Leila Farsakh
Encyclopedia
Leila Farsakh (born 1967) is a Palestinian
Muslim
who was born in Jordan
and is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at University of Massachusetts Boston
. Her area of expertise is Middle East
Politics, Comparative Politics, and the Politics of the Arab-Israeli Conflict. Farsakh holds a MPhil from the University of Cambridge
, UK (1990) and a PhD
from the University of London
(2003).
Farsakh conducted post-doctoral research at Harvard’s
Center for Middle Eastern Studies, and is also a research affiliate at the Center for International Studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
.
She has worked with a number of organizations, including the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
in Paris
(1993 - 1996) and the Palestine Economic Policy Research Institute in Ramallah
(1998 - 1999).
In 2001 she won the Peace and Justice Award from the Cambridge Peace Commission in Cambridge, Massachusetts
.
Farsakh is the Project Co-Director for Jerusalem 2050, a problem-solving project jointly sponsored by Massachusetts Institute of Technology
's Department of Urban Studies and Planning and the Center for International Studies. She has written extensively on issues related to the Palestinian economy and the Oslo peace process
, international migration and regional integration.
Farsakh is also part of the staff at the non-governmental organization
RESIST, founded in 1967 to provide grant money and support to grassroots movements advocating for social change.
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
who was born in Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
and is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at University of Massachusetts Boston
University of Massachusetts Boston
The University of Massachusetts Boston, also known as UMass Boston, is an urban public research university and the second largest campus in the five-campus University of Massachusetts system. The university is located on on Harbor Point in the City of Boston, Massachusetts, United States...
. Her area of expertise is Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
Politics, Comparative Politics, and the Politics of the Arab-Israeli Conflict. Farsakh holds a MPhil from the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
, UK (1990) and a PhD
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
from the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
(2003).
Farsakh conducted post-doctoral research at Harvard’s
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
Center for Middle Eastern Studies, and is also a research affiliate at the Center for International Studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
.
She has worked with a number of organizations, including the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development is an international economic organisation of 34 countries founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and world trade...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
(1993 - 1996) and the Palestine Economic Policy Research Institute in Ramallah
Ramallah
Ramallah is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank located 10 kilometers north of Jerusalem, adjacent to al-Bireh. It currently serves as the de facto administrative capital of the Palestinian National Authority...
(1998 - 1999).
In 2001 she won the Peace and Justice Award from the Cambridge Peace Commission in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
.
Farsakh is the Project Co-Director for Jerusalem 2050, a problem-solving project jointly sponsored by Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
's Department of Urban Studies and Planning and the Center for International Studies. She has written extensively on issues related to the Palestinian economy and the Oslo peace process
Oslo Accords
The Oslo Accords, officially called the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements or Declaration of Principles , was an attempt to resolve the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli conflict...
, international migration and regional integration.
Farsakh is also part of the staff at the non-governmental organization
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
RESIST, founded in 1967 to provide grant money and support to grassroots movements advocating for social change.
Interview
- The Deteriorating Political Economy of Palestine A video interview with Leila Farsakh, interview conducted by Saul LandauSaul LandauSaul Landau is journalist, filmmaker, and commentator. He is Professor Emeritus at California State University, Pomona. He is a senior Fellow at and Vice Chair of the Institute for Policy Studies.-Career:...
on "Hot Talk" radio Cal Poly Pomona, March 15, 2004.
Published works
Books (partial list)
- Palestinian Labour Migration to Israel: Labour, Land, and Occupation (2005). Taylor & Francis Ltd, United Kingdom. ISBN 0-415-33356-3.
- Commemorating the NaksaNaksaNaksa and similar can mean:*Arabic for "setback", an Arabic name for the defeat of the Arabs during the 1967 Six-Day War**Naksa Day , the anniversary of the 1967 Six-Day War...
, Evoking the Nakba, Electronic Journal of Middle Eastern Studies, Spring 2008, MIT, Boston, 2008.
- “Independence, Cantons or Bantustans: Whither the Palestinian State?” Middle East Journal, vol.59, no.2, Spring 2005, pp. 230-245.
- “Palestinian Labor Flows to Israel: A Finished Story?” Journal of Palestine Studies, vol. 32, no.1, Autumn 2002, pp. 13-27.
- Development Strategies, Employment and International Migration, (co-edited with David O’Connor), OECD Development Center Publications, Paris, 1996.
- North African Labour Flows and the Euro-Med partnership (1999). Part of the series: Europe and the South in the 21st century : Challenges for Renewed Cooperation. Paris : EADI.
- Palestinian Employment in Israel: 1967-1997 (1998). Ramallah.
Articles (partial list)
- A Legacy of Promise for Muslims, the Boston Globe, co-authored with Elora Chowdhury, 11 September 2007.
- with others: Statement: One country, one state 9 July 2007, Electronic IntifadaElectronic IntifadaThe Electronic Intifada is a not-for-profit, independent online publication which covers the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from a Palestinian perspective, "aimed at combating the pro-Israeli, pro-American spin" its editors believe exists in mainstream media accounts.-History:EI was founded by Ali...
, - Time for a Bi-National State, March 2007 Le Monde diplomatiqueLe Monde diplomatiqueLe Monde diplomatique is a monthly newspaper offering analysis and opinion on politics, culture, and current affairs. It was first created mainly for a diplomatic audience as its name implies...
(also published in: Israel-Palestine: Time for a bi-national state, 20 March 2007 Electronic Intifada, - The Economics of Israeli Occupation: What is Colonial about it?, 2006
- Independence, Cantons, or Bantustans: Whither the Palestinian State?http://www.mideasti.org/articles/doc396.html vol.59, no.2, Spring 2005, Middle East JournalMiddle East JournalThe Middle East Journal is published by the Washington, D.C.-based Middle East Institute. It was first published in 1947, making it the oldest U.S. peer-reviewed publication on the modern Middle East...
- The Political Economy of Agrarian Change in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies Working Paper, European University Institute, 2004.
- Israel: An Apartheid State? November 2003, Le Monde diplomatique
- Palestinian Labor Flows to Israel: A Finished Story?http://www.palestine-studies.org/final/en/journals/abstract.php?aid=4555&jid=1&iid=125&vid=XXXII&vol=184,http://caliber.ucpress.net/doi/abs/10.1525/jps.2002.32.1.13?prevSearch=authorsfield%3A(Farsakh%2CL) issue 125, Autumn 2002, Journal of Palestine StudiesJournal of Palestine StudiesThe Journal of Palestine Studies is an academic journal established in 1971. It is published and distributed by University of California Press on behalf of the Institute for Palestine Studies. The current editor is Rashid Khalidi of Columbia University....
, - The Palestinian economy and the Oslo “Peace Process", the Trans-Arab Research Institute, 2001
- Economic Viability of a Palestinian State in the West Bank and Gaza Strip: Is it Possible without Territorial Integrity and Sovereignty?, MIT Electronic Journal of Middle East Studies, May 2001
- Under Siege: Closure, Separation and the Palestinian Economy 217 - Winter 2000, MERIP
Public Lectures
- Notes on Analogy: Israel and Apartheid, at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Harvard UniversityHarvard UniversityHarvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, 16 March 2007. - Beyond Apartheid in Israel/Palestine: The Reality on the Ground & Lessons from South Africa, at Northeastern University in BostonBostonBoston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, 19 November 2006.
- "Palestinian Labor Flow to Israel: Is it Over?", at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Harvard University, 19 February 2002.
- Palestinian Perspective, Chomsky Lecture on Middle East Crises, December 14, 2000