Peter Maurer currently serves as the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, the largest humanitarian network in the world. Harvard Political Review: How would you compare your previous diplomatic experience to the humanitarian work in which you are now involved? Do you think your years in the diplomatic service prepared you for your … Read more
“I think they’re militant, and I don’t think we should be putting our name on a thing that sued the University.” Such were the words of Daniel Banks ’17, the Undergraduate Council’s Student Initiatives Chair, regarding Divest Harvard. The night was April 12, and the activist group had just introduced an unambitious piece of legislation … Read more
“Africa will write its own history, and it will be, to the north and to the south of the Sahara, a history of glory and dignity.” So wrote Patrice Lumumba, the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s first prime minister, in 1960. Though his leadership was unconnected to Swahili particularly, the words spoke to a new, … Read more
Conflict: this was the word that came to mind when I thought of the Jewish state. As a frequent consumer of both American and Pakistani media, I have read my fair share about tensions and negotiations with the Palestinians, but I am far from an expert. This past March, I was preparing to travel with … Read more
Conflict: this was the word that came to mind when I thought of the Jewish state. As a frequent consumer of both American and Pakistani media, I have read my fair share about tensions and negotiations with the Palestinians, but I am far from an expert. This past March, I was preparing to travel with … Read more
At a board meeting last month, the other organizers of Harvard College Effective Altruism (HCEA) and I were worried in the best possible way: we were planning a talk by philosopher Peter Singer and it had received over 1,500 RVSPs weeks in advance. With great excitement, we booked a second overflow university lecture hall to … Read more
For 16 years, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart has been at the helm of cutting-edge political criticism with a progressive slant. Mercilessly calling out racism, sexism, and hypocrisy in the government and in the media, The Daily Show has inspired a generation to advocate for equality. Stewart and his team of correspondents have covered … Read more
In 1976, Prime Minister Konstantinos Karamanlis confidently declared that “Greece belongs to the West,” echoing the sentiments of the Greek political elite since the end of the Second World War. The nation is the birthplace of democracy, land of the great thinkers that inspired the founders of Western democracies millennia after their deaths. The West … Read more
Across the country today, fast food workers are walking off the job to show their support of increasing the minimum wage to $15 per hour. The economic justice campaign, known as “Fight for $15,” has been described as the “largest-ever mobilization of underpaid workers,” with rallies taking place in over 200 cities. In Boston, #WageAction supporters gathered at the Harvard Square … Read more
With 2016 GOP presidential hopefuls starting to declare their candidacies, their party already appears to be dividing into two factions: fiscal hawks and defense hawks. The Senate recently passed a budget blueprint with provisions and proposed amendments that put a spotlight on the fiscal differences between several presidential hopefuls. Senators Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Rand … Read more