The tragic passing of Professor Michael Burawoy, aged 77, leaves the BSA with a deep sense of loss. A respected colleague whose brilliant scholarship reshaped our understanding of industrial labour and its broader social impact, his absence will be keenly felt across our community.
Not only a distinguished scholar, Michael was also a compassionate advocate for public sociology whose warm spirit and relentless dedication enriched the lives of colleagues, students, and communities alike.
Professor Burawoy was born in England in 1947, his parents having fled Russia and Ukraine, eventually arriving in Britain in 1933.
After a first degree in mathematics at the University of Cambridge in 1968, he studied for a masters in sociology at the University of Zambia in 1972, and a PhD at the University of Chicago four years later, on the theme of the factory floor.
He began his academic career at the University of Chicago, before taking up posts at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and the University of California, Berkeley, where he was head of department.
His studied the industrial workplace in Zambia, Chicago, Hungary, and post-Soviet Russia. He used participant observation in an ethnographic approach that was – literally – hands-on: for his book The Radiant Past: Ideology and Reality in Hungary’s Road to Capitalism (1992) he worked as a furnace operator in a Hungarian steel plant. He also worked on the factory floor in Chicago.
Two books, written with the students, Ethnography Unbound (1991) and Global Ethnography (2000) developed important methodological arguments for the use of participant observation data to build empirical and theoretical generalisations.
Professor Burawoy described his work as seeking to “advance Marxism by pursuing its reconstruction in the light of his research and, more broadly, in the light of the historical challenges of the late 20th and early 21st centuries [bringing] Marxism into conversation with the sociology of Karl Polanyi and Pierre Bourdieu.”
He is also remembered for his passionate commitment to public sociology. As his website says: “No longer able to work in factories, he turned to the study of his own workplace – the university – to consider the way sociology itself is produced and then disseminated to diverse publics. His advocacy of public sociology has generated much heat in many a cool place.”
Professor Burawoy was President of the American Sociological Association in 2003-04 and President of the International Sociological Association for 2010–2014.
The BSA extends heartfelt condolences to Michael’s family, friends, and colleagues as we mourn the loss of a truly remarkable scholar – a man whose keen intellect and gentle compassion left an indelible mark on our lives and the discipline. His unwavering commitment to public sociology and his unique ability to connect with others will continue to inspire and guide us in the years ahead.
