WASHINGTON, 28 April — The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) has announced the passing of Dr. Hala Salaam Maksoud. She died yesterday after a long illness.
An influential leader for ADC, Dr. Maksoud served as ADC president from 1996 to 2001. She was actively involved with ADC since its inception in 1980, and was a member of the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors for many years.
Dr. Maksoud held a Ph.D. in political theory and an MA in government from Georgetown University, and an MA in mathematics from the American University of Beirut. She taught courses at George Mason University and at Georgetown.
In addition to her academic career, Dr. Maksoud was a prominent Arab-American leader and participated in the founding of several organizations, including the American Committee on Jerusalem, the Association of Arab-American University Graduates, and the Arab Women’s Council. She worked tirelessly for the improvement of relations between the United States and the Arab world, and was a nationally recognized advocate of civil and human rights, and was the recipient of a lifetime achievement award from the American Immigration Law Foundation in March 2002.
Dr. Maksoud is survived by her husband, Dr. Clovis Maksoud, former ambassador of the League of Arab States to the United Nations, and current professor of international relations at American University.
