Prof. Ali Al'amin Mazrui (1933-2014)

Life and Demise

Ali Mazrui was a Kenyan-born American professor, and writer on Africa and Islamic Studies and North-South relations. He was born on 24th February 1933 in Mombasa, Kenya (by then, a British Colony). His father, Al-Amin Bin Ali Mazrui was a chief Islamic judge in kadhi courts in Kenya, who authored The Content of Character, for which his son, Mazrui supplied a forward. His family was historically wealthy and important, having been rulers in Kenya. Like father, like son, Mazrui purposed to follow his father's footsteps as an Islamist, and pursue studies at Al-Azhar University in Egypt.

Mazrui attended primary school in Mombasa where he learned English, which he used to make formidable arguments in debates. His proficiency in English also came in handy when he switched to writing and journalism. In addition to English, he also spoke Swahili and Arabic. Mazrui dreamt of joining Makerere College (now Makerere University), but due to poor performance in Cambridge School Certificate examination in 1949, he was refused entry. He ended up working in the Mombasa Institute of Muslim Education (now the Technical University of Mombasa). Mazrui was fortunate to secure a Kenyan Government Scholarship to further his studies and obtained his B.A. with Distinction from Manchester University in Great Britain in 1960, his M.A. from Columbia University in New York in 1961, and his doctorate from Oxford University (Nuffield College) in 1966. His pan-Africanist ideas were ignited by the works of Kwame Nkrumah, which formed the backbone of his discussion on Africa’s Triple Heritage (Africanity, Islam, and Christianity)

Mazrui began his academic career as a professor of political science at Makerere University and began drawing international attention.  While there, he also directed the World Order Models Project in the Department of Political Science. To remain neutral as an academic and prestigious political thinker, in the face of the tumultuous politics of East Africa, Mazrui left Makerere. The pressure came from personalities like John Okello, the leader of the Zanzibar revolution, who wanted Mazrui to join his cause. Idi Amin too wanted Mazrui as his special advisor.

In 1974, Mazrui was hired as a professor of political science at the University of Michigan. At the same time, he also held a professorship at the University of Jos in Nigeria. From 1978-1981 Mazrui served as the Director of the Center for Afro-American and African Studies (CAAS) at the University of Michigan. In 1989, he took a two-year leave of absence to accept the Albert Schweitzer professorship at SUNY Binghamton. Mazrui announced his resignation from the University of Michigan on 29th May 1991. His departure stirred up a conversation about racial diversity, of which the University of Michigan declined.

Mazrui married Molly Vickerman, with whom they had three children, but the marriage ended in divorce. In 1991, he married Pauline Uti, and together they had three children. Mazrui died at his home in Vestal, New York on Sunday, 12th October 2014. His death was attributed to natural causes. His body was repatriated to his hometown Mombasa and buried at Mazrui's family graveyard opposite Fort Jesus.

Achievements

He was a renowned tutor who not only dispensed knowledge but fused Africanity into his lectures. He lectured political science at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor in Miami U.S.  He was also the Director of the Center for Afro-American and African Studies in these universities.

He was the Director, Institute of Global Cultural Studies at Binghamton University, State University of New York, U.S.A.

Up to the time of his death, Mazrui was the Chancellor at the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology in Kenya.

He also served as the President of the Association of Muslim Social Scientists of North-America, in Washington D.C. U.S.A.

He received numerous awards in different capacities which included; The Millennium Tribute for Outstanding Scholarship by the House of Lords in London; special awards for the Association of Muslim Social Scientists; Icon of the Twentieth Century, elected by the Lincoln University in Pennsylvania U.S.A; DuBois-Garvey Award for Pan-African unity by Morgan State University in Baltimore Maryland.

He was a prolific writer, whose publications invoked equal sense as criticisms. They include; Islam in Africa's Experience, Africa Since 1935, In Between Globalisation, and Counter-terrorism.

Mazrui never relinquished his enthusiasm in journalism. In 1986, he was the author and narrator of, The Africans: A Triple Heritage, which was aired on BBC and PBS in collaboration with Nigeria Television Authority. He was the author and broadcaster of The African Condition, on BBC Reith Radio Lecturers in 1979. He was also a contributor to newspapers in Kenya, Uganda, and South Africa.

References

• The Guardian: Ali Mazrui obituary.
• Douglas Martin (20th October 2014) Ali Mazrui, Scholar of Africa who divided U.S. Audiences, Dies at 81
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali_Mazrui

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