"In Haiti, the majority of the people working the land are women. Not only are they there during planting, weeding and harvesting, but they also play a role in transforming and marketing food products. They're involved in the entire agricultural production process. This is why we call women the poto mitan, central pillar, of the country." - Iderle Brénus
Source: The New Republic
In August 2015, an uncomfortable encounter between Black Lives Matter (BLM) protestors and Hillary Clinton finally broke the silence of many mainstream press outlets on the Clintons’ shared responsibility for the disastrous policies of mass incarceration, and its catalyst, the War on Drugs. Although a number of prominent academics have written on the subject, little popular discussion of the racial impact of the Clintons’ crime and punishment policies emerged until the opening volleys of the 2016 presidential race.
Source: The Guardian Unlimited
The Vermont senator’s success so far demonstrates the end of the politico-ideological cycle opened by the victory of Ronald Reagan at the 1980 elections
How can we interpret the incredible success of the “socialist” candidate Bernie Sanders in the US primaries? The Vermont senator is now ahead of Hillary Clinton among Democratic-leaning voters below the age of 50, and it’s only thanks to the older generation that Clinton has managed to stay ahead in the polls.
For 30 years, the Ugandan leader who is poised to extend his rule in this week’s elections has presided over a militarized regime supported by the West. The citizens desperately need change but they have no way of achieving it through compromised procedural democracy. The forces for change in Uganda must re-strategize and keep up this struggle after the elections.
Source: Truthout
One of philosophy’s central and most perplexing questions is, “Who are we?” Indeed, virtually all essential questions about human civilization, power, authority and governance follow from the question of what kind of creatures we are.
But is there really something distinct about us as a species? Or, to put the question in a more traditional philosophical context, is there such a thing as human nature? Classical philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle thought so, and so did most philosophers that form part of the modern tradition, beginning with Thomas Hobbes and going all the way up to Nietzsche. Of course, scientists have also probed human nature, and continue to do so down to this day, with the question being of particular interest to linguists, evolutionary biologists, neuroscientists and psychologists.
Source: Common Dreams
Already in 2016, communities around the world have been forced to confront climate disasters of all sorts.
Latin American countries are working with a sense of urgency to prevent transmission of the Zika virus, which spreads increasingly quickly in rising temperatures. From Indonesia to Malawi, people are grappling with the effects of what NASA estimates may be the worst El Niño on record.
Severe flooding in some regions and dire water shortages in others have resulted in food crises, mass migration, and economic mayhem. And although the United States and much of Europe have also experienced unprecedented temperatures and rainfall as a result of El Niño, it has been poor southern nations who have suffered most deeply and most immediately.
Copyright Toward Freedom 2019