Latif Menashi Jiji emigrated in 1947 from Iraq to the United States to attend Hope College. Despite a deep affection for Hope and all it gave him, he transferred to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to be able to major in engineering. He went on to earn a master’s degree from the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now known as Carnegie Mellon University) as well as another master’s degree and a PhD from the University of Michigan.
He was stateless until 1962 when he was granted political asylum. A professor of engineering, he spent 60 years teaching, including a half century at The City College of New York, where he took pride in educating new generations of immigrants and was recognized with the Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award. He also spent a semester in Senegal as a faculty member on a Fulbright Scholarship.
He married Vera Mattlin in 1964 and they raised four children together. He is also known for making a wine called Chateau Latif from his backyard grapevine, the only vintage produced from grapes grown in Manhattan. In addition to wine-making and watercolor painting, his hobbies have included learning French, studying the clarinet, bird watching, kite flying and building jill-lalas (indoor swings).