(The following obituary for my old friend and professor, Robert Lawless, was written by his wife Anita Raghavan.)
Family, friends, colleagues, and students celebrate the life of Robert
Lawless
Robert Lawless, Professor of Anthropology, Wichita
State University, passed away peacefully on February 2, 2012 of heart failure
at HCA Wesley Medical Center, Wichita, Kansas.
Family and friends were by his
side at the time of his passing. He did
not suffer. He was taken to the hospital by ambulance at
about 4 am and had passed away by 9:26 am.
He had gone to work the day
before and was in good spirits. He complained of chest pain at about 4 am on
the day of his death. He had been battling heart disease for roughly
seven years.
Robert was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma and grew
up in Sand Springs. Oklahoma. His father taught instrumental music in the
public schools of Sand Springs and Tulsa, Oklahoma. As a youngster Robert played the trombone in his father’s
band and was a drum major. Music and music appreciation was an integral
part of his life till the very end.
After graduating from Sand Springs High
School, (he frequently and without much prompting regaled friends with his high
school cheer song) he left Oklahoma for a Journalism degree at Northwestern
University in Evanston, Illinois. He earned a bachelor’s degree in 1959. He
was a journalist in San Francisco and left to join military service. He volunteered
for the National Security Agency and went to the Army Language School in
Monterey, California where he studied Russian.
He was stationed on the border of the former
USSR and Germany. There he learned German. He
helped to gather information for the USA about the maneuverings of the Soviet army. He was
honorably discharged and chose to teach English Literature at Brent School -
Baguio, Philippines. Interest
in studying further led him to a Master’s degree program in Asian Studies from
the University of the Philippines, Manila.
He learned several Philippine
dialects and languages. He married Aida Arribas and they had a son,
Andrew and a daughter, Ilona. At two years old Andrew was diagnosed with
autism. Robert’s ongoing advocacy for people with
special needs grew with this personal milestone in his life. He was
a social justice activist for positive change in several local and
international areas of the world.
Interest in pursuing a PhD led him back to
the USA where he worked as an editor for two publishing companies, John Wiley
and Sons and Prentice Hall, and to the Anthropology Department at the New
School for Social Research, New York. He engaged in anthropological field work among
the Kalingas of the North Luzon highlands in the Philippines. He
graduated in 1975. He did international rice research and helped
gather information for the UN. He did field work in Haiti while in Florida. He
learned Haitian Creole. His research focused on a comparative holistic
and evolutionary examination of foraging, agricultural, and industrial peoples. He spent 7 years doing research among urban
scavengers in Manila, investigated peasants in the Central Plains of Luzon,
studied neo-colonial warfare on the island of Timor and lived with headhunters
in the North Luzon Highlands. For
several years he investigated the social organization of hospitals in Manhattan
and the survival values of street people on its Lower East Side. He
attempted to teach himself Spanish.
In 1978 he joined the Anthropology faculty and
the African Studies faculty at the University of Florida and served there as an
Associate Professor for 14 years. Since
1982, he concentrated on work in Haiti, investigated its tourism,
sociopolitical structures, coffee production, and religion. Much
of his work used an integrative approach to the study of the cognitive and
ecological aspects of people’s beliefs and behaviors. He
married Anita Raghavan in 1988. In 1992 they
moved to Kansas where he joined the Anthropology Department as a socio-cultural
anthropologist and as an undergraduate advisor at Wichita State University. He served as the department chair from
1996-1999. He had three children with Anita, a daughter
Sharmini and twin sons, Kylen and Tavrick.
Tavrick was diagnosed at birth with Down syndrome. This intensified his interest in a
comprehensive and fulfilling life for people with special needs.
Robert amassed a record of scholarship,
including several recognized books, especially one on Haiti, and many articles
in international journals. He was a
prolific writer using a style that was succinct and powerful. He served as a journal and book review editor
and he reviewed numerous manuscripts and grant proposals submitted for research
funding. His field research during a
10-12 year long stay in the Philippines included work among urban residents and
more isolated tribal groups such as the Kalinga. He also did field work among immigrant ethnic
groups in New York and among communities in Haiti. He served in various roles in professional
organizations including the association of Philippine Anthropologists and The
Association of Third World Studies. He
was directly involved in the drafting of position papers for the Aristide
Government in preparation for the restoration of representative government in Haiti.
Robert enjoyed teaching and saw teaching as a
primary medium for dispensing his knowledge and experience to an audience of
students. Throughout his career, he
touched thousands of students who enjoyed his academic energy, his knowledge,
and his wit. He served on many Masters
and PhD dissertation committees, thus influencing generations of new students
in the field. He cared immensely about
his students and took great pride in their many accomplishments.
Robert loved his family both
biological and “adopted.” He was a
foreign exchange “dad” to many, “adopted” several children and young adults, and
was a local guardian to international students.
He enjoyed keeping up with their achievements, their joys and
tribulations.
He is survived by his wife Anita Raghavan,
daughters Ilona and Sharmini, sons Andrew, Kylen and Tavrick, granddaughters
Mackenzie and Kerrigan, and his brothers Jerrold and Lyndon.
He also leaves behind a number of
professional colleagues and friends who treasured their friendship with him, a
large number of students who loved him as a teacher and a mentor, and a
community of friends and acquaintances both locally and beyond. A
private service was held at 2:00 pm on February 7, 2012 at All Faith
Affinity Mortuary and Funeral Home in Wichita, KS. A
Robert Lawless Memorial Fund has been established and can be reached C/o Rev. C.
Pace-Adair, PO Box 48045 Wichita, KS 67201-8045. The
memorial fund will support the diverse academic and social issues that Robert
cared about.
