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Faitmah Ali, 56, Philadelphia Daily News Columnist
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Jane Margaret Laight
Jan 25, 2012, 5:13:50 PM1/25/12
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http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20120124_Fatimah_Ali__Daily_News_columnist__dies_at_56.html?viewAll=y
Fatimah Ali, Daily News columnist, dies at 56
BY JOHN F. MORRISON
Philadelphia Daily News
mor...@phillynews.com215-854-5573
She sure could get people riled up.
Like the time she suggested that if John McCain beat Barack Obama for
president of the United States, "look for a full-fledged race war."
The reaction hit the fan!
Fatimah Ali, who dared to make such a prediction in a column in the
Daily News, was deluged with mail that would singe the eyebrows,
little of it printable.
DrudgeReport.com headlined the story about her column: "Philadelphia
columnist warns if McCain wins, look for a full-fledged race war."
Was she remorseful. Did she back down?
That was not Fatimah's style. In a subsequent column, she said she'd
been "dead wrong" in her prediction: "We don't have to wait until
after the election for a race war. We're in one now."
Fatimah Ali, born Susan Hughes in Philadelphia to a doctor and a
teacher, a fierce advocate for social justice who broadcast her views
on local radio and wrote a column for the Daily News from 2006 to
2011, died in her sleep in her North Philadelphia home Monday night.
She was 56.
"She lived life on her own terms," said her former husband, state Sen.
Vincent Hughes. "She was very thoughtful, very insightful, very
intelligent and very committed to social change.
"She was a child of the Sixties and that spirit never left her. She
discussed issues that others didn't want to talk about."
Like many others, her death shocked him.
"She lived a very healthy life," he said. "She was always very health-
conscious."
One of her daughters, Khadija Ahmaddiya, said the cause of death was
not known.
Fatimah was best known locally for her Daily News column and her two-
hour daily broadcasts on WURD 900 AM, where she called her show "The
Real Deal with Fatimah Ali."
It began in March 2011, and her last broadcast was a report on the
activities of the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service.
Fatimah described herself as a "God-loving mother of five and
grandmother. I'm a journalist, a radio head, who loves her family, her
roots, people, art, food, news and information and culture."
She never hesitated to tell it like it was, or at least the way she
saw it. Far ahead of the Occupy Wall Street gang, she wrote in 2008
with George W. Bush in the presidency: "The politics of the current
White House have brutalized our economy, yet the wealthiest think that
everything is fine."
A firm believer in the promise of Barack Obama, she wrote: "Obama
understands that people are suffering. Every week, prices go up at the
supermarket, and people are unable to feed their families. It already
is dark and stormy for millions, who can't even afford pencils, book
bags and lunch money for their children."
"The beauty of Fatimah Ali's career is that despite career changes,
she seized new opportunities for her vibrant voice to be heard," said
Sarah Glover, president of the Philadelphia Association of Black
Journalists and a Daily News photographer.
"She's a Philly gal who kept it real, produced thoughtful commentary
in written and spoken words, and gave back to the community."
In fact, longtime friend Karen E. Quinones Miller, a freelance writer,
said Fatimah was always available to do whatever was asked of her by
local charitable organizations, and she was generous to friends and
strangers.
"If you needed it, she would scrape up money for you," Karen said.
"She did a lot of community work. She was always available to
volunteer for a good cause."
"We were always grateful to have Fatimah's thoughtful voice in the mix
of our editorial contributors," said Sandra Shea, Daily News editorial-
page editor. "Our thoughts and prayers are with her family."
Jenice Armstrong, former PABJ president and a Daily News columnist,
said: "Philadelphia has lost a great talent, champion and friend. Her
voice will be missed. What a loss!"
Fatimah's Daily News career began in 2006 when she sent a letter to
the editor expressing her concerns about the dismal condition of Robin
Hood Dell, where she had volunteered in her youth.
Michael Schefer, then an assistant editorial-page editor, printed the
letter. "She wrote well and passionately," he said. "I knew about her
and I was surprised and pleased to see what she wrote. The letter got
a lot of response."
When the paper was looking for an occasional columnist, he recommended
Fatimah and she started writing her column. She also became an
associate member of the paper's editorial board.
"She was very smart and passionate about her concerns and causes,"
Schefer said. "She had opinions about everything. She was very
provocative, which is good in an opinion writer.
"As a friend, she had a big heart. She was a very caring person."
Amy Simmons, a friend and writer, called Fatimah "a rare warrior
woman."
"She took on every task given to her with courage, intellect, grace
and power. She was relentess in her pursuit of truth, and in the
reporting of it, even when it was not popular, and without the
Schadenfreude that often creeps into the telling of difficult stories
these days."
Fatimah was born to Dr. Deurward Hughes, a gynecologist, and Mary
Hughes. She grew up in West Mount Airy and graduated from Germantown
Friends School in 1974. She attended Wesleyan University, majoring in
English and history,
She worked for a number of radio stations, including WDAS, WHAT, and
WURD in Philadelphia, and stations in New York City, including 1010
WINS, the all-news station.
She also was associated with One Step Away, a newspaper written and
edited by the homeless, the We Are Black Women Network, and J. Whyatt
Mondesire's Philadelphia Sun.
She was married to Sen. Hughes (who coincidentally had the same last
name) and to Philadelphia radio and TV journalist A. Brahin Ahmaddiya,
who died in 2000. Her current partner was Natu Ali.
Besides Khadija, she is survived by three other daughters, Ariell
Hughes, Rashida Ali and Yasmin Ali; a son, Malik Ahmaddiya; two
sisters, Diane Webster and Brenda Miller, and two grandchildren.
Services: Were being arranged.
Fatimah Ali, Daily News columnist, dies at 56
BY JOHN F. MORRISON
Philadelphia Daily News
mor...@phillynews.com215-854-5573
She sure could get people riled up.
Like the time she suggested that if John McCain beat Barack Obama for
president of the United States, "look for a full-fledged race war."
The reaction hit the fan!
Fatimah Ali, who dared to make such a prediction in a column in the
Daily News, was deluged with mail that would singe the eyebrows,
little of it printable.
DrudgeReport.com headlined the story about her column: "Philadelphia
columnist warns if McCain wins, look for a full-fledged race war."
Was she remorseful. Did she back down?
That was not Fatimah's style. In a subsequent column, she said she'd
been "dead wrong" in her prediction: "We don't have to wait until
after the election for a race war. We're in one now."
Fatimah Ali, born Susan Hughes in Philadelphia to a doctor and a
teacher, a fierce advocate for social justice who broadcast her views
on local radio and wrote a column for the Daily News from 2006 to
2011, died in her sleep in her North Philadelphia home Monday night.
She was 56.
"She lived life on her own terms," said her former husband, state Sen.
Vincent Hughes. "She was very thoughtful, very insightful, very
intelligent and very committed to social change.
"She was a child of the Sixties and that spirit never left her. She
discussed issues that others didn't want to talk about."
Like many others, her death shocked him.
"She lived a very healthy life," he said. "She was always very health-
conscious."
One of her daughters, Khadija Ahmaddiya, said the cause of death was
not known.
Fatimah was best known locally for her Daily News column and her two-
hour daily broadcasts on WURD 900 AM, where she called her show "The
Real Deal with Fatimah Ali."
It began in March 2011, and her last broadcast was a report on the
activities of the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service.
Fatimah described herself as a "God-loving mother of five and
grandmother. I'm a journalist, a radio head, who loves her family, her
roots, people, art, food, news and information and culture."
She never hesitated to tell it like it was, or at least the way she
saw it. Far ahead of the Occupy Wall Street gang, she wrote in 2008
with George W. Bush in the presidency: "The politics of the current
White House have brutalized our economy, yet the wealthiest think that
everything is fine."
A firm believer in the promise of Barack Obama, she wrote: "Obama
understands that people are suffering. Every week, prices go up at the
supermarket, and people are unable to feed their families. It already
is dark and stormy for millions, who can't even afford pencils, book
bags and lunch money for their children."
"The beauty of Fatimah Ali's career is that despite career changes,
she seized new opportunities for her vibrant voice to be heard," said
Sarah Glover, president of the Philadelphia Association of Black
Journalists and a Daily News photographer.
"She's a Philly gal who kept it real, produced thoughtful commentary
in written and spoken words, and gave back to the community."
In fact, longtime friend Karen E. Quinones Miller, a freelance writer,
said Fatimah was always available to do whatever was asked of her by
local charitable organizations, and she was generous to friends and
strangers.
"If you needed it, she would scrape up money for you," Karen said.
"She did a lot of community work. She was always available to
volunteer for a good cause."
"We were always grateful to have Fatimah's thoughtful voice in the mix
of our editorial contributors," said Sandra Shea, Daily News editorial-
page editor. "Our thoughts and prayers are with her family."
Jenice Armstrong, former PABJ president and a Daily News columnist,
said: "Philadelphia has lost a great talent, champion and friend. Her
voice will be missed. What a loss!"
Fatimah's Daily News career began in 2006 when she sent a letter to
the editor expressing her concerns about the dismal condition of Robin
Hood Dell, where she had volunteered in her youth.
Michael Schefer, then an assistant editorial-page editor, printed the
letter. "She wrote well and passionately," he said. "I knew about her
and I was surprised and pleased to see what she wrote. The letter got
a lot of response."
When the paper was looking for an occasional columnist, he recommended
Fatimah and she started writing her column. She also became an
associate member of the paper's editorial board.
"She was very smart and passionate about her concerns and causes,"
Schefer said. "She had opinions about everything. She was very
provocative, which is good in an opinion writer.
"As a friend, she had a big heart. She was a very caring person."
Amy Simmons, a friend and writer, called Fatimah "a rare warrior
woman."
"She took on every task given to her with courage, intellect, grace
and power. She was relentess in her pursuit of truth, and in the
reporting of it, even when it was not popular, and without the
Schadenfreude that often creeps into the telling of difficult stories
these days."
Fatimah was born to Dr. Deurward Hughes, a gynecologist, and Mary
Hughes. She grew up in West Mount Airy and graduated from Germantown
Friends School in 1974. She attended Wesleyan University, majoring in
English and history,
She worked for a number of radio stations, including WDAS, WHAT, and
WURD in Philadelphia, and stations in New York City, including 1010
WINS, the all-news station.
She also was associated with One Step Away, a newspaper written and
edited by the homeless, the We Are Black Women Network, and J. Whyatt
Mondesire's Philadelphia Sun.
She was married to Sen. Hughes (who coincidentally had the same last
name) and to Philadelphia radio and TV journalist A. Brahin Ahmaddiya,
who died in 2000. Her current partner was Natu Ali.
Besides Khadija, she is survived by three other daughters, Ariell
Hughes, Rashida Ali and Yasmin Ali; a son, Malik Ahmaddiya; two
sisters, Diane Webster and Brenda Miller, and two grandchildren.
Services: Were being arranged.
Lanskee Shuru
Jan 25, 2012, 9:28:22 PM1/25/12
to
On Jan 25, 5:13 pm, Jane Margaret Laight <jml27...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20120124_Fatimah_Ali__Daily_News_co...
We been in a full-force race war since 1965.
> http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20120124_Fatimah_Ali__Daily_News_co...
>
> Fatimah Ali, Daily News columnist, dies at 56
> BY JOHN F. MORRISON
> Philadelphia Daily News
>
> morr...@phillynews.com215-854-5573
> Fatimah Ali, Daily News columnist, dies at 56
> BY JOHN F. MORRISON
> Philadelphia Daily News
>
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