It is with a heavy heart that the Office of Multicultural Student Services reports the passing of Phillip H. Duran, longtime WSU activist and faculty member. Phil Duran and his wife Norma had a strong presence in the WSU Chicana/o Latina/o community from 1971-1998. After leaving Pullman, both Phil and Norma would almost yearly visit and continued to support Semana de La Raza events and the Gabriel Cardenas Memorial Scholarship banquet.
Phil received his BS and MS in Physics from The University of Texas – El Paso and a MS in Computer Science from WSU in 1978. Since 2000, Phil’s focus has been on American Indian science education and Native re-indigenization. He also explored important parallels between modern physics concepts (quantum theory and relativity theory) and Indigenous traditional knowledge. His first book, Bringing Back the Spirit, speaks to the American conscience (churches, society and government) and describes how his consciousness shifted from ultra-conservative views to a more realistic Native traditional perspective. His second book, The Condor and the Eagle, explores the relationships between modern physics and Indigenous knowledge.
Two memorial services are scheduled; the first is Saturday in Parker, Colorado, for the Denver community and the second is planned for next week in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The family has asked that in lieu of flowers, supporters can give to the American Indian College Fund in Phil’s memory (https://community.collegefund.org/donate)
