A dedicated scholar, a first-rate intellectual and an activist for justice has just passed away. Dr Ibrahim Abu-Lughod finished his long journey in life on 23 May 2001 at his home in Ramallah. He will be laid to rest in Yaffa (Jaffa), his birth place, on Friday 25 May. Ibrahim spent his life of 72 years engaged in the struggle for liberation. When Ibrahim arrived in the United States in 1950, the voice of the Palestinians was not heard. By the time he left it in 1992, it was loud as thunder. Shortly thereafter, the United States had even come to recognize the Palestine Liberation Organization. This was no accident. Rather, it was the result of a long-term effort by Ibrahim Abu-Lughod and few other committed friends of his as much as it was the result of the heroic struggle of the Palestinian people.
Born in 1929 in Yaffa, Ibrahim uated from Ameriyyah School in 1948 when he and his family took refuge in Nablus and then Amman. In 1950, he came to the United States where he received his bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Illinois. In 1957, Ibrahim received a PhD in Political Science from Princeton University. He began his career with UNESCO and directed its social research department in Egypt. In 1961, Ibrahim joined the faculty at Smith College and then at Northwestern University. He resigned from Northwestern in 1992 and returned to Palestine where he joined Birzeit University as its vice-president and professor of International Relations.
Activists, however, do not just manage and teach. They also publish and lead. Professor Abu-Lughod published dozens of books and articles where he documented, assessed and articulated the dispossession of the Palestinians. His many books include The Transformation of Palestine; Palestinian Rights: Affirmation and Denial; Profile of the Palestinian People; Two Stories on the Palestinians Today and American Policy; and The Arab-Israeli Confrontation of June 1967: An Arab Perspective. His articles, speeches and interviews always managed to inspire people and force them to question. Along with his close friend and colleague, Dr Edward Said, Ibrahim was the founding editor of Arab Studies Quarterly.
Ibrahim Abu-Lughod was a true activist. As a student, he was very involved in the Arab Student Association throughout his student career. He, along with other like-minded activists, founded the Association of Arab-American University uates in 1968. Ibrahim was also a noted member of the Palestine National Council for many years. He served on the boards of many academic, social and professional organizations. His plan for The Development of the Palestinian Curriculum is the foundation of the current Palestinian policy on curriculum.
Ibrahim's journey began in Yaffa 72 years ago. It ends in Yaffa on Friday 25 May 2001. His legacy, however, cannot end so soon. It will live for many generations to come.