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As part of the 150th anniversary of Lyon Catholic University (UCLy), we offer here a portrait of one of leading figures: Professor Joseph Yacoub. He devoted a large part of his scholarly work to the development and teaching of the concept of interculturality and to its political and legal consequences. He highlighted the need to adopt a concrete humanism, seen as a counterbalance to an overly abstract and exclusively legal approach to human rights. If we truly want to protect minorities, it is not enough to simply declare rights. They must be grounded in a historical and cultural foundation that gives rise to a reimagined humanism. His personal history led him in particular to defend the heritage of Syriac civilization, whose memory he continues to promote. He was thus actively involved in the process that led, in 2024, to the recognition in France of the 1915 Assyrian-Chaldean genocide. Disciplines: LAW, POLITICAL SCIENCE, HISTORY, ANTHROPOLOGY, PHILOSOPHY