All posts by nedhamson

Activist, writer, researcher, addicted to sharing information and facts.

The accumulative effects of racism: it eats away at the essence of your being | Culture | The Guardian

“For every one of me there’s probably a thousand other kids who have anxiety issues or whose experiences have snowballed into a negative adulthood or depression,” she says. Bullying by no means “makes kids tougher and more wanting to succeed. I think often it just crushes people.”The resurgence of xenophobia in Australia troubles Clarke. She sees an “awful synchronicity” between past and present. Her parents left England in the 70s, soon after Enoch Powell’s infamous “Rivers of Blood” speech, which decried black immigrants and predicted that foreign children would overcrowd hospitals and schools. Two decades later, Clarke watched Pauline Hanson’s entrée into politics with a shockingly similar maiden speech, accompanied by a shift in public sentiment around race and immigration. Unsurprisingly, she is not optimistic about Hanson’s return, the rise of One Nation and Islamophobic rhetoric.“I feel as if there is really a global post-colonial situation at the moment,” which especially victimises children, Clarke says. “There are children’s bodies being brutalised or being washed up on beaches. We see brown children being locked up on Nauru and in Villawood Detention Centre. We see things like Don Dale and Indigenous communities having their funding cut.” But Clarke does see hope in Australia’s young people. “I look at my kids’ generation, and their outlook and the way they behave towards each other is different from anything I’ve seen in my lifetime,” she says. The cultural makeup of Australia has changed since Clarke’s childhood, and diversity in books, television, and online media have played a major role. Sharing stories breeds tolerance through understanding, Clarke believes. “It’s a wide big world and that there are lots of different kinds of people in it,” she says. “The best thing [a child] could possibly do is to learn to get along with everybody, because that’s just part of life.”The Hate Race is published by Hachette. Maxine Beneba Clarke will give the opening keynote address at the Melbourne Writers Festival on August 26.

Source: The accumulative effects of racism: it eats away at the essence of your being | Culture | The Guardian

‘I’m letting the world know I’ve arrived’ – Puig revels in Muguruza thumping — Repeating Islands

Ok, ok, I know I’m getting too excited about this . . . so I promise this is the last post about Puig’s victory over Muguruza. I am a crazy tennis fan, and there’s rarely anything to rave about when it comes to professional tennis and the Caribbean. So, in this last share of Puig’s […]

via ‘I’m letting the world know I’ve arrived’ – Puig revels in Muguruza thumping — Repeating Islands

India’s Cow Vigilantes by Shashi Tharoor – Project Syndicate – “fundamentalism kills, and kills, and kills in the name not of God but in the name of people who put themselves above God in their search for power and meaning.”

In the past, cow-protection laws have been weakly enforced, if at all; the police have better things to do than to check people’s kitchens, after all. But since the victory of the Hindu-chauvinist BJP in the 2014 general election, a wave of religious triumphalism has swept India, bringing with it not just new cow-protection laws, but also vociferous demands for their strict enforcement. Gau Rakshak Samitis, or “cow protection societies,” have been revived, and their members sometimes take it upon themselves to ensure that cows are not slaughtered or eaten.Making matters worse, the cause of cow protection has now been linked to another persistent and destructive custom in Indian society: violence against Muslims and Dalits (formerly called “untouchables”). Indeed, the Cow Belt, where cow vigilantism is most rampant, is also a hub of atrocities against Dalits, 63% of which occur in just four states: Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan. It is no coincidence that these are also the states where the BJP fared best in 2014.The link between cows and Dalits is well known. Cows may be considered holy, but they are not immortal, and when they die (ideally of natural causes), someone must dispose of their carcasses. For centuries, that job has fallen to Dalits, who collect the carcasses, skin them and sell their hides to tanners and leather-makers, deliver the meat to Muslim butchers (where it is legal), and bury or cremate what remains. It is a livelihood for a group with few economic opportunities – one that benefits the many Hindus who would not want to perform such an unpleasant task.But several recent incidents have shaken the foundations of this arrangement. In the state of Gujarat, four Dalit youths caught skinning a cow were stripped, tied, and beaten with iron rods by cow vigilantes who accused them of killing the animal (they had not). In BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh, two Dalit women were assaulted for supposedly carrying illegal cow meat (it was legal buffalo meat). In Punjab, two young Dalits were beaten and urinated upon for the same “crime.” A 16-year-old Kashmiri Muslim boy was murdered for having hitched a ride on a truck that was transporting cattle.

Source: India’s Cow Vigilantes by Shashi Tharoor – Project Syndicate

Admit Jimmy Carter Was Right

For decades Jimmy Carter has been the whipping post of the nose picking Right…..but his admin had some good program ideas that never got a chance….he also was instrumental to finding a peace, although not lasting, between Israel and Palestine, of which he gets little credit…..finally he was the closest thing we have had as president that is a true Christian….. These days there is lots of back and forth on climate change or global warming or dinosaurs farts….science is ignored all in favor of some continuous BS….but Carter had an idea on this problem back in the 70’s and it was a good one…sadly he got no chance to put his ideas into motion……(and we know why don’t we?)……. Americans, who hate to be told they must change, roundly condemned Jimmy Carter’s memorable “Crisis of Confidence” speech of July 15, 1979. In it, Carter outlined a program for achieving energy independence: “On the battlefield of energy we can win for our nation a new confidence, and we can seize control again of our common destiny.” We admirers have long endured ridicule whenever we dared to defend Carter’s prescient plan for reducing U.S. dependence on oil. But today, after all the abuse and scorn heaped on Jimmy Carter and his supporters, we find ourselves paying more than $4 a gallon at the pump to fill our hulking gas guzzlers. It turns out that Carter was right after all. Source: History News Network | Is it Safe Now to Admit Jimmy Carter Was Right? They say hindsight is 20/20 but it would not be needed if there were more people of courage and vision like Jimmy Carter. All I know is my area use to get 10-12 inches of rain during the summer months…..these days we are lucky to see 4….something is going on and something needs to be paid attention to or the results could be dire. <img alt=”” src=”https://pixel.wp.com/b.gif?host=lobotero.com

Source: Admit Jimmy Carter Was Right

Florida governor criticizes Washington for lagging in Zika fight | Reuters – This after his people refused to work with CDC two weeks ago – Scott is just CYA for being a dummy!

Scott said he asked U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Thomas Frieden earlier this week for 10,000 additional Zika preparedness kits.

Source: Florida governor criticizes Washington for lagging in Zika fight | Reuters

Flatmates of gay Syrian refugee beheaded in Turkey fear they will be next | World news | The Guardian

Three flatmates of a gay Syrian refugee beheaded in a homophobic attack in Turkey last week fear they face a similar fate, after receiving death threats in the days since his murder.Wisam Sankari, a hospital cleaner, went missing on 25 July after going to meet another gay man in Istanbul. His body was found two days later in a nearby area of Istanbul, his head severed and his battered body only identifiable to his friends by his clothing.A week on, three of his flatmates say they fear being murdered in the same fashion after receiving warnings that the man Sankari met on 25 July wants to kill them too.“There have been people in the street and people on the phone, who said: ‘He will get you next,’” said one of Sankari’s friends, a chef who, like his flatmates, asked to remain anonymous for safety reasons. “There was also a voice message on Facebook.”In an interview with the Guardian in Sankari’s former room, a cramped lodging he shared with five other people, his friends said he had been in fear during the last months of his life after Turkish officials, UN diplomats and charity workers had proved unable to protect him following a series of homophobic attacks.A Greek appeals board said in June that it considers Turkey safe enough for gay Syrians to be deported to as part of the controversial EU-Turkey migration deal. But Sankari’s friends say his experiences show how dangerous the country is for gay refugees, and unstable for refugees in general.They alleged that in the months before his death, Sankari had:Been kidnapped and raped in two separate homophobic attacks.Been mocked and ignored by police officers after he reported one of the incidents.Eventually initiated legal proceedings against his unknown kidnappers after a local NGO helped him find a lawyer.Recorded a video in which he expressed fears that he might soon be killed in a homophobic attack.Briefly moved to another Turkish city in an unsuccessful attempt to find a safer place to live.Been fired from a factory job because of his sexuality.“Do you call this safe?” summarised a second of Sankari’s flatmates, as they listened to their friend’s favourite song and watched a video made in his honour. “We don’t have an organisation to protect us. We want everyone in Europe to understand our situation here for Syrians, especially gays. We’re suffering.”

Source: Flatmates of gay Syrian refugee beheaded in Turkey fear they will be next | World news | The Guardian

The Independence Olympics, Mario Deane and Ministers’ Words: Jamaica, Saturday August 6, 2016 — Petchary’s Blog

Happy Independence Day to all who are celebrating! It’s very quiet in Kingston, but no doubt a few parties will break out later on. I was happy to attend a “Rae Town Oldies” party at the residence of the Spanish Chargée d’Affaires two days ago, which was huge fun (and, of course wonderful oldies in […]

via The Independence Olympics, Mario Deane and Ministers’ Words: Jamaica, Saturday August 6, 2016 — Petchary’s Blog

World Surfing Games 2016 in Costa Rica — Repeating Islands

In “Scoring the World Surfing Games: A guide,” Ellen Zoe Golden gives a detailed description of what the forthcoming World Surfing Games 2016 entail. The World Surfing Games 2016 will take place at Playa Jacó in Costa Rica, starting tomorrow—Sunday, August 7—and ending on August 14. To the layman, the International Surfing Association (ISA)’s upcoming […]

via World Surfing Games 2016 in Costa Rica — Repeating Islands

Egyptian Aak 2016- Week 31 (Aug 1-7) — Nervana

Top Headlines Egypt kills head of Islamic State’s Sinai branch Former grand mufti Ali Gomaa survives assassination attempt Largest Egyptian delegation to date in Rio Olympics Egyptian Nobel Laureate Ahmed Zewail dies at 70 Main Headlines Monday Sisi: Egyptians need to accept harsh economic measures Fitch: IMF deal credit positive for Egypt, implementation risks remain […]

via Egyptian Aak 2016- Week 31 (Aug 1-7) — Nervana