Stories about History from November, 2011
Trinidad & Tobago: Impressed with Miss Miles
Dingolay reviews the new play about Gene Miles (a whistleblower for a political corruption scandal in the 1960s, who subsequently became a social outcast), admitting she was “a bit chilled by the fact that what happened to Gene Miles could happen again today, woman PM or no.”
Barbados: The Pride of Independence
Barbadian bloggers post their Independence Day greetings, here, here, here and here.
Jamaica: Sabina Park & Lawrence Rowe
Active Voice gives a Twitter follower a tour of Jamaica's famous Sabina Park, and makes a plea for the powers-that-be to bring back the Lawrence Rowe Players Pavilion.
Iran: Tehran Before the Revolution
Estekhdam has published several photos showing Tehran before Islamic Revolution in 1979.
Guyana: Election Day
Guyana: Freedom Under The Law asks his compatriots to “VOTE intelligently on issues and right reason NOT RACE” in today's elections, while Guyana-Gyal explains why, despite the “thin thread o’ fear been tightening ‘round town since election date announce”, she isn't scared.
Greece: 1973 Uprising Newspaper Headlines
‘Third Day for Polytechnic School Occupation by Protesters’, ‘Athens Surrounded’, ‘Tanks Emerge’, ‘Dozens of Injuries From Both Sides’, ‘Tanks Descend to Town’, ‘Thousands Remain Inside Polytechnic School’, ‘1,500 Inside Polytechnic School’. On the 17 November, 2011 – the anniversary of the 1973 Polytechnic school uprising in Greece – youth portal neolaia.gr [gr] uploaded...
Vietnam: Deadly Legacy of Agent Orange
De Tran writes about the deadly legacy of agent orange in Vietnam. During the Vietnam War, more than 20 million gallons of herbicide were sprayed over the rural communities and jungles of the country.
Philippines: City Launches Online Codification of Ordinances
The General Santos City Council has launched a website which features a project to codify ordinances from 1948 to the present. General Santos is located in southern Philippines
Pakistan: The Death of Nusrat Bhutto
The recent demise of Nusrat Bhutto, former first lady and wife of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, was mourned across Pakistan. A public holiday was declared as a part of the mourning, which triggered a wave of reactions from Twitter users questioning the logic behind such a move.
The Netherlands: A Holiday Season of Festivities, Costumes… and Racism?
In recent years "Zwarte Piet" (Black Pete), the dark-skinned companion of Saint Nicholas during the winter holiday season in the The Netherlands, has become part of a recurring debate as some take offense at costumes including black painted faces.
India: Lessons from Gandhi
Priyanka Matanhelia lists some lessons from Mohandas K. Gandhi, the legendary political and ideological leader of India, which are still relevant today.
Cuba: Filmic Propaganda
babalu notes that “ScreenJunkies.com has chosen the Castro propaganda classic ‘I am Cuba’ as one of the top five blatantly lying propaganda films of all time.”
New Caledonia: Controversy around the 1988 Ouvéa Hostage Taking Movie
French filmmaker Mathieu Kassovitz's movie “L'ordre et la morale” (“Order and morality”), that recounts the tragic 1988 hostage taking at the Ouvéa cave, is not welcome in New Caledonia. The blog Ecran Noir (‘Black Screen’) describes the local controversy around the film's release, here and here [fr]. After New Caledonia's one and...
Cuba: Honouring the Island's Patron Saint
Havana Times reports on the celebration of an outdoor mass this past weekend “in honor of the Virgen de la Caridad del Cobre, considered by Catholics to be the ‘Patron Saint of Cuba'”, explaining: “Next year will mark the 400th year since the discovery of the image; it seems that...
Russia: FC Anzhi Makhachkala and the Yeltsin Era Money
The January 2011 acquisition of a Russian Premier League soccer team, FC Anzhi Makhachkala, by Suleyman Kerimov, a billionaire politician native to the volatile region of Dagestan, is the most recent display of how the wealth accumulated in the Yeltsin era is being used. Donna Welles reports.
Sahel Region: Slavery still very much a Reality for Some
In an interview carried out by François Mauger with Mme Sophia Lakhdar [fr], Director of the Comité Contre l’Esclavage Moderne (Comittee Against Modern Slavery) published on the mondomix.com blog, she states: “Today human trafficking has taken over as the notion of modern slavery, which is a bit contrived. However it helps...
Cuba: Papal Visit Challenges
Crossing the Barbed Wire suggests that the proposed Papal visit to Cuba next year “presents challenges for three essential actors of the current Cuba”; El Cafe Cubano, meanwhile, says: “I don't believe the Pope's visit will do anything to ‘CHANGE’ things in Cuba.”
Bermuda, St. Lucia: Slavery Footprint & Slave Trade Memorial
Breezeblog links to “a website that tracks the forced and unpaid labour that goes into producing the things we take for granted” and makes the point that “being aware of the impression left by your slavery footprint may be the most important of all”, while Caribbean Book Blog notes that...
Jamaica: Loving the Language
“The governor general of St Lucia, Dame Pearlette Louisy, gives part of her throne speech in Patois each year”: Jamaica Woman Tongue longs for the day that will happen in Jamaica, saying: “Patwa, Patois, dialect, Jamaican Creole or just plain Jamaican, whatever you call our local language, it has low...
Italy/Tunisia: Migrants’ Opinions of the Arab Spring
A documentary film, #Revolution, featuring the voices of some African immigrants living in Italy will be part of "Immaginafrica", a festival dedicated to African film-making organised by the University of Padua, Italy.
Caribbean: Remembering the Veterans
Several diaspora bloggers write posts about Veterans Day.
