Stories about History from September, 2015
Spartathlon, Where the Noble Spirit of Athleticism Humbly Prevails
Once a year, long-distance athletes from all over the world run 246 kilometers from Athens to Sparta, participating in what is considered the world's "most grueling race"—the Spartathlon.
Chilean Musician Victor Jara's Rethinking of Power Lives on Long After His Murder
The singer-songwriter, murdered in the aftermath of Augusto Pinochet's coup, invited listeners to dare to dream of a future in which society wasn't separated into powerful elites and disenfranchised masses.
Remembering the Great Fire of Smyrna, 93 Years Ago
The Smyrna Catastrophe is widely considered the worst incident of modern Greek history, and the plight of the refugees halted the Greco-Turkish relations for many decades.
Multi-Billion Construction Work Kills 107 Pilgrims in Mecca Just Weeks Before Hajj
A construction crane collapse that took the lives of over a hundred Mecca pilgrims right before the Hajj is raising questions about the grand expansion plans for the Mosque.
Indonesian Activists Remember Slain Human Rights Defender Munir Said Thalib
September marks 11 years since Munir Said Thalib, a human rights activist who exposed government abuses during the last years of President Suharto, was killed by suspected military agents.
Film The Fog of Srebrenica Shows Us The People Who Survived One of Europe's Worst Massacres
A new film focusing on survivors of the Srebrenica genocide premiered at the 21s Sarajevo Film Festival on August 17. Alessandra Goio and Marta Vidal report.
Young Stalinist Defaces New Monument to ‘Traitor’ Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
A young Stalinist living in Vladivostok has defaced a new statue of Nobel-prize-winning writer Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, hanging a sign reading “JUDAS” around Solzhenitsyn’s neck.
The Mesoamerican Abacus That Gives Modern Calculators a Run for Their Money
Nepohualtzintzin, an abacus that was used in some Mesoamerican cultures, is still used nowadays to solve math problems as accurately as a calculator.
Will a Visit From Taiwan's Former Vice President Lend Weight to China's Revisionist WWII History?
Lien Chan will attend a military parade in China commemorating victory over the Japanese, even though the mainland is downplaying his own party's central role in World War II.