Sunday, April 12, 2015 at 11 a.m.
Woodland Commons
University of Massachusetts Dartmouth
285 Old Westport Rd.
Dartmouth, MA 02747
At left: Dr. Aruri in his office at UMD, 1985
Dr. Naseer Aruri was Chancellor Professor of Political Science at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth from 1965 to 1998, including eight years as chair of the department. Dr. Aruri passed away on February 10.
Dr. Aruri was an internationally recognized scholar-activist and expert on Middle East politics, U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East and human rights. He is the author of numerous books and publications in this field. He served three consecutive terms as a member of the Board of Directors of Amnesty International, USA (1984-1990) and was a member of the Board of Directors of the New York-based Human Rights Watch/Middle East from 1990-1992. He was a Founding Member of the Arab Organization for Human Rights (AOHR) in 1982 and a member of the editorial board of Third World Quarterly (London). He was a key participant in the drafting of the Arab Covenant of Human Rights under the auspices of the International Institute of Higher Studies in Criminal Justice in Italy in December, 1986. He was a member of the Independent Palestinian Commission for the Protection of Citizen’s Rights (Ramallah) and a member of the Advisory Board of Directors of the International Institute for Criminal Investigations in The Hague. He has testified as an expert witness in U.S. Federal and Canadian Courts in cases dealing with political asylum and deportation.
The memorial celebration will include remarks from family members, colleagues and friends, as well as a video tribute on his life. A reception will follow.
Parking will be available in Lots 7 and 8 with shuttle service running to Woodland Commons.
RSVP to Kathy Beals at kbeals@umassd.edu or 508.999.8015.
Selections from Dr. Aruri’s papers, donated to the Claire T. Carney Library Archives and Special Collections in 2008, will also be on display. For more information on his papers, contact the university archivist, Judy Farrar at jfarrar@umassd.edu.
