Mai Ghoussoub
Encyclopedia
Mai Ghoussoub (2 November 1952 Beirut
– 17 February 2007 London
) was a Lebanese
writer, artist, publisher and human rights
activist. She was the co-founder of the Saqi bookshop and publishing house
.
, and French literature at the Lebanese University
, and later sculpture at Morley College
and the Henry Moore Studio in London
.
She was a Trotskyite at the start of the Lebanese Civil War
in 1975, but soon became disillusioned and moved on to humanitarian work, establishing two medical dispensaries in a poor Muslim area after the doctors had left and the pharmacies had closed.
She lost an eye in 1977, after her car was hit by a shell while taking someone to hospital. She moved to London to be treated, and spent time in Paris, where she worked as a journalist for Arab newspapers. She wrote Comprendre le Liban with her childhood friend André Gaspard, under the pseudonyms Selim Accaoui and Magida Salman.
In 1979, she founded the Al Saqi bookshop in Westbourne Grove
, London, with Gaspard, the first London bookshop to specialise in Arabic works.
They began to publish works in Arabic in 1983. They sold the Serpent's Tail
imprint to Pete Ayrton in 1987, but continued with the Saqi and Telegram imprints. An Arabic publishing house, Dar al-Saqi, was founded in Beirut in 1990.
She was a feminist, publishing works on a range of controversial issues and producing challenging artistic installations. She wrote for Open Democracy.
Her autobiographical book, Leaving Beirut: women and the wars within, was published in 1998. She was passionately opposed to censorship
, arguing in her 2006 play Texterminators, performed at the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith and Dominion Theatre
in London, the Unity Theatre, Liverpool
, and the Marignan Theatre in Beirut, that "Words don't kill; humans do."
She died in London. She was survived by her father, mother, Maggie Ghoussoub, sister, Houda, and husband, Hazem Saghieh.
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
– 17 February 2007 London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
) was a Lebanese
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
writer, artist, publisher and human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
activist. She was the co-founder of the Saqi bookshop and publishing house
Saqi Books
Saqi Books is an independent UK publisher co-founded in 1984 by author and feminist Mai Ghoussoub to "print quality academic and general interest books on the Middle East". It now claims to be "the UK's largest publisher of Middle Eastern and Arabic titles"...
.
Life
Her father, Raymond Ghoussoub, a Maronite Christian Arab, was a professional footballer. She studied at the French lycée in Beirut, then math at the American University of BeirutAmerican University of Beirut
The American University of Beirut is a private, independent university in Beirut, Lebanon. It was founded as the Syrian Protestant College by American missionaries in 1866...
, and French literature at the Lebanese University
Lebanese University
The Lebanese University is the only public institution for higher learning in Lebanon. Founded in 1951, it has 17 faculties as of 2006 and serves various cultural, religious, and social groups of students and teachers....
, and later sculpture at Morley College
Morley College
Morley College is an adult education college in London, England. It was founded in the 1880s and has a student population of 10,806 adult students...
and the Henry Moore Studio in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
She was a Trotskyite at the start of the Lebanese Civil War
Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War was a multifaceted civil war in Lebanon. The war lasted from 1975 to 1990 and resulted in an estimated 150,000 to 230,000 civilian fatalities. Another one million people were wounded, and today approximately 350,000 people remain displaced. There was also a mass exodus of...
in 1975, but soon became disillusioned and moved on to humanitarian work, establishing two medical dispensaries in a poor Muslim area after the doctors had left and the pharmacies had closed.
She lost an eye in 1977, after her car was hit by a shell while taking someone to hospital. She moved to London to be treated, and spent time in Paris, where she worked as a journalist for Arab newspapers. She wrote Comprendre le Liban with her childhood friend André Gaspard, under the pseudonyms Selim Accaoui and Magida Salman.
In 1979, she founded the Al Saqi bookshop in Westbourne Grove
Westbourne Grove
Westbourne Grove is a retail road running across Notting Hill, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, a section of west London, England. It runs from Kensington Park Road in the west to Queensway in the east, crossing over Portobello Road...
, London, with Gaspard, the first London bookshop to specialise in Arabic works.
They began to publish works in Arabic in 1983. They sold the Serpent's Tail
Serpent's Tail
Serpent's Tail is a British independent publishing firm founded in 1986 by Pete Ayrton. It is notable for its translated works, particularly European crime fiction, and is the British publisher of Elfriede Jelinek and Lionel Shriver...
imprint to Pete Ayrton in 1987, but continued with the Saqi and Telegram imprints. An Arabic publishing house, Dar al-Saqi, was founded in Beirut in 1990.
She was a feminist, publishing works on a range of controversial issues and producing challenging artistic installations. She wrote for Open Democracy.
Her autobiographical book, Leaving Beirut: women and the wars within, was published in 1998. She was passionately opposed to censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
, arguing in her 2006 play Texterminators, performed at the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith and Dominion Theatre
Dominion Theatre
The Dominion Theatre is a West End theatre on Tottenham Court Road close to St Giles Circus and Centre Point Tower, in the London Borough of Camden.-History:...
in London, the Unity Theatre, Liverpool
Unity Theatre, Liverpool
The Unity Theatre in Liverpool, England, was formed as the Merseyside Left Theatre in the 1930s. In 1944 it became Merseyside Unity Theatre....
, and the Marignan Theatre in Beirut, that "Words don't kill; humans do."
Family
She married twice. She married the Lebanese writer Hazem Saghieh in 1991.She died in London. She was survived by her father, mother, Maggie Ghoussoub, sister, Houda, and husband, Hazem Saghieh.
External links
- Saqi books
- "Remembering Mai Ghoussoub (1952-2007)", The Guardian 22 February 2007