used the funds to run a workshop for women from multicultural backgrounds. She was reported as saying "I look to ways to bend the rules, and I subvert them."[25]

Because of the fund diversion remarks, the education minister, Jason Clare, wrote to the ARC board asking it to investigate Abdel-Fattah on 31 January 2025. On 27 February, the ARC announced that the Abdel-Fattah's grant was suspended and that it was the responsibility of Macquarie University to resolve the issue,[20][26] and if the grant had been misused, to refund the entire amount.[27] After a 10-month investigation led by two independent internationally-respected academics, the university announced on 23 December 2025: “Based on the rigorous process undertaken and the information considered in the assessment, the university has determined there is no basis for any further investigation of the concerns raised by the ARC. The assessment has been thorough, evidence-based, based on best practice and followed due process.” ARC restored the funding.[28]

In August 2025, the cancellation of an appearance by Abdel-Fattah at the Bendigo Writers Festival led to the Bendigo Writers Festival boycott.[29]

2026 Adelaide Festival

Main article: Adelaide Writers' Week boycott

On 8 January 2026, the Adelaide Festival Board announced that Abdel-Fattah's scheduled appearance at Adelaide Writers' Week in February to March 2026 had been cancelled due to concerns over "cultural sensitivity", following the December 2025 Bondi Beach shooting.[30] The writer's festival stated that they did not want to "suggest in any way" that Abdel-Fattah had "any connection with the tragedy at Bondi."[31] There was a strong backlash from writers and the public to this decision, with dozens of authors announcing a boycott of the event. ArtsHub Australia reported that around 90 participants, including Australian and international guests, including British author Zadie Smith and Greek-Australian economist and politician Yanis Varoufakis had withdrawn from the event.[32][33][30] Abdel-Fattah has decried the move as "censorship".[34]After more than 180 writers and speakers had withdrawn the festival was canceled.[34] Due to the controversy over the cancellation of Abdel-Fattah, Louise Alder the directer of Adelaide Writer's Week has resigned from her position.[35]

Awards

Abdel-Fattah was awarded the Kathleen Mitchell Award in 2008. She received the Inky Award in 2009 for Where The Streets Had A Name.[16] In 2017, she received two of the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards, the Best Young Adult Fiction and the People's Choice Award.[5] Coming of Age in the War on Terror was shortlisted for the 2022 Victorian Premier's Prize for Nonfiction,[36] the NSW Premier's Literary Awards' Multicultural NSW Award,[37] and longlisted for the Stella Prize.[38]11 Words for Love was shortlisted for the Children's Award, 2023 Prime Minister's Literary Awards.[39]

Other roles and activities

Abdel-Fattah is a human rights advocate and stood in the 1998 federal election as a member of the Unity Party (slogan: Say No to Pauline Hanson). She has also been interested in inter-faith dialogue and has been a member of various inter-faith networks. She has volunteered time with human rights and migrant resource organisations, including the Australian Arabic council, the Victorian Migrant Resource Centre, the Islamic Women's Welfare Council, and the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre.[1][6] Abdel-Fattah has also been a member of the Palestinian Human Rights Committee and the New South Wales Young Lawyers for Human Rights Committee.[2]

Personal life

As of 2022 Abdel-Fattah was living in Sydney with her husband and four children.[40]

She is an observant Muslim and prays five times a day and fasts.[4]

Works

  • Does My Head Look Big in This? (2005)
  • Ten Things I Hate About Me (2006)
  • Where The Streets Had A Name (2008)
  • Noah's Law (2010)
  • The Friendship Matchmaker (2011)
  • The Friendship Matchmaker Goes Undercover (2012)
  • No Sex in the City (2012)
  • The Lines We Cross (2016)
  • When Mina Met Michael (2016)
  • "Australian Muslim Voices on Islamophobia, Race and the 'War on Terror'" (Bibliography, Meanjin Quarterly, 9 April 2019)[41]
  • Arab Australian Other: Stories on Race and Identity, co-editor with Sara Saleh (2019)
  • Coming of Age in the War on Terror (2021)
  • Maku (children's fiction, co-authored with Meyne Wyatt, 2022)[42]
  • 11 Words for Love (illustrated by Maxine Beneba Clarke, 2022)[43]
  • Discipline (2025)[15]

References

  1.  "Randa Abdel-Fattah". 21st Century Learning Conference. 9 November 2020. Retrieved 12 September 2025.
  2.  "Randa Abdel-Fattah". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. 15 October 2020. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  3.  "Randa Abdel-Fattah". ABC. 20 December 2018. Archived from the original on 1 July 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2025.
  4.  Dow, Steve (7 July 2012). "Love match". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
  5.  "All 4 Palestine | Randa Abdel-Fattah". www.all4palestine.org. Archived from the original on 10 February 2025. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
  6.  "Panelist: Randa Abdel-Fattah". Q&A. Australia: ABC TV. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  7.  "Islamophobia and Everyday Multiculturalism in Australia". Routledge & CRC Press. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
  8.  Randa, Abdel-Fattah (28 November 2017). Islamophobia and everyday multiculturalism in Australia (1 ed.). Routledge. doi:10.4324/9781315179933. ISBN 978-1-315-17993-3.
  9.  "Randa Abdel Fattah". Macquarie University. Archived from the original on 18 August 2025. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
  10.  "Trust Relations, Political Consciousness and Fear among 'Generation 9/11': Muslim & Non-Muslim youth compared". Macquarie University. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
  11.  "Trust, Politics, and Fear: 'Generation 9/11' Muslim & Non-Muslim youth compared". Macquarie University. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
  12.  Abdel-Fattah, Randa (1 March 2024). "Negotiating Australian academia as a historically white settler colonial institution: A comparison between Muslim and non-Muslim students". Journal of Sociology. 60 (1): 138–154. doi:10.1177/14407833221110929. ISSN 1440-7833.
  13.  Abdel-Fattah, Randa (3 July 2016). "'Lebanese Muslim': A Bourdieuian 'Capital' Offense in an Australian Coastal Town". Journal of Intercultural Studies. 37 (4): 323–338. doi:10.1080/07256868.2016.1190696. ISSN 0725-6868.
  14.  Abdel-Fattah, Randa (16 June 2025). "Ceasefire Now: A Zine About Action for Palestine". Sociological Research Online 13607804251320525. doi:10.1177/13607804251320525. ISSN 1360-7804.
  15.  "Discipline". uqp.com.au. 2 September 2025. Archived from the original on 18 August 2025. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
  16.  "Randa Abdel-Fattah". ABC. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
  17.  Abdel-Fattah, Randa (29 April 2013). "Ending oppression in the Middle East: A Muslim feminist call to arms". ABC: Religion and Ethics. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  18.  Liew, Stephanie (6 March 2015). "Subtle Racism Is 'More Problematic' In Australia". The Music: Culture: Interviews. Archived from the original on 12 March 2015. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  19.  "Books by Randa Abdel-Fattah". Thuprai. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
  20.  Cassidy, Caitlin (28 February 2025). "ARC suspends $870,000 grant to pro-Palestine academic Randa Abdel-Fattah, senators told". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
  21.  "Arab/Muslim Australian Social Movements since the 1970s: a hidden history". Macquarie University. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
  22.  Hare, Julie (27 February 2025). "Research funding body suspends grant to pro-Palestinian academic". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
  23.  "Taxpayer-funded anti-Israel writer blasts academics". The Australian. 30 January 2025.
  24.  "Macquarie University investigates academic over anti-Israel remarks". The Daily Telegraph. 2025.
  25.  Cassidy, Caitlin (14 February 2025). "Education minister accused of 'political interference' over review of funding for prominent pro-Palestinian academic". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
  26.  Ross, John (28 February 2025). "Research grant suspension 'about probity, not politics'". Times Higher Education. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
  27.  Hansen, Steven (10 March 2025). "Solidarity with Palestinian academic Randa Abdel-Fattah | Red Flag". redflag.org.au. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
  28.  Canales, Sarah Basford (23 December 2025). "Pro-Palestine academic Randa Abdel-Fattah cleared of wrongdoing after investigation into research grant". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 December 2025.
  29.  Lawrence, Sarah; Nabi, Zain; Parker, Fiona (16 December 2025). "Bendigo Writers Festival debacle continues as La Trobe University is asked to apologise". ABC News. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  30.  "Authors withdraw from Adelaide Writers' Week after Randa Abdel-Fattah axed for 'cultural sensitivity'". ABC News. 8 January 2026. Retrieved 14 January 2026.
  31.  "Randa Abdel-Fattah: How Adelaide Writers' Week imploded after axeing Palestinian author". www.bbc.com. 13 January 2026. Retrieved 14 January 2026.
  32.  Watts, Richard (9 January 2026). "Adelaide Writers Week in disarray as almost 100 writers boycott over Board's 'censorship' of Randa Abdel-Fattah". ArtsHub Australia. Retrieved 10 January 2026.
  33.  Muller, Denis (9 January 2026). "As authors abandon Adelaide Writers' Week after cancelling of Randa Abdel-Fattah, is free speech in tatters?". The Conversation. Retrieved 14 January 2026.
  34.  "Adelaide Writers Week canceled as 180 speakers withdraw after the exclusion of a Palestinian writer". AP News. 13 January 2026. Retrieved 14 January 2026.
  35.  "I cannot be party to silencing writers, which is why I am resigning as director of Adelaide writers' week". The Guardian. 12 January 2026. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 14 January 2026.
  36.  "VPLAs 2022 shortlists announced". Books+Publishing. 7 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  37.  "NSW Premier's Literary Awards 2022 shortlists announced". Books+Publishing. 5 April 2022. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  38.  "The Stella Prize longlist 2022". Readings. 28 February 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  39.  "Prime Minister's Literary Awards 2023 shortlists announced". Books+Publishing. 26 October 2023. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
  40.  "Randa Abdel-Fattah – Coming of Age in the War on Terror". Stella. 2022. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
  41.  "Australian Muslim Voices on Islamophobia, Race and the 'War on Terror'". Meanjin Quarterly. 9 April 2019. Retrieved 10 April 2019. This bibliography collates a sample of op-eds, commentary, radio and TV interviews, podcasts and spoken word performances created and authored by Australian Muslims on the subject of Islamophobia, race and 'the War on Terror' from the early 2000s to now.
  42.  "Maku". AustLit. 29 March 2022. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  43.  "11 Words for Love (Randa Abdel-Fattah, illus by Maxine Beneba Clarke, Lothian)". Books+Publishing. 12 July 2022. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
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