Randa Jarrar was born in 1978 in Chicago to an Egyptian & Greek mother and a Palestinian father.
She grew up in Kuwait and Egypt.
After the Gulf War in 1991, her family moved back to the US, living in the New York area when she was 13.
Jarrar studied creative writing at Sarah Lawrence College, receiving an MA in Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Texas at Austin,
and an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Michigan.
She has taught College Writing, Creative Writing, and Arab-American literature.
"Fresno State's a majority minority school," she describes. "Many of my undergraduates are brown: Latinos, Asian Americans, Muslim Americans.
They're first generation college students. Or they're children of migrant workers. Or they work full time, and parent."On April 17, 2018, on the death of former first lady Barbara Bush, Jarrar described her as "an amazing racist" and boasted that she will
"never be fired" for her harsh words, because she had tenure at Fresno State University.
Jarrar responded to condemnatory replies by saying "I'm happy the witch is dead".
She was widely criticized for her actions, though these tweets can no longer be viewed as the account is now private.
Fresno State president Joseph Castro responded to widespread public outrage, saying "“Professor Jarrar’s expressed personal views and commentary
are obviously contrary to the core values of our University, which include respect and empathy for individuals with divergent points of view".
