U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron just reignited the debate on “multiculturalism,” joining ranks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Sarkozy by declaring their multicultural policies a “failure.” As a U.S. passport carrying, multilingual, daughter of immigrants, and as a mother of aspiring global citizens, such a defeat felt like a kick in the gut. …
Tag: racism
The modern world rejects social injustices like slavery, segregation, and racial inequality, writes Tamica Parchment, 24, a Commonwealth Correspondent from Kingston, Jamaica. Yet complaints persist about racism and how it affects the lives of young people. It’s amazing the way that human beings can ignore a problem in the hope that it will go away …
Bullying is an old problem that can be spread by new technology, writes Harnoor Gill, 16, a Commonwealth Correspondent from Georgetown in Canada, who advocates education and early intervention to prevent bullying. The concept of bullying can be traced as far back as 1710 when it was first introduced as a “blusterer” or “harasser of the weak”.[i] Bullying …
It’s easy to oppose racism, but as Abdullah Al Hasan, 23, a Commonwealth Correspondent from Dhaka in Bangladesh, points out, lingering prejudices can undermine the effort to achieve equality. We live in a world where we raise our voices for the things – and yet we don’t even try to change those very things in …
Mothers are advocating for their daughters’ rights to exist as black people, unashamed of their roots – from historical to follicle – writes Alicia Wallace, 29, a Commonwealth Correspondent from Nassau, Bahamas. Young women are holding fast to their identities and rights as citizens and members of the African diaspora. They are unapologetic about the natural …
Violent extremism is a virus in the mould of HIV, writes Gerald Nwokocha, 28, a Correspondent from Abuja, Nigeria. HIV quietly and slowly attacks the human defense system, which protects humans from attacks by invading pathogens. In the same way, he argues, to attack the police is to be a virus that can lead to weakened …
Unhappy experience with racism prompts McPherlain Chungu, 21, a Commonwealth Correspondent from Zambia now studying in India, to reflect on the role of apathy. He argues that each individual can combat racism by speaking up and looking for ways in which we are similar rather than different. Just weeks ago, ten Nigerian students sustained severe injuries after …