Cheryl A. Rubenberg (January 3, 1946 – 16 June 2017)
[Valerie J. Hoffman,]
Cheryl A. Rubenberg 1946–2017
'' Review of Middle East Studies'', Volume 52, Issue 1 April 2018 , pp. 170-172 was a writer and researcher specializing in the Middle East, formerly an associate professor in the department of political science at
Florida International University
Florida International University (FIU) is a public research university with its main campus in Westchester, Florida, United States. Founded in 1965 by the Florida Legislature, the school opened to students in 1972. FIU is the third-largest univ ...
.
Life
Born in Pennsylvania, Rubenberg specialized in political science and obtained her B.A. at
Hunter College
Hunter College is a public university in New York City, United States. It is one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York and offers studies in more than one hundred undergraduate and postgraduate fields across five schools ...
, and then earned an M.A. in
international relations
International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...
at
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...
. The latter topic was the object of her Ph.D.(1979) at the
University of Miami
The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private university, private research university in Coral Gables, Florida, United States. , the university enrolled 19,852 students in two colleges and ten schools across over ...
. Soon after, she joined the political science faculty at Florida International University. Her initial research focus was on
Latin America
Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...
where her attention was drawn to Israel's foreign policy outreach and military assistance in Latin America, particularly in
Guatemala
Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...
. Her interest in the Israeli Palestinian conflict arose out of a visit she made to a Palestinian Refugee Camp in Beirut. In 1989 she moved to the
Gaza Strip
The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...
for a year, together with her husband, Dr. Martin Rubenberg, she teaching English, while her husband volunteered to work as an
oncologist at a nearby hospital. They raised funds to enable four students to study at the
University of Calgary
{{Infobox university
, name = University of Calgary
, image = University of Calgary coat of arms without motto scroll.svg
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Coat of arms
, former ...
, and adopted another, Ayman Wishah, after hosting him while he studied
forensic
Forensic science combines principles of law and science to investigate criminal activity. Through crime scene investigations and laboratory analysis, forensic scientists are able to link suspects to evidence. An example is determining the time and ...
and
clinical psychology at
Florida Atlantic University.
Rubenberg was denied full professorship because of her position regarding Palestinians and Israel, and resigned to become an independent scholar. Her lectures were boycotted, her husband's medical practice suffered and both she and her husband were shunned at their local synagogue, according to her obituary, for the same reason.
Her husband Marty predeceased her, dying in June 2016.
Works
She was the author of several books about the
Israeli–Palestinian conflict
The Israeli–Palestinian conflict is an ongoing military and political conflict about Territory, land and self-determination within the territory of the former Mandatory Palestine. Key aspects of the conflict include the Israeli occupation ...
, including ''Israel and the American National Interest'' (1989), ''Palestinian Women: Patriarchy and Resistance in the West Bank'' (2001), and ''The Palestinians in Search of a Just Peace'' (2003). She was also the editor of the ''Encyclopedia of the Israeli–Palestinian Conflict'' (2007).
Rubenberg formerly served on the board of advisors of "Deir Yassin Remembered," an organization founded to commemorate the 1948
Deir Yassin Massacre.
[McGowan, Daniel]
U.S.-Based Group Planning Memorial at Site of Deir Yassin Massacre
''Washington Report on Middle East Affairs'', October/November 1995
Works
* ''Palestine Liberation Organization: Its Institutional Infrastructure''. Belmont, MA:
Institute of Arab Studies, (IAS monograph series), 1983.
''Israel and the American National Interest: A Critical Examination'' University of Illinois Press
The University of Illinois Press (UIP) is an American university press and is part of the University of Illinois System. Founded in 1918, the press publishes some 120 new books each year, thirty-three scholarly journals, and several electroni ...
, 1986, reprint 1989.
* ''The United States, Israel, and Guatemala: Interests and Conflicts''. Latin American and Caribbean Center, Florida International University. Dialogues), 1988.
* With Abbas Alnasrawi. ''Consistency of US Foreign Policy: The Gulf War and the Iran–Contra Affair''. AAUG Monograph Series, No 23, 1989.
''Palestinian Women: Patriarchy and Resistance in the West Bank'' Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2001.
''The Palestinians: In Search of a Just Peace'' Lynne Rienner Publishers Inc, 2003.
* (ed.) ''Encyclopedia of the Israeli–Palestinian Conflict''. 3 volumes.
Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2010.
References
External links
Deir Yassin Remembered
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rubenberg, Cheryl
1946 births
2017 deaths
Florida International University faculty
Middle Eastern studies in the United States
American Arabists
American women academics
Jewish American academics
Jewish women writers
Hunter College alumni
Johns Hopkins University alumni