Ray Hanania

Ray Hanania (b. Chicago, Illinois, 1953) is an Arab-American 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 a comedy act with the hope of defusing mutual suspicion.

Life and career

Hanania's parents are Palestinian immigrants. 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.

Hanania long covered Chicago City Hall politics for various Chicago media. From 1977-1985 he reported for the Daily Southtown, and from 1985-1991 for the Chicago Sun-Times. From 1993-1996 he was publisher of the suburban Villager Newspapers group. 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. He is managing editor of the Arab American Writers Syndicate,[1] and he is the host of a live Morning Radio talk show Monday - Friday on WJJG 1530 AM Chicago. The show broadcasts every morning at 8 am and is simulcast in audio and video.[2]

His internationally-syndicated column, carried by Creators Syndicate 2002-2005 and is now self-syndicated, is from what Hanania terms "the moderate Palestinian voice," weighing the moral implications of different policy choices for actors in the various Middle East conflicts. He continues to write a Chicago political column carried locally with the Southwest News-Herald and the Arlington Heights Daily Herald, and has a humor/serious column for www.YnetNews.com the website of Yedioth Ahronoth, the largest newspaper in Israel. He is the Baby Boomer Blogger for MidEast Youth Web Site Blog (www.MidEastYouth.com) and editor of www.ArabAmericanTVOnline.com. He currently writes for various publications including the HuffingtonPost.com, the Arab News in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and occasionally for the Jerusalem Post newspaper. 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 at www.AATimesNews.com which distributes more than 65,000 papers through 650 Arab American grocery stores in all 48 continental American states.

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"[3] which broke the Arab comedian taboo of refusing to appear with Israelis.

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 (he had turned to stand-up comedy after 9/11, and had made fewer than 20 performances) and because he is a "Palestinian." [4]

Hanania is also the host of the morning radio talk show in Chicago, "Mornings with Ray Hanania," broadcast weekday mornings Monday thru Friday from 8 am until 9:30 AM on WJJG 1530 AM Radio.[5]

Professional awards

• Named Best Ethnic American Columnist (2006/2007) by the New America Media Association
• Society of Professional Journalists Lisagor Award for column writing, 1985, 2003, 2007
• Chicago Newspaper Guild Column Award (2)
• Nominated by the Chicago Sun-Times (1990) for a Pulitzer Prize for his columns on the Palestinian Intifadah

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.htm) 1996

Politics

• Co-founder, National Arab American Journalists Association (http://www.NAAJA-US.com)
• 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 (http://www.InfidelsofComedy.com)
• Various roles with American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee

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.

External links

• Ray Hanania official page
• Ray Hanania personal web page
• Israeli Palestinian Comedy Tour official page
• The Infidels of Comedy Christian Arab Comedy Tour
• Hanania's personal blog page
• Official web page of the National Arab American Journalists Association
• Opinion from Israel, Ynetnews Articles by Ray Hanania from his column
• 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