[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 151 (Thursday, September 19, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1177-E1178]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       REMEMBERING IRA A. LIPMAN

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. STEVE COHEN

                              of tennessee

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 19, 2019

  Mr. COHEN. Madam Speaker, I rise today in praise of my friend Ira A. 
Lipman, founder of the international private security firm Guardsmark, 
who was also a passionate advocate for social justice, a defender of 
journalistic freedom and a lover of history and the arts. Ira died 
Monday in New York at the age of 78. A native of Little Rock, Arkansas, 
Ira was a student at Little Rock Central High School and was an 
important anonymous source for NBC Newsman John Chancellor during the 
historic but contentious integration of the school in 1957. That led to 
a lifelong friendship and, in 1995, Ira created the John Chancellor 
Award of Excellence at Columbia University School of Journalism, 
honoring the best in the business with a $50,000 annual award. The 
selection committee for the award is led by the Ira A. Lipman Professor 
of Journalism, Jelani Cobb at Columbia. This prestigious award is 
presented at a dinner, a

[[Page E1178]]

prized event for those invited. In 2018, Columbia established the Ira 
A. Lipman Center for Journalism and Civil and Human Rights. Mr. Lipman 
was a leader in social justice organizations, and served as chairman 
and later as honorary chairman for life of the National Conference of 
Christians and Jews. He stood up to racism wherever it raised its ugly 
head. In 1983, he received the Distinguished Service Award from the 
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). He 
served on the board of the National Council on Crime and Delinquency 
and on the board of the International Association of Chiefs of Police. 
Mr. Lipman held many positions with the United Way of America, 
including as the first chairman of its ethics committee, and headed up 
its Memphis United Way chapter with record-setting donations. In 
Memphis, Ira was a model of civic responsibility, a thoughtful 
philanthropist and, like ``Mr. Anonymous,'' was looked to for his 
leadership, including financial support for the Memphis and Shelby 
County Crime Commission. In 1992, when Minister Louis Farrakhan was 
given the keys to the city by then-Mayor W.W. Herenton, Ira stood up 
and made it clear the decision was questionable. When he realized his 
lifelong dream of moving to New York City, he became one of that city's 
leading patrons, serving on the board of The New-York Historical 
Society. As New York City's quasi-anthem says, if you can make it 
there, you can make it anywhere, and Ira made it there and New York was 
the better for it. He was a longtime member of the Council on Foreign 
Relations and, in 2016, his generous gift created the Ira A. Lipman 
Chair in Emerging Technologies and National Security at the Council. 
Recognized worldwide for his dedication to Jewry, he was a member of 
the board of the Simon Wiesenthal Center for 38 years and last year 
received its highest honor, the Humanitarian Award. He also served as 
an officer of the American Jewish Historical Society. Ira served on the 
Board of Trustees of his alma mater, Ohio Wesleyan University, which 
conferred on him its Distinguished Achievement Citation for significant 
accomplishments and service to mankind. Mr. Lipman received the Stanley 
C. Pace Award for Leadership in Ethics from the Ethics Resource Center 
in 2002. That same year, the Committee for Economic Development honored 
him with its Corporate Citizenship Award. In 2004, he received the 
Dean's Medal of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, 
where he served as a member of the Board of Overseers from 1991 to 2004 
and again from 2005 to 2016. It was Ira Lipman who suggested that I 
sponsor and pass legislation creating the Tennessee's Holocaust 
Commission in 1984 when I was a State Senator. In 1963, Mr. Lipman 
founded Guardsmark, a private security and security guard company, in 
Memphis, and grew it to a 17,000-employee operation before he sold it 
in 2015. He wrote How to Protect Yourself From Crime (1975) and was 
often consulted by law enforcement and private security officials for 
his expertise. Mr. Lipman's philanthropy will long be remembered. He 
will be missed by so many for his wisdom, courage and willingness to 
step up. I want to express my condolences to his wife, Barbara; his 
sons Gus, Josh and Ben; his extended family and his many friends. His 
was a life well-lived.

                          ____________________