In The News

The Economist: The Saudis May Be Stretching Out Hand of Peace to Old Foes

September 12, 2017
The protracted hostility between Saudi Arabia and Iran’s Arab allies may be cooling. The Economist observes that historically “the [Saudi] kingdom has been [on the] front of Sunni Islam’s anti-Shia dogma.” Following his ascension to the throne in 2015, “King Salman bin Abdelaziz and his young son and defence minister, Muhammad, set their sights on rolling back Iran’s influence from the region by...

The Guardian: Giant Portrait of Toddler Peers Over US-Mexico Border Wall

September 10, 2017
French Artist JR erected a huge photo of an amused toddler gripping the top of the US border wall with Mexico and surveying the territory below, “leaving the impression the entire thing could be toppled with a giggle,” according to the Associated Press. The artwork prompts discussion about proposals to extend the wall the full length of the border, about 2000 miles, and was unveiled the same week...

BBC News: Namibia's Himba People Caught Between Traditions and Modernity

Pumza Fihlani August 31, 2017
Small rural villages around the world are less isolated, and encroaching modern ways of life divide their people about how quickly to accept another language, women’s rights and family planning, schools and new curricula, or specialized businesses and consumerism. Pumza Fihlani of BBC News write about Namibia’s Himba people. “A steady stream of young men and women has been opting to leave the...

The Economist: Stumped for Words: Language Battle Hampers Algeria’s Development

August 28, 2017
The legacy of the French settler-colonial project continues to impact the politics of education in Algeria. “The republic’s official language is standard Arabic, but few children grow up speaking it, so they often feel lost on their first day of school. Berber, the tongue of perhaps a quarter of Algerians, was officially recognised last year – but no one can agree on which of its six dialects...

Foreign Affairs: Race in the Modern World: The Problem of the Colorline

Kwame Anthony Appiah August 22, 2017
At the first Pan-African Congress in London in 1900, black American intellectual and activist W.E.B. Du Bois affirmed that the “problem of the twentieth century” was “the color-line, the question as to how far differences of race … will hereafter be made the basis of denying to over half the world the right of sharing to their utmost ability the opportunities and privileges of modern civilization...

Southern Poverty Law Center: Guide to Countering “Alt-Right”

August 17, 2017
Right-wing extremist groups are descending on US college campuses, trying to recruit followers, attract publicity and incite outrage with various causes including white nationalism. Such appearances in diverse college towns like Berkeley, California, and Charlottesville, Virginia, have triggered protests, violence and fierce debates over the constitutional right to free speech. “College campuses...

The Economist: English-Language Newspapers in Latin America Are Struggling

August 15, 2017
Whether shutting down completely or going digital-only, many English-language newspapers in Latin American countries, including those in Argentina, Venezuela and Peru, are confronting the realities of technological change. The Internet has upended a previously successful business model for newspapers, as Anglophone immigrants and tourists can now use the Internet to “browse their hometown papers...