Freedom
Coldplay Slammed for 'Freedom For Palestine' Facebook Post
Coldplay fans are not happy. The band fronted by Chris Martin has come under fire after posting a link to a “Freedom for Palestine” video by the band OneWorld on their Facebook page.
Literary Gender Wars Rage On
Last year, I spent a lot of time writing about the literary feud known as “Franzenfreude,” which occurred when the plaudits received for Jonathan Franzen’s novel “Freedom” inspired a big conversation about gender, genre and the marketing, reviewing and treatment of books in the media.
Egypt's Maria TV Requires Women Wear Niqab Full Face Veil: Channel Director Calls it 'Freedom'
Female faces are absent from a new Egyptian TV station. Maria TV only features women who believe that God has commanded them to conceal their faces behind a full face veil known as a Niqab. Station manager Ahmed Abdallah: “This is a victory for women who wear the niqab after many years of suffering political, social, moral and cultural exclusion by the secularists and under the umbrella of democracy. This prejudiced treatment, that went on for 50, 60, 70 years, is now over. I hereby announce a new free era for women who wear the niqab.” The channel’s female stars, dressed from head to toe in long black robes and scarves with black gloves to match, are distinguishable only by their voices and the tiny sliver of their eyes. While some scholars say that the niqab is not mandatory in Islam, the practice has many devoted followers in Egypt. Station director Heba Serag El Din: “I applied to many TV stations to work as a director and they told me that they cannot hire a woman wearing a full face veil. I said that I work behind the scenes as a director and not a presenter but they told me that the policy was not to hire women in a niqab.” The launch of Maria TV mirrors the rise of ultra-conservative Muslims in Egypt since the fall of former leader Hosni Mubarak last year. Public dress is beginning to reflect the political trend, something not everyone feels is suitable for a modern, inclusive democracy. Local resident Shaza Abbass: “The media should target all sections of society …
OneWorld - hilarious Glenn Beck meltdown about Freedom for Palestine single!
FreedomOneWorld wrote: Song available from: HMV http://tinyurl.com/5u3t227 - Just 79p! Itunes http://tinyurl.com/65ngad8 - Just 79p! Amazon http://tinyurl.com/6862xyq - Just 69p! You’ve heard what Glenn thinks- Join us! www.facebook.com/freedomoneworld www.freedomoneworld.com http://itunes.apple.com/gb/preorder/freedom-for-palestine-single/id441209640 http://www.hmvdigital.com/artist/oneworld/freedom-for-palestine http://www.freedomoneworld.com
Foods of Freedom: Egyptian Leek Mina
After the bitter herbs, charoset, salt water and the symbolism that goes along with them, the Passover seder can easily slip into a festive meal containing minimal meaning, save for the deliciousness of this year’s soup versus last year’s. Though our Passover entrees are often filled with significance, as foods of family tradition and memories of Passovers past, main dishes during the seder should not be overlooked as an opportunity to infuse a holiday meal with meaning. This year we have chosen recipes from two nations, which in the last two decades have found new freedom — Egypt and South Africa. We hope that these dishes spark lively conversation about the path to modern freedom around the Passover table.
On Women, Bylines and Bestsellers
Last month, The Sisterhood’s Elissa Strauss wrote post called “In Magazine Journalism, It’s Nowhere Near the End of Men,” using her own survey of magazines to show that male bylines still win out in terms of sheer numbers. And now there’s some serious research to back up her personal accounting. These numbers from VIDA, an organization that promotes women in literary arts, show that in essentially every single literary magazine, book review section or literarily inclined magazine, male bylines considerably trump female ones, as do reviews of books by men.
Faith in the Holy Land - the Druze
This video takes you on a journey to the roots of monotheistic beliefs and portrays aspects of monotheism in the Holy Land in the twenty-first century. All faiths see Israel as the Holy Land and have special rituals and holy places that are sacred only to them. What constitutes a ritual for a one religion might not be regarded as sacred by another. Are we able to look past these cultural differences and recognize that we are all human beings living side-by-side in the land of Israel? Over twenty religious leaders share their point of view and offer us a glimpse into their world, rituals, and way of life.
GRITtv: July 7, 2010
Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussing their countries' foreign relations resembles two lovers discussing their future together. Though they have squabbled in the past over trivial things (things like settlement expansion that most other countries deem flagrant violations of international law), their July 6th meeting at the White House showed that their "unbreakable bond" cannot be shaken.Norman Finkelstein joins us in the studio to report that one should judge the alleged "peace process" with results, not rhetoric. Obama has certainly given enough lip service to settlement moratoriums, proximity talks, and direct talks, but what are the results?The Obama administration set up a clash with Arizona over the state's immigration bill, SB 1070, this week when it filed suit in federal court claiming that the law is a breach of federal authority. ; The law goes into effect later this month and would allow law enforcement officials to stop anyone on suspicion of being undocumented.In the wake of SB 1070's passage, states around the country have initiated copycat bills and other legislation aimed at cracking down on immigration. But in addition to the Holder Justice Department's lawsuit, progressive state legislators are fighting back on the state level, and activists are pushing for commonsense immigration bills on both a state and federal level. We are joined by Arizona state legislator Kyrsten Sinema and Suman Raghunathan of the Progressive States Network to discuss the ongoing fight.Finally, inspired by the film Winter Bone, Laura has some thoughts about the military, the economy, and what happens when we bring home thousands of soliders in need of new jobs.
GRITtv: June 1, 2010
In the middle of the night Monday, Israeli commandoes boarded ships in the "Freedom Flotilla" attempting to bring humanitarian aid to residents of still-blockaded Gaza. The aggressive response by Israel turned deadly, after with at least nine activists killed. The international community has reacted with shock and outrage; protests have erupted around the world outside Israeli embassies, with protesters even teargassed in Paris. Benjamin Netanyahu has cancelled a meeting with President Obama and headed back to Israel to do damage control, and Turkey, from where the flotilla departed, has recalled its ambassador and issued a travel warning to its citizens. Huwaida Arraf was on one of the ships; she joins us via phone from Ramallah, along with Norman Finkelstein, to tell us what happened to her and offer some analysis on the situation. Then we speak to Richard Falk, UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, for more on the international reaction and the U.S.'s involvement. Finally, Laura reminds us all of some words on the U.S./Israel relationship from General David Petraeus.
GRITtv: Norman Finkelstein & Huwaida Arraf: Israel's Attack
On Monday, Israeli commandoes boarded ships in the "Freedom Flotilla" attempting to bring humanitarian aid to residents of still-blockaded Gaza. The aggressive response by Israel turned deadly, with at least nine activists killed. The international community has reacted with shock and outrage; protests have erupted around the world outside Israeli embassies, with protesters even teargassed in Paris. Benjamin Netanyahu has cancelled a long awaited meeting surrounding peace talks with President Obama and headed back to Israel to do damage control, and Turkey, from where the flotilla departed, has recalled its ambassador and issued a travel warning to its citizens. Huwaida Arraf was on one of the ships; she joins us via phone from Ramallah, along with Norman Finkelstein, to tell us what happened to her and offer some analysis on the situation.