Saleem Yacoub Saleem Haddad (

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

: سليم حداد; born 1983) is an author, filmmaker and aid worker of Iraqi-German and Palestinian-Lebanese descent, whose debut novel ''Guapa'' was published in 2016.

Early life

Saleem Haddad was born in

Kuwait City Kuwait City (; ) is the capital and largest city of Kuwait. Located at the heart of the country on the south shore of Kuwait Bay on the Persian Gulf, it is the political, cultural and economic center of the emirate, containing Kuwait's Seif Pal ...

in 1983 to a Lebanese-Palestinian father and an Iraqi-German mother. His Palestinian Christian grandmother was born in Nazareth and lived in Haifa before being displaced to Beirut during the

Nakba The Nakba () is the ethnic cleansing; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; of Palestinian Arabs through their violent displacement and dispossession of land, property, and belongings, along with the destruction of their s ...

. His parents met in Baghdad during the

Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War ( ) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon. The religious diversity of the ...

, and moved to Kuwait during the

Iran–Iraq War The Iran–Iraq War, also known as the First Gulf War, was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. Active hostilities began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for nearly eight years, unti ...

. After Haddad's birth, during the

Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

, the family moved again to Cyprus. Haddad was subsequently raised and educated in Amman and London. He studied economics at a university in Canada.

Books

Haddad's debut novel ''Guapa'' was released in March 2016 by

Other Press Other Press is an independent publisher of literary fiction and non-fiction, based in New York City. Founded in 1998 to publish academic and psychoanalytic titles, Other Press has since expanded to publish novels, short stories, nonfiction, poet ...

. The book, set over 24 hours, tells the story of Rasa, a

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

man living in an unnamed Arab country, and trying to carve out a life for himself in the midst of political and religious upheaval. The novel was excerpted by ''

VICE A vice is a practice, behaviour, Habit (psychology), habit or item generally considered morally wrong in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character trait, a defect, an infirmity, or a bad or unhe ...

'' as well as ''Kalimat'' magazine, and received widespread acclaim, with ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. It was founded on February 21, 1925, by Harold Ross and his wife Jane Grant, a reporter for ''The New York T ...

'' calling it a "vibrant, wrenching début novel". According to

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, "Haddad maps

postcolonial theory Postcolonialism (also post-colonial theory) is the critical academic study of the cultural, political and economic consequences of colonialism and imperialism, focusing on the impact of human control and exploitation of colonized people and th ...

, post-revolutionary

malaise In medicine, malaise is a feeling of general discomfort, uneasiness or lack of wellbeing and often the first sign of an infection or other disease. It is considered a vague termdescribing the state of simply not feeling well. The word has exist ...

, and post-outing upheaval onto your standard post-college, what-am-I-doing-with-my-life aimlessness, creating something wonderful and fascinating in the process." As part of the London Literature Festival, Haddad was awarded the

Polari First Book Prize The Polari Prize is an annual UK literary prize for LGBTQ+ literature. Established by Paul Burston Paul Burston is a Welsh journalist and author. He worked for the London gay policing group GALOP and was an activist with ACT UP before moving ...

2017. The prize is awarded annually to a writer whose first book explores the LGBT experience, whether in poetry, prose, fiction or non-fiction.

Other work

Haddad's work has also appeared in ''

Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...

'' and ''Muftah''. He has also worked as an aid worker with

Doctors Without Borders Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded ...

and other organizations in Yemen, Syria, and Iraq. He currently lives in

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with his partner. In 2018 Haddad wrote and directed his first short film, ''Marco''. The film had its World Premiere at Mawjoudin Queer Film Festival in Tunis, and its European Premiere at BFI Flare: London LGBT Film Festival in London, both in March 2019. The film subsequently screened internationally at festivals including Palm Springs International ShortFest and Outfest Fusion, and was nominated for Best British Short at the 2019 Iris Prize. In April 2020, the film was made available on

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

. Haddad contributed to the anthology '' This Arab is Queer'' (2022).

References

External links

*
''Marco'' on YouTube
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Haddad, Saleem Living people 1983 births 21st-century British novelists 21st-century English LGBTQ people 21st-century English male writers Iraqi LGBTQ people British aid workers British expatriates in Portugal British gay writers British male novelists English people of German descent English people of Iraqi descent English people of Lebanese descent English people of Palestinian descent English LGBTQ writers Kuwaiti novelists Kuwaiti people of German descent Kuwaiti people of Iraqi descent Kuwaiti people of Lebanese descent Kuwaiti people of Palestinian descent Kuwaiti emigrants to the United Kingdom LGBTQ people from London Writers from Amman Writers from London 21st-century Palestinian LGBTQ people Lebanese LGBTQ people