Transnational crime terrorism studies policing and use of force social movements resource conflicts
Temitope Oriola is joint Editor-in-Chief of African Security journal and associate professor at the University of Alberta. A recipient of the Governor General of Canada Academic Gold Medal (first presented in 1873 by the Earl of Dufferin), Oriola’s book Criminal Resistance? The Politics of Kidnapping Oil Workers is one of a small number of book-length sociological investigations of political kidnapping in the English language. Professor Oriola’s research focuses on policing & use of force by police, terrorism studies, and resource-related conflict (involving tactics like political kidnappings). Publications from his research appear in leading scholarly journals, such as Sociology (the flagship journal of the British Sociological Association), the British Journal of Criminology, African Affairs, African Security, Third World Quarterly, Critical Studies on Terrorism, Review of African Political Economy, and Studies in Conflict and Terrorism, among others. Oriola regularly contributes to public scholarship through public talks, op-eds, media interviews and expert opinions. A decorated researcher and teacher, Professor Oriola is a two-time Carnegie fellow and the 2020 recipient of the Kathleen W. Klawe Prize for teaching excellence. He is president of the Canadian Association of African Studies (CAAS).
Professor Oriola is currently working on a number of research projects, including a SSHRC funded study, "Failure to detonate: Gender and inchoate suicide missions" (with Andy W. Knight) and "Neo-slavery: Gender inequality, criminality and irregular migration" (with Charles Adeyanju, University of Prince Edward Island). His graduate students work on issues such as experiences of former gang members in Alberta, Canada, the evolution of the Biafran secessionist movement, and Identity Christian (or right-wing) terrorism in North America.
Oriola teaches courses such as "Power, Inequality and Crime"; "Sociology of Terrorism", "Criminology"; and "Youth, Crime and Society", among others.
Recent media appearances and public engagement
"The United States is at risk of an armed anti-police insurgency", The Conversation, April 15 2021.
"Police and politics have been dangerously intertwined during the 2020 U.S. presidential election", The Conversation, Nov. 5 2020.
"Why police reform won’t happen without public pressure on politicians", The Conversation, Nov. 3 2020.
"Defunding the police requires understanding what roles police play in our society", The Conversation, June 4 2020.
"How police departments can identify and oust killer cops". The Conversation, June 10 2020. [Republished in over 20 national and international newspapers/news media].
Getting rid of bad cops, Presentation to Edmonton City Council, 22 June 2020. Coverage provided by CBC.
Contribution to debate over School Resource Officer program (aka cops in high schools). 30 June 2020. Coverage provided by CBC.
Contribution to debate over reform of Edmonton Police Service. 7 July 2020. Coverage provided by CBC.
TV and radio appearances on police reforms in Canada. Click here and scroll down.
Global News interview on RCMP illegal spying on Indigenous activists. 14 July 2020.
Interview on W5, CTV on the Black Axe cult group and online fraud, August 2019. Documentary aired in October 2019.
On political kidnapping and oil politics, click here.
On gender and suicide bombings, click here.
On the Boko Haram phenomenon, click here (from 5th minute).
For autobiographical interview, watch engaging discussion with Dr. Kabir Mohammed Yusuf, Nile University, 2019.
Examination and attempted explanation of crime and juvenile delinquency, with an analysis of the social processes leading to criminal behaviour.
Fall Term 2021A sociological engagement with the phenomenon of terrorism by state and non-state actors. Prerequisites: SOC 100 or consent of instructor.
Winter Term 2022