Michael James de Ramus Mitchell

Michael James deRamus Mitchell was born February 27, 1944 in Baltimore, Maryland to William Andrew and Helen deRamus Mitchell. The family soon moved to Harlem where he was educated at St. Aloysius then to the Bronx where he attended St. Anthony of Padua School. There he met archrival Ina Fox in fourth grade and decided to form a lifelong alliance.

In 1957 Michael entered Cardinal Hayes High School where sports proved far more compelling than academics. He lettered in handball and honed his leadership skills as co-manager of the football team. After graduation, a “Brave New World” opened to him when, much to his amazement, he was accepted to Fordham University. While reading that dystopian novel on a campus bench the summer before freshman year, he was accosted by a Fordham Jesuit who peppered him with questions about the book. Thus began a life devoted to critical thought.

A summer internship at the State Department whetted Michael’s interest in international studies and led to a junior year abroad at Universidad Católica de Chile in Santiago. He graduated from Fordham with a degree in Inter-American Relations in 1965, married Ina the same year, and the couple launched their lives as “citizens of the world” by becoming Peace Corps volunteers in Hualpencillo, Chile.

In 1968 he began graduate study at Indiana University and earned an M.A. in Latin American Studies followed by a Ph.D. in Political Science in l977 for which he wrote the dissertation, “Racial Consciousness and the Political Attitudes and Behavior of Blacks in São Paulo, Brazil.” Over 40 years in academia, Michael taught at MIT, Princeton University, St. Peter’s College in Jersey City and SUNY Albany. He worked tirelessly at each institution to expand young minds and bring his scholarly perspective to the study of race and comparative politics, ultimately settling at Arizona State University in 1990.

Michael was a formidable, even intimidating scholar who expected excellence from his students, colleagues, and most of all himself. A pre-eminent expert in Afro-Latino and Afro-Brazilian politics and culture, Michael did much of his research in Brazil. His Ph.D. dissertation proved a seminal work, which generations of scholars on the African diaspora have mined and embraced. Widely published in the field’s most respected texts and journals, Michael shined as a luminary of the National Conference of Black Political Scientists, served on its Executive Council and as lead editor of its journal, the National Political Science Review.

Michael possessed a devilish sense of humor and an infectious joie de vivre. He loved riding his bike, reveled in opera and devoured political news. He was a fan of the New York Giants, the Knicks and the ’55 Brooklyn Dodgers. He cherished the life of the mind and, with a tenacity inherited from his formidable mother, Dr. Mitchell, fought for justice and the underdog. Above all, he loved his family. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Ina, son Martin, daughter Sahar and her husband Stephen, adored granddaughters Raven and Amara, cousin Jan Brown and her children Anna, Oscar and Clare, sisters-in law, Hetty Fox and Vivian Manning Fox and a host of nieces, nephews, relatives and friends around the world.

The Mitchell Family requests that memorial donations be directed to:

Fordham University, Development & University Relations

45 Columbus Avenue, 8th Floor, NY, NY 10023

Attention: Stewardship

The New York Kids Foundation, PO Box 542, Bronx NY 10459