Stories about Digital Activism from July, 2009
Trinidad & Tobago: LGBT Rights
As Emancipation Day approaches, Trinidad and Tobago blog gspottt focuses on human rights, observing that “in the Anglophone Caribbean, discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender often intersect with other socio-economic conditions.”
Trinidad & Tobago: Anti-People?
“The Prime Minister is on record for saying that despite what the people think he will proceed with the [aluminium smelter]. Despite what people think. And the environmentalists, those crazy people who want to sustain the environment longer so that we can sustain ourselves…are ‘anti-people'?” Trinidadian blogger Taran Rampersad takes...
Barbados, Guyana: Immigration Debate
As reactions to the government's clampdown on illegal immigrants goes “off the boil”, Barbados Underground “condemns…the holier than thou attitude which President Jagdeo of Guyana and his cronies have directed at Barbados.”
Armenia: Political graffiti
The Hima! [AM] youth movement blog posts a photograph of graffiti appearing in Yerevan. The blog posts a photograph of one example remembering 1 March 2008 when 10 people died in clashes between opposition supporters and police in the Armenian capital.
China: The New York Times Enrages Netizens
C. Custer from China Geeks reported on anti-CNN's criticism on the New York Times’ misleading photo captions concerning the Urumqi riot.
Citizens of the World rally for Iran
On Saturday 25 July, 2009, Iranians and non-Iranians alike responded to the initiative United4Iran by taking part in an event to support the Iranian struggle for freedom and human rights. Coverage of these events included numerous citizen videos and photos. Hamburg/Germany: Washington/U.S. London/UK A protest outside the Islamic Republic's embassy in...
Russia: Making (Some) Sense of LiveJournal
A number of studies of the Russian blogosphere have been produced in the past by various entities. Russian bloggers, too, are trying to make sense of the space they operate in. Recently, LJ user fritzmorgen has drawn a list of issues that, in his opinion, tend to cause controversy among LJ bloggers. He has also assessed his own views, and, in the process, sketched explanations of some of the Russian realities.
Morocco: A Decade with Mohammed VI
When in July 1999, king Mohammed VI of Morocco ascended to the throne, the expectations for change and progress were such that many international observers foresaw an albeit difficult but inexorable march that would lead the country to a prosperous, liberal and democratic future. Ten years later, many bloggers and online news websites commemorate the first decade of the reign of Mohammed VI with hope for a better tomorrow.
Cuba: Political Arrests
Diaspora blogger Uncommon Sense links to a report that claims “there were 130 political arrests” in Cuba in the month of June.
Jamaica, U.S.A.: Fatherly Advice
Jamaican litblogger Geoffrey Philp considers the circumstances surrounding the arrest of Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. from a father's perspective: “I want my son to be a man who has enough self confidence to think that he can overcome any obstacle and that he will not permit any kind...
Azerbaijan: Fighting mirrors
Fighting windmills? Take a pill. recounts various events that have happened to Azerbaijan's youth movements in the past few months, including the detention of dozens of activists. The blog says that tomorrow a new initiative will be established to protect their rights.
Russia: One Day in the Life of Doctor Liza
LJ user drugoi documents (text in Russian+photos, some of them graphic) one day in the life of Elizaveta Glinka (LJ user doctor_liza), who heads a volunteer effort to help Moscow's homeless, poor and drug addicts by providing them with food, clothing and medical aid, and who is also the founder...
Moldova: RFE/RL's Blog on Repeat Vote
Natalia Morari is blogging in English at RFE/RL's #moldovavotes, a blog set up to cover the July 29 repeat parliamentary election in Moldova.
Africa: Bloggers Discuss HIV/AIDS among gay African men
Sub-Saharan has reported high rates of HIV among gay men in Africa. Let's listen to views of LGBT African bloggers writing about the issue.
Citizens of the World “United 4 Iran”
On Saturday July 25, people around the world will have the opportunity to support Iranians in their struggle for democracy, freedom and basic human rights by attending rallies in dozens of cities around the world.
“Resign or Else”: Portraits of Media Repression in Madagascar
VNR is a young journalist at one of the largest newspapers in Madagascar. When we first talked over the phone, her number was hidden and the first thing she said was to ask carefully what was the purpose of me wanting to talk to her. She and another journalist friend...
Cuba: Ferrer Arrested
Cuban bloggers react to the arrest of Dr. Darsi Ferrer on the grounds that he allegedly bought construction materials on the black market to repair his house: Blog for Cuba, Uncommon Sense and Human Rights Cuba.
Trinidad & Tobago: Building Authenticity
Build an authentic community and “the worship thing will come”: Trinidad and Tobago's gspottt attends a talk “about faith and sexuality, pain and healing, abuse and inclusion by the Christian church.”
India: Interview with Dina Mehta
Blogadda interviews Dina Mehta, one of the best-known bloggers and social media observers from India. She is also a friend and Advisor to Global Voices Online.
Russia: Medvedev and Sick Babies in Gelendzhik
LJ user baxus writes a letter (RUS) to president Medvedev, in which he describes how his infant son and many other kids got sick in Gelendzhik, a Russian Black Sea resort town, and what an ordeal it was to move around the area on the day of Medvedev's visit, due...
Azerbaijan: An interview with Arzu Geybullayeva
Despite the accent formed from education in the United States and the United Kingdom, Arzu Geybullayeva, now a regional analyst, has become one of Azerbaijan's most well-known bloggers on the country with her Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines blog.
