Ray Hanania

Ray Hanania (b. Chicago, Illinois, 1953) is an Arab-American Palestinian Christian journalist also known for his stand-up comedy. Hanania writes a syndicated column with a particular focus on the Middle East, and after the September 11 attacks, created Comedians of Middle East conflict, a comedy act with the hope of defusing mutual suspicion.

Life and career

Hanania's parents are Christian immigrants from Mandatory Palestine. His mother is from Bethlehem; his father, George John Hanania, from a prominent Christian family in Jerusalem, served with the U.S. Army during World War II and with the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the predecessor of the CIA. He himself served with the U.S. Air Force during the Vietnam War and in the Illinois Air National Guard. Hanania's wife, Alison, is Jewish; they live in Orland Park, Illinois.

From 1977-1985 Hanania reported for the Daily Southtown, and from 1985-1992 for the Chicago Sun-Times.^{[citation needed]} From 1993-1996 he was publisher of the suburban Villager Newspapers group and spokesperson for the Town of Cicero.^{[citation needed]} He has also hosted a radio program on WLS (AM), published the Middle Eastern Voice newspaper, and launched the Arab American View, an English-language newspaper.^{[citation needed]} Hanania also hosted the morning radio talk show in Chicago, "Mornings with Ray Hanania," broadcast weekday mornings, and co-hosts Radio Baladi. He also hosted Star Chef Chicagoland a weekly online pilot reality show featuring celebrity chefs reviewed by celebrity judges on cable TV in Chicago.

He is managing editor of the Arab American Writers Syndicate and press contact for the Town of Cicero, as part of his company Urban Strategies Group.

His internationally-syndicated column was originally carried by Creators Syndicate from 2002-2005 and was picked up again starting in 2010. Hanania feels he is "defining the moderate Palestinian & Arab Voice." He continues to write a Chicago political column carried locally with the Southwest News-Herald and formerly with the Arlington Heights Daily Herald (2002–2009), and has written a humor/serious column for the online website of Yedioth Ahronoth.^{[citation needed]} Hanania writes a weekly syndicated column for the Jerusalem Post and also for PalestineNote.com.^{[citation needed]} He is the Baby Boomer Blogger and editor of Arab American TV Online.^{[citation needed]} He currently writes for various publications including the HuffingtonPost.com, the Arab News in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and for other US and international newspapers.^{[citation needed]} He is political editor of the Southwest News-Herald newspaper on Chicago's Southwest Side and suburbs, and publisher of the National Arab American Times Newspaper.^{[citation needed]}

Hanania launched a standup comedy career to advance his agenda of promoting peace through moderation and using humor and co-founded with Israeli comedians Charley Warady and Yisrael Campbell and African American comedian/Journalist Aaron Freeman "The Israeli-Palestinian Comedy Tour" which broke the Arab and Palestinian comedian taboo of refusing to appear with Israelis.^{[citation needed]}

Hanania was removed from one of his first comedy appearances at the last minute at Zanies Comedy Club in Chicago in August 2002 when Jewish American comedian Jackie Mason refused to have him open for him. Mason's manager said it was because of Hanania's inexperience, with fewer than 20 performances and because he is a "Palestinian."

Hanania is the national coordinator of the National American Arab Journalists Association which coordinates and networks American Arab and Muslim Journalists in the United States, and is a partner affiliate of the Union of Arab American Journalists in Detroit.

In the spring of 2011, Hanania voiced his opposition to censorship on Facebook particularly regarding Facebook's removal of the Third Palestinian Intifada page. Hanania's columns advocate the "moderate Palestinian and Arab voice" and reject extremism, embraces peace between Palestinians and Israelis, and opposes the use of violence.^{[citation needed]}

Professional awards

• Sigma Delta Chi National Award for Column Writing from the Society of Professional Journalists (2009) for his columns [6] on the alleged discrimination against an Arab grocer in a suburb of Chicago.
• MT. Mehdi Courage in Journalism Award 2009 by the Mehdi Family.
• Winner of the First National Ethnic Media Award for Commentary/Editorial Writing (English) in 2006 by the New America Media Association for his three-part series: "Shedding Moonlight on Conflict," "A new Language of Peace" and "Things Palestinians and Israelis share".
• Society of Professional Journalists Lisagor Award for column writing, 1985, 2003, 2007, 2009.
• Chicago Newspaper Guild Column Award (2).
• Three Awards from the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, 2 Chicago ADC (1981, 1988) and National ADC, 1985.
• Nominated by the Chicago Sun-Times editors in 1990/91 for a Pulitzer Prize for his four-part series on the Palestinian Intifada.

Books

• Arabs of Chicagoland, 2005 (Arcadia Publishing) ISBN 0-7385-3417-X
• I'm Glad I Look Like a Terrorist: Growing Up Arab in America, 2001 (http://www.themediaoasis.com/book.htm) ISBN 0-9654761-0-3
• Strike Back: Lentil Soup for the Arab American Soul, 1999 (USG Publishing) ISBN 0-9654761-1-1
• Midnight Flight: The Story of White Flight in Chicago—1968 (Online Novel, http://www.themediaoasis.com/flight/flight.htm) 1996
• Troubled Times: Palestinian American Thought before and after Sept. 11th which features 98 of his award-winning columns, paperback;

Politics

• President/CEO Urban Strategies Group Media Consulting Firm (http://www.UrbanStrategiesGroup.com)
• Former National Board Member of the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC)American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
• Member, Chicago Chapter of the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) since 1980 American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
• Co-founder, National Arab American Journalists Association (http://www.NAAJA-US.com)
• National President of the Palestinian American Congress, 1995–1996
• Board member of Neve Shalom/Wahat al-Salam village
• Co-founder of Yalla, Salam! ("Palestinians for Peace Now")
• Co-founder of Israeli-Palestinian Comedy Tour (http://www.IPComedyTour.com)
• Co-founder of Infidels of Comedy The Christian Arab Comedy Tour

Quotes

If we can laugh together, we can live together.

Americans are the most educated people in the world, but the least educated about the world.

See also

• Palestinian Christians

External links

• Ray Hanania's official Morning Radio Show page
• Ray Hanania's official page
• Ray Hanania's media consulting web page
• Israeli Palestinian Comedy Tour official page
• The Infidels of Comedy Christian Arab Comedy Tour
• Ray Hanania's Facebook Page
• Hanania's personal MySpace blog page
• Official web page of the National Arab American Journalists Association
• Opinion from Israel, Ynetnews Articles by Ray Hanania from his column
• Spoils to the Self Promoter, a detailed profile of Ray Hanania in the Chicago Reader May 20, 2010
• Nothing to laugh at here An article by Sousan Hammad
• Hanania responds to Sousan Hammad's political attack Response from Hanania to Sousan Hammad's political attack