Stories about Ethnicity & Race from July, 2009
Japan: Eight endangered languages in the Japanese archipelago
In February UNESCO presented the Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger, giving an accurate and worrying description of the languages considered endangered (about 2,500). Among these eight belong to the Japanese archipelago. Not a big surprise if we think about the severe policies of linguistic and cultural assimilation carried...
Brazil: Coffee and Milk, or Water and Vinegar?
Adventures of a Gringa uploads a series of University of Sao Paulo's documentaries about the politics of race in Brazil: Coffee and milk, or water and vinegar? “The documentary tries to debunk the notion of “racial democracy” in Brazil, as well as explaining concepts of race, racism, and identity. The...
Iran: Stand by me
Ianyan reports on the recording of a song sung in English and Farsi to show solidarity with the Iranian people. The blog notes that joining Jon Bon Jovi for the song is Iranian-Armenian pop star Andy Madadian. Unzipped also covers the release of the song.
Armenia: Overheard on the Net
Ianyan, a new blog-based e-zine presents its first bi-weekly column, Overheard on the Net, a humorous and irreverent look at how Armenians are often referred to online by others.
Israel: Jewish American or American Jew?
Aliza Hausman, better known by her blogging handle “La Jewminicana” is the winner of a contest sponsored by the Jewlicious blog that asks readers to respond to the question: “Are you an American Jew or Jewish American?” (The complete responses can be read here.)
Israel: First African American Woman Ordained Rabbi
Rabbi Alysa Stanton was recently ordained as the first female African American rabbi. “The media frenzy around Alysa Stanton’s ordination has opened the possibility of improved coverage of Jews from a variety of ethnic backgrounds,” writes JVoices.
The Uyghurs: Persecuted Muslim Minority in NorthWest China
Today we take a look at the situation faced by the Uyghur people, a Muslim minority in the Xinjiang region of China, where their culture is being obliterated by the central Chinese government, first because they were deemed separatists and now, after the September 11 attacks to the USA, also as terrorists.
Fiji: New constitution or delaying tactic?
Fiji’s Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama outlined the plan to create a new constitution that will take the country to its next scheduled elections in September 2014.
Taiwan: Is “adogah” a racist term?
Adogah (阿兜仔) is a Hoklo Taiwanese word used to refer to foreigners in Taiwan. Dan Bloom had an article in the Taipei Times discussing the use of the word. He had the article translated into Chinese on his blog. Following the Chinese text there are details in English of a...