VOLUME 31 APRIL 2003 NUMBER 4 Contexts Magazine Feature Egyptian Sociologist Ibrahim Is Acquitted A special article, titled “A Letter from Cairo,” by Ibrahim, will appear in the Contexts fter almost three years of legal brings an end to a legal saga that many involved in fraud, in publishing false spring issue of ASA’s magazine A battles and time in jail, a final ruling by scholars and human-rights leaders say information to tarnish Egypt’s reputa- (www.contextsmagazine.org). In the Egypt’s highest appeals court acquitted exposed the fragility of academic tion, or had received foreign donations article, Ibrahim discusses his experience renowned social activist and sociologist freedom in the Arab world’s most without permission. The prosecution in jail and his feelings on the need for Saad Eddin Ibrahim and two of his co- intellectually prominent country. offered few arguments to support its greater democracy within Egypt. This defendants of “undermining the dignity At a court hearing on February 4, case, leaving the defense hopeful that issue is particularly pertinent to aca- of the state and tarnishing its reputa- 2003, Ibrahim’s lawyers had refuted the the court would rule in its favor. demic freedom. There are key lessons in tion.” On March 18, Egypt’s Court of prosecution’s charges that Ibrahim and Nevertheless, the acquittal of all the Ibn his essay for any scholar doing politi- Cassation ordered the 64-year-old his colleagues from the advocacy center Khaldun staff members comes as a great cally sensitive research. American University-Cairo professor that he directed, the Ibn Khaldun Center relief. Ibrahim was recently honored at the freed. There can be no retrial, which for Development Studies, had been human rights reception co-sponsored by ASA at the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s (AAAS) Annual Meeting in Denver, CO. Sociolo- Social Science Is Focus of Cairo Conference: gist Harriet Presser, University of Maryland-College Park, formally Surveying Worldviews of Islamic Publics represented ASA at the event, which attracted some 100 AAAS attendees. by Joane Nagel & Patricia White, reporting and Presser was joined on stage by Ibrahim’s National Science Foundation reflecting on what son Amir and daughter Randa, who we know and what attended the reception to speak on their For some time now social scientists we need to know father’s behalf. Several other family have pondered the problem of decipher- about the members who live in the United States ing the contents of the black boxes worldviews of also attended. Ibrahim himself was known as Orientalism and Occidentalism. members of Islamic unable to leave Egypt to attend the How do we understand, for example, societies and how AAAS reception, as he awaited the views held by individuals and communi- those compare to verdict from his latest appeal. Randa, an ties in the East and the West as we gaze Western attorney, has been representing her at one another through politically, worldviews. The father in the Egyptian court system. culturally, and economically mediated purpose of the For Presser, the AAAS meeting lenses? Questions about beliefs and conference, titled assumptions embraced by intellectuals Explaining the represented a memorable life event, and laypeople alike on both sides of this Worldviews of the since she had the double pleasure of historical divide now have attained Islamic Publics: being inducted as a AAAS Fellow at the special importance and pertinence to Methodological and Denver meeting and presenting remarks world affairs. The events of September Theoretical Issues, at the Ibrahim reception. “The whole Left to right, Front Row: Ahmed Houiti (Algiers University), Abdellah Bedaida 11, 2001, the escalating Palestinian and not only was (Algiers University), Mansoor Moaddel (Eastern Michigan University), Marjan event was very special for me person- Israeli discord, and the war in Iraq all designed to Moaddel, Ronald F. Inglehart (U. of Michigan-Ann Arbor), Mohamed Mahmoud ally,” she said. “I have now met all the amplify the urgency of engaging these promote under- Mohieddin (U. of Qatar), El Aswad Al Saayd (Wayne State University); Second members of Ibrahim’s immediate Row: Fayiz Suyyagh (U. of Jordan), Fares al-Braizat (U. of Kent-Canterbury), fundamentally sociological issues. standing of the Joane Nagel (NSF), Richard Lempert (NSF); Third Row: Mohammed M. family.” Presser had met Ibrahim’s wife In February, more than 30 social most important Aboelenein (Tanta University), James Griffin (Office of Science and Technology Barbara in Argentina a few years ago scientists from eight Islamic countries organizing prin- Policy), Osman A. Shinaishin (NSF), Mohamed Abidi (Algiers University), when Presser served as a discussant of a (Algeria, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, ciples of Islamic Hannes Voolma (Soros Foundation), Jan Hjarpe (Lund University); Fourth Row: unidentified, Abdel-Hamid Adel-Latif (Ain Shams University), Patricia White paper Barbara presented. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan, societies but also to (NSF), Ms. Karlsson, Ingmar Karlsson (Swedish Embassy in Turkey), Temirlan Presser’s remarks, which include a and Turkey), the United States, and three provide an oppor- Tilekovich Moldogaziev (American University-Central Asia) summary of Ibrahim’s recent experience European states (France, Sweden, and tunity for collabora- Spain) spent three days in Cairo, Egypt, withASA the Egyptian members justice to system, vote appearon See Cairo, page 6 on the AAAS website at shr.aaas.org/ reception/2003_3.htm.a resolution on ❑ the war in Iraq. pages 2 and 3 2003 Annual Meeting . The Question of Culture The Double-edged Sword of Gentrification in Atlanta Fourth in a series of articles highlighting the sociological context of ASA’s next Annual Meeting location . Atlanta by Lesley Williams Reid and Robert M. where have fueled this expansion. But Property Values hoods represent a case study of regardless of their origin, these new gentrification in Atlanta and across the Adelman, Georgia State University The white folk moved out and are now paying residents possess moderate to upper United States. Each has characteristics that anything to move back. – Frank Edwards, incomes and they are moving into older, make a neighborhood ripe for Atlanta Resident hicago has Lake Michigan, Mexico poorer neighborhoods. gentrification: They are close to down- C These neighborhoods are changing town; they have an ample stock of historic City is surrounded by mountains; but In the January 2003 Footnotes article dramatically. In recent years, in-town housing; their populations are aging, Atlanta has no geographic boundaries to about Atlanta, Charles Gallagher and Atlanta neighborhoods have experienced opening opportunities for new buyers; slow its sprawl. Consequently, Atlanta’s 20 Karyn Lacy asked to what extent lower- transformations associated with and, of increasing relevance in Atlanta, counties and four million people are income black residents have been dis- gentrification such as increased property they have small tracts of undeveloped land spread across 6,000 square miles. With this placed by middle- and upper-income taxes, displacement of the poor, and for new, in-fill construction. size has come staggering commutes. white residents. Without question, rising heightened racial tensions. As a conse- Property values have skyrocketed, Atlantans, on average, spend more time property values have displaced older, quence, Atlanta is discovering that increasing by almost 25% in these three traveling to and from work than almost all long-term black residents as middle- and gentrification is a double-edged sword. On east side neighborhoods over the last year. other metropolitan residents in the United upper-income whites bid up property the one hand, city boosters, including This one-year increase is a snapshot of a States, surpassed only by residents in New values. While statistics are difficult to politicians, often clamor for more broader trend in these neighborhoods. In York City and Washington, DC. obtain, anecdotal evidence indicates that gentrification because it raises tax rev- While sprawl is by definition the annual increases in property assessments enues by replacing low-income residents See Atlanta, page 8 growth of the suburbs, in Atlanta subur- have displaced many residents on fixed with middle- and upper-income residents. ban sprawl also drives central city growth. incomes as their property taxes doubled or On the other hand, this displacement can The 2000 census shows that the city of even tripled. In few areas have these create havoc for poorer, often minority Atlanta’s population increased between increases been as dramatic as in the See tributes to New York residents. Indeed, while gentrification may 1990 and 2000, the first recorded increase enclave of neighborhoods on the east side be good for the city coffers, it is bad for Senator Daniel Patrick since the 1960 census. Newcomers from of Atlanta, including Kirkwood, East Lake, many residents. Moynihan on page 6 the suburbs and transplants from else- and East Atlanta. Together, these neighbor- PUBLISHED BY THE AMERICAN SOCIOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION APRIL 2003 FOOTNOTES 3 Mercedes Rubio to Lead Minority Proposed ASA Statement Against Affairs Program the War on Iraq by Torrey Androski, Executive Office Rubio’s research Preamble interests focus on Mercedes Rubio, Kellogg Scholar the relationships According to the bylaws of the ASA, members may circulate a resolution and if it in Health Disparities at the University of among socioeco- secures the signatures of 3% of the membership eligible to vote, it comes to Council. Michigan’s Institute for Social Research nomic status, Council can then either endorse the resolution as is (with a vote of a majority of a and the School of Nursing, will join the immigration, and quorum) on behalf of the membership or refer the resolution to the membership for a ASA Executive Office staff on August 1, health outcomes. vote. In the latter case, the decision of the majority of voting members is binding on the 2003, as staff sociologist and incoming Rubio’s research ASA.