Rita Hauser
Encyclopedia
Rita Eleanor Hauser is an international lawyer known for persuading Yasser Arafat
and the Palestine Liberation Organization
to renounce violence in 1988. She also served as United States Ambassador to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights from 1969 to 1972. George W. Bush
appointed her to the President's Intelligence Advisory Board in 2001, serving through 2004, and she was appointed again by Barack Obama
in 2009.
Born of Jewish parents, Hauser was the elder of two daughters
of Nathan and Frieda (Litt) Abrams, Rita Eleanor (Abrams) .
In 1954 she received a B.A. from Hunter College
in New York, after which she was awarded a Fulbright scholarship for graduate work in France, which eventually resulted in receiving a doctorate
in political economy
from the University of Strasbourg
. She attended Harvard Law School
for a while, then received a License en droit from the University of Paris
(a rarity for an American), then later received an LL.B. in 1959 from the New York University School of Law
.
Hauser served as cochair of "New Yorkers for Nixon" during Richard Nixon
’s successful 1968 presidential campaign. She then became the United States representative to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights
(1969-1972). She also served as a member of the United States delegation to the twenty-fourth UN General Assembly.
During her time at the UN that she met many key players in Middle East politics and became committed to her pursuit of conflict resolution in the Middle East, human rights and humanitarian law. During her term at the UN, she helped Jewish immigrants leave Russia and visited Palestinian refugee camps throughout the Middle East.
During this period she also met Golda Meir
who soon became her mentor and role model. Meir inspired Hauser’s involvement in Middle East politics and encouraged her, a secular Jew, to learn more about Jewish history and her own Jewishness.
For more than twenty years, Hauser was a Senior Partner at Stroock & Stroock & Lavan
in New York.
Hauser chairs the International Peace Institute
and is Chair of the Advisory Board of the International Crisis Group
, was elected in 2007 to the Board of the Global Humanitarian Forum
in Geneva, Switzerland, chairs the American Ditchley Foundation, has served as a director of the RAND Corporation and the International Institute for Strategic Studies
, and is currently a Director of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
after having been a Director of the New York Philharmonic Society for more than 20 years. She and her husband established the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations
at Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and she is Co-Chair of the Dean’s Advisory Board at Harvard Law School
, and the Hausers also were the principal benefactors of the Hauser Global Law School Program at New York University School of Law
.
Yasser Arafat
Mohammed Yasser Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini , popularly known as Yasser Arafat or by his kunya Abu Ammar , was a Palestinian leader and a Laureate of the Nobel Prize. He was Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization , President of the Palestinian National Authority...
and the Palestine Liberation Organization
Palestine Liberation Organization
The Palestine Liberation Organization is a political and paramilitary organization which was created in 1964. It is recognized as the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people" by the United Nations and over 100 states with which it holds diplomatic relations, and has enjoyed...
to renounce violence in 1988. She also served as United States Ambassador to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights from 1969 to 1972. George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
appointed her to the President's Intelligence Advisory Board in 2001, serving through 2004, and she was appointed again by Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
in 2009.
Born of Jewish parents, Hauser was the elder of two daughters
of Nathan and Frieda (Litt) Abrams, Rita Eleanor (Abrams) .
In 1954 she received a B.A. from Hunter College
Hunter College
Hunter College, established in 1870, is a public university and one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York, located on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Hunter grants undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate degrees in more than one hundred fields of study, and is recognized...
in New York, after which she was awarded a Fulbright scholarship for graduate work in France, which eventually resulted in receiving a doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
in political economy
Political economy
Political economy originally was the term for studying production, buying, and selling, and their relations with law, custom, and government, as well as with the distribution of national income and wealth, including through the budget process. Political economy originated in moral philosophy...
from the University of Strasbourg
University of Strasbourg
The University of Strasbourg in Strasbourg, Alsace, France, is the largest university in France, with about 43,000 students and over 4,000 researchers....
. She attended Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
for a while, then received a License en droit from the University of Paris
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
(a rarity for an American), then later received an LL.B. in 1959 from the New York University School of Law
New York University School of Law
The New York University School of Law is the law school of New York University. Established in 1835, the school offers the J.D., LL.M., and J.S.D. degrees in law, and is located in Greenwich Village, in the New York City borough of Manhattan....
.
Hauser served as cochair of "New Yorkers for Nixon" during Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
’s successful 1968 presidential campaign. She then became the United States representative to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights
United Nations Commission on Human Rights
The United Nations Commission on Human Rights was a functional commission within the overall framework of the United Nations from 1946 until it was replaced by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2006...
(1969-1972). She also served as a member of the United States delegation to the twenty-fourth UN General Assembly.
During her time at the UN that she met many key players in Middle East politics and became committed to her pursuit of conflict resolution in the Middle East, human rights and humanitarian law. During her term at the UN, she helped Jewish immigrants leave Russia and visited Palestinian refugee camps throughout the Middle East.
During this period she also met Golda Meir
Golda Meir
Golda Meir ; May 3, 1898 – December 8, 1978) was a teacher, kibbutznik and politician who became the fourth Prime Minister of the State of Israel....
who soon became her mentor and role model. Meir inspired Hauser’s involvement in Middle East politics and encouraged her, a secular Jew, to learn more about Jewish history and her own Jewishness.
For more than twenty years, Hauser was a Senior Partner at Stroock & Stroock & Lavan
Stroock & Stroock & Lavan
Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP is an American law firm based in New York City with approximately 350 lawyers in three offices, the other two being Miami and Los Angeles...
in New York.
Hauser chairs the International Peace Institute
International Peace Institute
The International Peace Institute is an independent non-profit research and policy development institution based in New York. IPI specializes in multilateral approaches to peace and security issues, working closely with the Secretariat and membership of the United Nations...
and is Chair of the Advisory Board of the International Crisis Group
International Crisis Group
The International Crisis Group is an international, non-profit, non-governmental organization whose mission is to prevent and resolve deadly conflicts around the world through field-based analyses and high-level advocacy.-History:...
, was elected in 2007 to the Board of the Global Humanitarian Forum
Global Humanitarian Forum
The Global Humanitarian Forum was a non-profit foundation in Geneva, Switzerland, active from 2007 to 2010. Presided over by former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, its secretariat was led by CEO and Director General Walter Fust. The Forum intended to serve as an independent platform...
in Geneva, Switzerland, chairs the American Ditchley Foundation, has served as a director of the RAND Corporation and the International Institute for Strategic Studies
International Institute for Strategic Studies
The International Institute for Strategic Studies is a British research institute in the area of international affairs. It describes itself as "the world’s leading authority on political-military conflict"...
, and is currently a Director of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood of New York City's Upper West Side. Reynold Levy has been its president since 2002.-History and facilities:...
after having been a Director of the New York Philharmonic Society for more than 20 years. She and her husband established the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations
Hauser center for nonprofit organizations
The Harvard University Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations, located in Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government, promotes teaching, scholarship, and service to the nonprofit sector across the university. The Center's concerns include philanthropy, nonprofit organizations,...
at Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and she is Co-Chair of the Dean’s Advisory Board at Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
, and the Hausers also were the principal benefactors of the Hauser Global Law School Program at New York University School of Law
New York University School of Law
The New York University School of Law is the law school of New York University. Established in 1835, the school offers the J.D., LL.M., and J.S.D. degrees in law, and is located in Greenwich Village, in the New York City borough of Manhattan....
.