The More We Know…

TF Board Thanks Outgoing Staff, Welcomes New Editor

Toward Freedom Editor May 14, 2021 Toward Freedom Editor

Dear Toward Freedom readers:

This week, Toward Freedom’s Board of Directors bids farewell to guest editor Charlotte Dennett, welcomes Toward Freedom’s new editor, Julie Varughese, and extends a heartfelt thanks to Sam Mayfield who stepped down as President of Toward Freedom’s Board of Directors in December, 2020. 

Charlotte Dennett stepped in as Toward Freedom’s guest editor last October. Her decades-long experience as a scholar, author and activist allowed Charlotte to seamlessly step into the position serving Toward Freedom’s mission, “to publish international reporting and incisive analysis that exposes government and corporate abuses of power, while supporting movements for universal peace, justice, freedom, the environment, and human rights.” read more

Moving on, Reflecting Back—Charlotte Dennett’s Editorial Tenure Ends

Charlotte Dennett May 12, 2021 Charlotte Dennett

Now that my Toward Freedom guest editorship has come to an end, I am reflecting back on the stories we ran for the past 6+ months and the writers who wrote them.

The scenes coming out of Modi’s India and its pandemic nightmare have been particularly horrific, causing me to inquire about the health of Toward Freedom contributor Sanket Jain. Sanket is a freelance journalist based in western India. TF ran two of his stories in December and February about how India’s poorest citizens were barely coping with Covid. He emailed me back: “Fortunately, I am safe. For the past few weeks, I have been on the field documenting the disaster that’s unfolding in remote villages of India. Last week, I was shooting photos at the crematorium to see how many people have died of COVID because the Government is hiding official numbers. It’s a nightmare to see a human disaster unfolding at such a massive scale. From lack of oxygen, improper vaccination policy, COVID patients facing ostracism in the village, to frontline healthcare workers facing verbal abuse and even physical assault, India is witnessing a humanitarian crisis. I hope we come out of this disaster soon.” read more

How the Murder of George Floyd Affected U.S. Newsrooms

Toward Freedom Editor April 6, 2021 Toward Freedom Editor
Derek Chauvin with his knee on the neck of George Floyd. Wikipedia

By Charlotte Dennett

The televised trial of (former) officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd has once again brought home how deeply embedded racism is in our “Anglo-Saxon” culture. New video footage of Floyd’s cries for help, accompanied by bystanders’ anguished protests throughout the entire 9 minute and 29 seconds of his painful demise, will hopefully have far-reaching ramifications regarding police reform and legislative actions to redress racist policies in the U.S.

What you may not know is that the demonstrations following George Floyd’s death last summer caused considerable introspection and angst in American newsrooms over an issue that may strike some as relatively trivial, but to editors throughout the U.S. was long overdue and fraught with meaning: whether to capitalize the word “black” in reference to “peoples of African ancestry.” read more

The More We Know

Toward Freedom Editor January 18, 2021 Toward Freedom Editor

The More We Know…

…the worse it gets. That’s been the commentary from media pundits and members of Congress since the Trumpers’ assault on the US capitol on January 6th. We now know that members of Congress phoned good-bye messages to loved ones as they lay huddled on the floor of the House chamber before Security was able to whisk them away to safety. The marauders came within minutes of confronting Vice President Pence, accusing him of treason for failing to stop the certification of the November election and vowing to string him up. (One of them was carrying a noose).  A security briefing by the acting Capitol police chief – described by members as” horrific and chilling” – told them their purchase of bullet-proof vests would be compensated. Members of the National Guard are now sleeping on the floors inside the Capitol – somewhat reassuring the lawmakers. read more

An Important Message to Our Readers

Toward Freedom Editor October 29, 2020 Toward Freedom Editor

The Toward Freedom Board of Directors welcomes Charlotte Dennett as our Guest Editor.

Charlotte joins us as a seasoned journalist and editor who was recently hailed as “an expert in resource-based politics” by Time magazine for her coverage of politics and resource wars in the Middle East. Her latest book, The Crash of Flight 3804 : A Lost Spy, A Daughter’s Quest, and the Deadly Politics of the Great Game for OiI is an important piece of literature for its historical reporting and personal investigation into the death by plane crash of her father, America’s first master-spy in the Middle East. read more