[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 70 (Wednesday, April 30, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E780-E781]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   IN HONOR OF DR. ROBERT O. COLLINS

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 30, 2008

  Mr. WOLF. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of Dr. 
Robert Collins, esteemed author and expert on Africa's Upper Nile 
Valley, particularly Sudan.
  Dr. Collins' expertise in Sudan was a tremendous asset to academia 
and policymakers alike. First traveling to Sudan in 1956, the year 
Sudan achieved independence from Great Britain, Dr. Collins spent 
literally decades traveling in and writing about Sudan and its many 
wars. I had the honor of knowing Dr. Collins and am deeply saddened by 
his death.
  Dr. Collins' seminal works included Alms for Jihad, which he co-
authored with J. Millard Burr. This critical analysis details the use 
of Islamic charities to fund terrorist activity around

[[Page E781]]

the world. It reaches back into history, particularly into Sudan where 
much of the activities of fundamentalist Islamist groups found their 
origins, and traces them to the modern-day struggle against extremist 
forces around the world. We cannot understand the current war on tenor, 
which extends far beyond the terrible events of September 11, without 
examining this important book by Collins and Burr.
  I have attached Dr. Collins' obituary printed in the Los Angeles 
Times. The loss of this bright mind will be felt acutely by all whose 
lives Dr. Collins touched with his scholarship. I extend my condolences 
to his family and friends.

              [From the Los Angeles Times, Apr. 25, 2008]

  Robert O. Collins, 75; UC Scholar's bin Laden Book Was Withdrawn by 
                               Publisher

                        (By Jocelyn Y. Stewart)

       In a career devoted to the study of Africa's Upper Nile 
     Valley, particularly Sudan, historian Robert O. Collins wrote 
     books and articles that were considered required reading for 
     scholars and students of Africa.
       The U.S. government sought his insight on the conflict in 
     Darfur and on Osama bin Laden. Hollywood filmmakers asked his 
     advice in depicting the region on screen. A former president 
     of Sudan presented Collins with a distinguished award for 
     scholarship.
       But when Collins and a colleague wrote the 2006 book ``Alms 
     for Jihad: Charity and Terrorism in the Islamic World,'' the 
     two historians found themselves in the middle of what the New 
     York Times called an international cause celebre.
       To avoid a defamation lawsuit in British courts--where the 
     burden of proof is on the defendant--the publisher of 
     ``Alms'' apologized to a wealthy Saudi mentioned in the book, 
     Sheikh Khalid bin Mahfouz, and paid a settlement. The 
     publisher, Cambridge University Press, also destroyed all 
     unsold copies of ``Alms,'' an act of pure heresy to Collins 
     and other scholars,
       Until his death from cancer in Santa Barbara on April 11, 
     the 75-year-old Collins maintained that he and J. Millard 
     Burr had written a good book that deserved to exist. ``The 
     Shaykh can burn the books in Britain, but he cannot prevent 
     the recovery of the copyright by the authors nor their search 
     for a U.S. publisher to reprint a new edition of `Alms for 
     Jihad,' '' Collins said in an essay posted online at George 
     Mason University's History News Network.
       The ``Alms'' debacle was a rare incident in the life of the 
     professor emeritus who was a preeminent scholar in his field.
       Robert Oakley Collins was born in Waukegan, Ill., on April 
     1, 1933. His interest in Africa was ignited while browsing 
     the library at Dartmouth University in the 1950s.
       He found the Africa area and he just became enthralled,'' 
     said his daughter, Catharine Collins Kristian. ``At the time, 
     it was an emerging area. All the colonial countries were 
     either leaving or talking about granting independence.''
       Collins traveled to Sudan in 1956, the year the country 
     gained independence. It was the first of many trips and the 
     beginning of a lifelong relationship with the nation, 
     Kristian said.
       After earning a bachelor's degree from Dartmouth in 1954, 
     Collins earned many other degrees in history: bachelor's and 
     master's degrees from Oxford University's Balliol College in 
     1956 and 1960, as well as a master's degree and a doctorate 
     from Yale University in 1958 and 1959. He was fluent in 
     Arabic.
       Collins taught for brief periods at Williams College in 
     Massachusetts and at Columbia University in New York before 
     joining the faculty of UC Santa Barbara in 1965.
       For 10 years Collins served as dean of the graduate 
     division. After his retirement in 1994 he continued to teach, 
     write and mentor. With his doctoral students he was 
     demanding, affable and always available.
       ``He wanted us to have a holistic understanding of African 
     history from the beginning of times to modern times. And he 
     was tough,'' said Scopas S. Poggo, a native of Sudan who is 
     now an assistant professor of African American and African 
     studies at Ohio State University.
       Collins wrote or co-wrote at least 30 books and many 
     articles. His book ``Shadows in the Grass: Britain in the 
     Southern Sudan, 1918-1956'' won the John Ben Snow Foundation 
     Prize for the best book in British studies in 1984.
       An eloquent public speaker, Collins brought strong 
     storytelling skills to his writing, melding them with 
     meticulous research. ``Alms'' was also thoroughly researched, 
     ``our interpretations judicious, our conclusions made in good 
     faith on the available evidence,'' Collins wrote in his 
     online essay.
       But ``Alms'' may be on the shelf again with a new 
     publisher, Kristian said. Collins' book ``A History of Modern 
     Sudan'' is scheduled for release in May. The book traces 
     Sudan's history over 200 years and reveals the link between 
     tragedies of today and events of the past.
       ``I wish all of his books could be reprinted,'' Poggo said. 
     ``He has made very significant contributions to the history 
     of southern Sudan. He left a very strong legacy.''
       In addition to his daughter, Collins is survived by two 
     sons, Randolph William Collins of Healdsburg, Calif., and 
     Robert Ware Collins of San Jose; two brothers, Jack Gore 
     Collins of Portland, Ore., and George William Collins II of 
     Chesterland, Ohio; and five grandchildren.
       There will be no public memorial service. Memorial 
     donations may be sent to the Sudan-American Foundation for 
     Education (SAFE), 141 N. Henderson Road, No. 1205, Arlington, 
     VA 22203.

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