Stories about Ethnicity & Race from December, 2007
Thailand: Disadvantages of Being a Eurasian Kid
Pisnau reminisces childhood days and lists the disadvantages of being a kid with mixed ethnicity.
Armenia: Bloggers Protest Days of Azerbaijan
Oneworld Multimedia reports that a group of Armenian bloggers have protested the Days of Azerbaijan currently being held at a school in Yerevan. However, while the bloggers do not represent every Armenian with a blog, it is interesting to note that certain media outlets neglected to report the incident at...
Russia: Deti Picasso
Georgia & the South Caucasus is impressed by the ethnic Armenian indie band from Russia, Deti Picasso. Fusing both traditional Armenia with alternative contemporary sounds, the blog hopes that the band will one day make it to Europe.
Armenia: Days of Azerbaijan
Despite the unresolved conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh, Oneworld Multimedia comments on press reports that a school in the Armenian capital is currently staging an event, Days of Azerbaijan in Yerevan. The blog wonders if there will now be a Days of Azerbaijan...
South Korea: Civil Organization to Expel All Illegal Aliens
CINA blogs about the establishment of a “civil organization” campaigning to expel all migrants without legal document.
Thailand:
Thai-American Joa Moragoat's observations on how the Thai people have “over interpreted-over assimilated foreign cultural contributions giving such imports their own unique Thai character”
Georgia: Military Buildup in Abkhazia
Steady State comments on reports that Russia is building up its military presence in the breakaway region of Abkhazia. Moscow instead says what is happening is nothing more than a regular rotation of peacekeeping troops.
Armenia: The Kurdish Question
In response to a post by Paul Goble on the apparent belief that Armenia's Kurdish minority is obstructing a peace deal with Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh, Oneworld Multimedia identifies a number of inaccuracies in the analysis.
Taiwan: Migrant Worker Rally-“I want my day off!!”
On International Human Rights Day, the dogfighting politics of the two major parties still occupied the front pages in Taiwan's mass media. The politicians consume the terms “democracy” and “freedom” for their own political odds while neglect basic rights of underprivileged communities. GVO Taiwan team would cover some important human...
Armenia: Xenophobic Official
Nazarian is shocked by a recent article published in the local press penned by an official in the Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The article reported the situation Armenian women find themselves in when they marry Arabs. However, rather than call for tolerance, Nazarian says the official urged Armenian women...
Palestine: Will the Real Muslim Americans Please Stand Up
Palestinian blogger Haitham Sabbah uncovers the story behind a video featuring Christian Americans of Arab origins and portraying them as Muslims.
India: Identity, conflict and a hiatus
Sharanya explains her hiatus, as her comments about the current issue of ethnic Indians in Malaysia have been blow out of proportion.
Japan: Welcome, we'll collect your fingerprints and mugshot
tokyodo-2005[jp] has reposted a cartoon by Hashimoto Masaru. “People are not concerned even when the government violates human rights. This probably means that people who live in Japan in fact are very unhappy. Because they are unhappy, when other people's human rights are violated, they don't consider these to be...
The Balkans: Croatian Serbs
Balkan Anarchist writes at length about Croatian Serbs and their war experiences: “If someone were to ask me how I felt about what my Serbs, the Croatian Serbs, went through during the first half of the 1990s, I would answer them by saying, “heartbroken”. Heartbroken that those leaders who led...
Serbia: Dusan Saponja & Dusan Cavic
Belgrade 2.0 posts a wonderful selection of the wonderful video stories by Dusan Saponja and Dusan Cavic: “For short episodes such as these you just saw, it’s not really necessary to understand Serbian. However, most of the real masterpieces, award-winning shows, are subtitled. You see, besides humorous short clips, Dushan...
Serbia: “Tension Digest”
Belgrade 2.0 writes about “Kosovo is Serbia” campaign and other elements of the current Kosovo-related “tension.”
Bosnia: Kosovo Independence
TOL's Balkanizer wonders whether Bosnia is going to recognize Kosovo's independence, once it is declared.
Russia, Serbia: Kosovo Crisis
Steady State writes that “the West and Russia are heading towards a major collision” over Kosovo.
Jamaica, Cayman Islands: Sun Block
All Marlon James wanted to do was go to the beach…instead, he finds himself negotiating Caribbean Tourism’s “tricky racial dynamics”.
Iraq: What is Going On?
Today I continue from my last post trying to make sense of the latest developments in Iraq. Is Iraq still getting safer or are there cracks appearing in the new security situation? Also, read about the latest developments in Mosul and what one blogger said to an Arab taxi driver.
Interview with Cristina Quisbert of Voces Bolivianas
Voces Bolivianas, a citizen media outreach project supported by Rising Voices, has trained 23 participants how to blog, post digital photos, and even shoot video. One of the most consistent and clearest voices to emerge from the group has been Cristina Quisbert of Bolivia Indígena. In this interview she describes what motivates her to share stories of her life and community online and how the content of her blog has evolved over the first few months.