Lebanon: Life for Palestinian refugees in Bourj el-Barajneh | OCHA

In the southern suburbs of Lebanon’s capital Beirut lies Bourj el-Barajneh, a cramped refugee camp which is home to an estimated 28,000 Palestinian refugees. At least 3,000 people have arrived in the past year, fleeing the violence in Syria. Their arrival has stretched the limited resources available in the camp, leaving many without adequate access to even the most basic public services.The narrow alleys of Bourjel-Barajneh run between numerous buildings – old, new, mostly unfinished or poorly maintained. Most Palestinian refugees living there are completely dependent on organizations like the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and other humanitarian partners.“Over 90 per cent of the Palestinians here are unemployed so they either depend on assistance or they have to borrow,” says Dima Zayat Shehab, a health manager from the American Near East Refugee Aid (ANERA), an international NGO that works with OCHA and UNRWA. “We have found that food and shelter are the two biggest concerns.”

Source: Lebanon: Life for Palestinian refugees in Bourj el-Barajneh | OCHA

life on the verge of existence…. my article in huffington post italia | nadiaharhash

When Oppression is the Law. Resistance becomes an Obligation. Resistance is the way to liberation. Liberation is the way to peace. Peace cannot be built under oppression, apartheid and injustice.

Source: life on the verge of existence…. my article in huffington post italia | nadiaharhash

Theft, Lies, and Facebook Video — Medium {So is anyone surprised? Profit before people debases the whole system and is not likely to change}

Among the user generated content that drove traffic to YouTube in 2006 and 2007, there were plenty of Family Guy and Daily Show clips. But YouTube was a tiny start-up flying under the radar. As soon as it got big (and got bought) Google fixed this problem with “Content ID,” a system that analyzes every single video uploaded to YouTube and checks it against a massive database of known owned content.It’s a little inexcusable that Facebook, a company with a market cap of $260 BILLION, launched their video platform with no system to protect independent rights holders. It wouldn’t be surprising if Facebook was working on a solution now which they can roll out conveniently after having made their initial claims at being the biggest, most important thing in video.But even if they do have a system, it won’t function as well as Content ID. Content ID works so well largely because YouTube is good at monetizing content. So, instead of taking a video down, a copyright holder can claim the video and receive revenue from it. Content ID has claimed millions of videos and is responsible for over a billion dollars in revenue so copyright holders love it. But without a good system of monetization, Facebook can only remove videos, not send big checks to the owners of stolen content. For the copyright holder, interfacing with a profitless system is just a pain in the ass with no upside.

Source: Theft, Lies, and Facebook Video — Medium

A Clergyman Of Peace and Courage: Remembering Ven. Maduluwawe Sobitha Thero

sobitha1-thero-5000011.jpg

Picture courtesy omlanka

Today has been declared a national day of mourning as Ven Maduluwawe Sobitha Thero is laid to rest.  To mark this day, Groundviews has curated some of the best stories in remembrance to his tireless pursuit for social justice.

Access the stories curated directly on Storify here.

groundviewssl?d=yIl2AUoC8zA groundviewssl?i=4bLQs7jIzK8:hbngHydeFEw: groundviewssl?d=qj6IDK7rITs

Erdogan, Sisi and Western hypocrisy | Middle East Eye

The message sent to the people of the region is loud and clear: either a made to fit democracy tailored to our needs and likes, or a dictator, odious though he may be. We will block our noses and shake the vulgar thug’s hand. We will call on our band of hired apologists: “experts,” “commentators” and “analysts” to concoct a set of justifications and excuses for his nauseating conduct, from mythical economic development and reform to political shrewdness, and if all else fails, reach for the Kissinger-Albright dictionary and throw in some “political realism”.Ironically, while over 85 percent of eligible voters had participated in the Turkish elections, roughly the same percentage of Egyptians had chosen to collectively abstain from taking part in the recent shambolic Egyptian parliamentary polls. Thus they had denied the Field Marshal and his backers in Washington and London the fig leaf much needed to cover his dictatorial rule.While Erdogan is vilified and chastised, the red carpet is rolled out for Sisi. Yet one had placed his country on the route to democracy after five military coups and decades of absolutist army rule, while the other had put a brutal stop to his nation’s nascent democratic experiment.

Source: Erdogan, Sisi and Western hypocrisy | Middle East Eye

Israeli municipality to build 891 settlement units in Bethlehem

PNN/ Bethlehem/

The Israeli occupation municipality in Jerusalem on Wednesday approved the construction of 891 settlement units in Gilo settlement,  which was constructed on Bethlehem territory in the occupied West Bank.

According to The Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth, the municipality claimed that the construction plan was approved in 2013 and that only the adoption of the plan is technical.

On Tuesday. Netanyahu approved the construction of 2,200 settlement units in Ma’ale Michmas settlement east of Ramallah, despite the growing Palestinian frustration and flare of resistance against the occupation.

Time Stands Still for the Mothers of Mexico’s Disappeared

mother%20of%20tizapa%20small.pngThe mothers of Mexico’s disappeared have become experts in their own right—many have searched for their children on their own and have become the fiercest activists and critics of government impunity and state violence in Mexico.They have become the leaders of grassroots organization against a criminal state responsible for the disappearances of their children and thousands of others.

 

Utah judge orders baby taken away from married lesbian foster parents | US news | The Guardian

Utah state child welfare officials on Wednesday were wrangling with a ruling by a juvenile court judge who ordered a baby to be taken from lesbian foster parents and instead placed with a heterosexual couple, saying it was for the child’s wellbeing.Judge Scott Johansen’s order on Tuesday raised concerns at the Utah Division of Child and Family Services, said agency spokeswoman Ashley Sumner.Its attorneys plan to review the decision and determine what options they have to challenge the order.

Source: Utah judge orders baby taken away from married lesbian foster parents | US news | The Guardian

Humans of New York

“I’m trying to make it on my own. It’s been a tough road. I fell behind at our first apartment and we got evicted. But I went through a job program for women and now I work as a case manager with Coalition for The Homeless. We moved into a two-bedroom in Bedford-Stuyvesant. I love my job, but I’m trying to raise four kids on a single income. We don’t have much extra stuff. We don’t have cable. The kids say they need internet for school but we’d need a computer for that, so we just go to the library. I’d love to hang up nice curtains. Or paint the house. But I don’t want to make our apartment into a home because I’m afraid to get too comfortable. I’ve already come close to missing rent so many times. I feel like I can never relax. But I have the most wonderful children. They never want me to buy them new things. But I’m afraid that I’m damaging their confidence. I can’t do anything nice for them. And I don’t want them to grow up feeling like they don’t deserve nice things. But at least we’re together. And we have a home. And we’re safe. I tell the girls all the time that we should feel lucky. I think they get tired of me saying that. But I honestly feel that we’re so lucky.”

Source: Humans of New York

Connecticut labor federation backs Israel boycott | The Electronic Intifada

At the Connecticut branch’s convention in October, delegates passed a resolution calling on the national AFL-CIO to adopt BDS “in connection with companies and investments profiting from or complicit in human rights violations arising from the occupation of the Palestinian territories by the State of Israel, and to urge its affiliates and related pension and annuity funds to adopt similar strategies.”

Source: Connecticut labor federation backs Israel boycott | The Electronic Intifada