Global// From Repression to Resurgence: The Power of Environmental Movements in Chile.
By Maya Hernandez
With the increasing threat posed by global climate change, a few countries have emerged as leaders when it comes to combatting this crisis. Among them is Chile. According to the 2020 Climate Change Performance Index by Germanwatch, of 57 evaluated countries around the globe, Chile is ranked 11, right behind Finland. It is the only “high” ranking country in Latin America (Germanwatch). This was not always the case, as decades of authoritarian rule and its legacy were not conducive to environmentally responsible policy. It was not until a wave of democratization swept across Latin America in 1990 that Chile began to see increased mobilization around environmental issues.
Global// Feminist Foreign Policy So White?!
By Miriam Mona Müller and Husna Chhoangalia
Feminist Foreign Policy (FFP) is centred around the needs of the most marginalised in International Relations. In 2014, Sweden was the first government to officially launch a Feminist Foreign Policy. Like Foreign Policy in general, the Feminist Foreign Policy sphere is so white. And Whiteness is identified as the norm. This makes it quite challenging for Black, Indigenous and Womxn of Color (BIWoC) to raise their voice. Too often we have witnessed how white feminists silenced BIWoC by tone policing and imposing their views on feminism. In this opinion piece, we share our self-care strategies to survive in a political environment that wasn’t made for us.
Global// Marching with Lady Liberty.
By Maya Hernandez
On the 4ᵗʰ March 2000, a crowd of farmworkers and activists took to the streets of Fort Myers and embarked on a 235-mile march to Florida’s Fruit and Vegetable Association in Orlando. This trek was a protest against the abuse, low pay, and gruelling conditions suffered by agricultural workers in major food corporations in Orlando. Protestors who participated in the march carried with them a giant papier-mache replica of The Statue of Liberty. This one-of-a-kind rendition of Lady Liberty hoisting up a bright red tomato was created by the artist Kat Rodriguez for the CIW’s march and was intended to capture the people who make up the American population and show how, as that population grew, these people managed to find ways to ‘negotiate…what it meant to be American’.
Global// Battered and Bruised: 2Pac Against the Criminal Justice System.
By Maya Hernandez
2Pac’s 1995 album Me Against the World is riddled with paradox: from portraits of perseverance and positivity to hopelessness and despondency. Despite these contradictory messages, one preoccupation remains constant: an indictment of the criminal-justice system. Although this subject is not new to rap music, it takes on a new light against the backdrop of Tupac’s run-ins with the law and sexual abuse accusations, his mother’s involvement with the Black Panther Party, and the passage of the largest crime bill in the history of the United States.
Global// Instagram: A Rising News Medium and the Erosion of Fact-Based Journalism.
By Tamsin Lacourte
Long gone are the days of sipping a mug of steaming coffee whilst reading the daily newspaper. For younger generations, clicking on Instagram for the latest news has become second nature. According to the Reuters 2020 Digital News Report, Instagram’s use as a source of news has doubled since 2018 and looks likely to overtake Twitter over the next year.
TW: Extreme violence, rape// The Rohingya people need our help.
By Sophia Kleanthous
The 25th August 2020 marks 3 years since the Rohingya genocide that forced hundreds of thousands of Muslim Rohingya people to flee to neighbouring countries, like Bangladesh, from their home in Myanmar. Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh is home to the largest refugee settlement in the world, with over 915,000 Rohingya refugees. This article will tell the story of two of them, Shafika and Rajuma.
Global// The Cold War and social change in Latin America.
By Maya Hernandez
Latin America during the Cold War saw an increasing American presence that was determined to squash any hint of Soviet communism, often at the expense of social progress, in order to reestablish its dominance in the region. Aside from a few notable instances of improvement, looking at the impacts of United States intervention in Guatemala, Brazil, and Chile, the Cold War can be characterized as having stifled the potential for social change across Latin America.
Global// Emotions in Moral Judgement: What does neuroscience tell us about self-driving cars?
By Simran Saraf
One interesting area is the domain of self-driving cars, and how they are programmed to handle collisions. For example, should the car swerve to avoid hitting five people but thus end up hitting one other person? Another important consideration is how the lives of the owners or passengers vs. pedestrians or passengers of other cars are weighed.
USA// Privilege, Property, and the Federalist Papers.
By Maya Hernandez
Alexander Hamilton and James Madison, who would later be joined by John Jay, in publishing the Federalist Papers to promote the ratification of the newly proposed Constitution. With their status in mind, it is not surprising that the American Founders have been criticized for having drafted systems of government that privilege the property of the well off at the expense of the wellbeing of the many.
USA// The selective hegemony of the law.
By Maggie Kupitz
While the legal system in the United States occasionally provides resources or avenues for its people to challenge specific inequalities, it also simultaneously – whether intentionally or unintentionally – reinforces various structures of inequality which are ingrained in our collective consciousness and in our institutions.
Global// Is China’s Belt and Road Initiative contemporary colonialism?
By Rubli Carran
It can be argued that this strategic trade plan is not about money. Especially, as right now, China is just spending it and not seeing it returned as revenue or as loan repayments at an appropriate scale. This is about their international status. They’re increasing their allies, made possible by Trump’s inward administrative policy, and paving a path for China to work their way into any nation who are not currently benefiting from a US alliance.