A life of “Long Debate”: A Tribute to Ali A. Mazrui

Abstract

Professor Mazrui’s personal self-esteem and intellectual courage and willingness to wrestle with these sorts of controversial issues may partly be attributed to his family background as well as personal traits. Born in Mombasa, Kenya, Professor Mazrui came from a politically and intellectually powerful family. His father, Sheikh Al-Amin Ali Mazrui, was an eminent Islamic scholar of the region and the clan that the family belonged to had ruled Mombasa for over a century until 1837. Father Mazrui, who died when Professor Mazrui was fourteen, had wanted his son to follow his own path and, to this end, to attend the Al-Azhar University in Cairo. However, having been awarded a scholarship to travel to