Sometimes, wars are not fought with guns and tanks but with nets and hooks. For those enslaved by the Thai fishing industry, the ocean is their battlefield; every man is at war with the sea and their slavers. Beatings and killings are an everyday occurrence. Forced to silently bear unrelenting abuse, countless Myanmar migrants and … Read more
For parents who are informed that their child is deaf or hard of hearing, the number one concern is how they will be able to communicate with their child. My mother told me that when she learned I was deaf, when I was 13 months old, what pained her most was thinking I would never … Read more
Whether constructed to manipulate societies or assert order over natural environments, humans have long loved walls. As literal barriers between areas, walls have the power to either stave off powerful forces or confine them. In the Sahel, a semi-arid region between the Sahara Desert of North Africa and the savannas of West Africa, international experts, … Read more
With over 100 million people, Ethiopia is easily the most populous landlocked country on earth. When Eritrea seceded in 1993, Ethiopia lost access to its coastline, impeding its economic growth and limiting the nation’s ambitions of becoming a regional hegemon. No coastline meant no direct access to ports, hindering Ethiopia’s efforts to achieve middle-income status … Read more
When former Army Lieutenant Colonel and educator Pat Spearman ran for the Nevada State Senate in 2012, her platform was as ambitious as her chances were slim. She promised to work to reform Nevada’s education system, to improve environmental protections, and to stop obstructing tax reform like her opponent, incumbent John Lee, had been. But … Read more
The history of the United States’ treatment of its indigenous peoples is more notorious than it is honorable, littered with controversial policies including tribal relocation and forced assimilation. From the earliest days of American colonies to the 20th century, the United States and Native American nations negotiated some 500 treaties, nearly all of which were … Read more
On July 21, thousands of students and adult allies marched and rallied in over 20 cities around the world as part of Zero Hour, an international movement to combat climate change. The impressive turnout seemed a testament to young people’s hunger for environmental action. Yet already the movement is threatened by a loss of momentum. … Read more
The “school-to-prison pipeline” is defined by the ACLU as the “national trend in which children are funneled out of public schools and into the juvenile and criminal justice system.” Concern for the devastating impacts of this phenomenon has steadily increased over the past couple of decades, as our society reckons with the consequences of an oftentimes dysfunctional, … Read more
The judgement had come down. Critics had tasted the burger in front of the camera and an invited audience of journalists, and they had judged the patty to be “rather like” meat. The key was that the burger was not made from conventional meat: rather, it was composed of cultured beef muscle cells grown in … Read more
On August 7, Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley, a Republican, and two-term Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) coasted to easy primary victories in the race for McCaskill’s current Missouri Senate seat. News outlets from the Washington Post to NBC framed the election as a head-to-head race between the candidates, with no predictable outcome. Local news … Read more