Activism Archives - Page 2 of 62

Covid 19 and The Desperate Lives of India’s Sugarcane Workers

Sanket Jain February 21, 2021 Sanket Jain

Devabai Valvi used to sharpen her sickle every month. That changed when the pandemic swept through India. For the first time, she had to abandon her sickle and watch with dismay as agricultural workers like herself were forced to to be idle. On March 23rd, 2020, when India reported 618 COVID cases, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi hastily declared a lockdown – curbing the movement of 1.3 billion people. Sixty eight days later, when the lockdown was lifted, India had already registered 189,273 COVID cases, and today, nine months later, it has surpassed 10 million cases and reported over 155,000 deaths. India now has the highest number of COVID cases after the United States.

Chile’s feminists push to decriminalize abortion

Carole Concha Bell February 19, 2021 Carole Concha Bell

Abortion campaigners in Chile have been heartened by the recent legalization of abortion in neighboring Argentina and are currently presenting a bill for the decriminalization of abortion. But with a pro-life government and Senate inherited from the Pinochet regime (1973-90) any amendments to the existing law will be hard won.

‘The US is falling apart’: How Russian media is portraying the US Capitol siege

Lena Surzhko Harned February 8, 2021 Lena Surzhko Harned

Russisan coverage of the Capitol insurrection has juxtaposed the disorder in the United States to the proclaimed "order and stability" in Russia -- although recent mass protests in Russia over the imprisonment of Russian dissident Alexney Navalni (see accompanying article) have now put the Russians on the defensive.

Libyan Women Are Charting a Path Toward Involvement in Politics and the Peace Process

Marianne Dhenin January 20, 2021 Marianne Dhenin

For outspoken Libyan women and human rights defenders, harassment, intimidation, and violence have become routine. Despite the dangers, they continue to foster a network of politically-minded community organizers and civil society organizations committed to charting a path toward greater women’s participation in public life, politics, and their nation’s ongoing peace process.

A Cry for Help: Burlington’s Sister City in Nicaragua is a Major Disaster Zone

Charlotte Dennett December 8, 2020 Charlotte Dennett

Members of the Burlington (VT)-Puerto Cabezas Sister City Program (established in 1984 by then-Mayor Bernie Sanders and the Burlington City Council) are putting out an urgent call for help. Dan Higgins, a professional photographer who has documented the lives and livelihoods of the people of “Port” over two decades, is heading up the campaign., “A lot of communities lost their roofs," he told Toward Freedom. "Houses are wrecked. It's a major disaster." Roughly 2,000 homes were destroyed..

The People Have Spoken!

Charlotte Dennett November 8, 2020 Charlotte Dennett

Major wins for democracy in the Americas have occurred in the past two months: in Bolivia and Chile in October, extending into the November 3 U.S. elections. Toward Freedom salutes the citizens of all three countries for their determination to defeat authoritarianism. We hope the following images will serve as inspiration to progressive forces around the world.

In Bolivia: a near-landslide victory occurred for the left-wing Movimiento al socialismo (MAS) and its presidential candidate, Luis Arce, in the country’s national elections in mid-October. read more