Stories about Youth from April, 2010
St. Lucia: Getting Kids to Read
“All over the world there is mounting concern among educators and parents that kids are not showing enough interest in reading for pleasure, both in and out of school”: St. Lucia's Caribbean Book Blog thinks that “writers must stand up for the children.”
Puerto Rico: Amidst protests, students speak up for themselves online
Amidst protests over budget cuts students of the University of Puerto Rico (UPR) have a found an additional space to express themselves: the Internet.
Azerbaijan: Dozens reported detained at anniversary commemoration
Twitter and Facebook users, as well as local news agencies, report that dozens of youth activists were today detained in Azerbaijan as they attempted to mark the first anniversary of shootings in Baku's Oil Academy which left 12 dead. Although not related to their online activity, among those detained were...
Nigeria: Forced marriages and the age of consent
Sokari discusses forced marriages and the age of consent after the former Governor of Zamfara State, Senator Sani Yerima marries a 13 year old Egyptian girl for whom he paid her family $100,000.
China: Hospital holds newborn hostage
DANWEI translated a frontpage story from Dongguan Times about a local hospital holding newborn hostage when the parent can't pay the bill.
Bahamas: Public Education
Weblog Bahamas‘ Rick Lowe wonders if there's hope for the country's public education system.
Haiti: Visiting the Capital
Adventures in Life visits downtown Port-au-Prince, while Chronicles of an Unplanned Return blogs about Haiti's school system.
French West Indies, Haiti: Immigration then & now
Indiscrétions tells the story [Fr] of a Haitian girl deported from Guadeloupe by the French customs authority, for allegedly presenting fake identity documents at the airport, while Gwakafwika announces [Fr Cr] a conference about Guadeloupean immigration in Haiti from the 1800s to the 1900s.
Barbados: Cyberbullying
Barbados’ Keltruth Corp. is “deeply saddened by the personal attacks made on Johan Bjerkhamn after the most tragic death of his son” and advocates for a cessation of the cyberbullying.
China: Attack by angry youth
China Hush blogs about the online culture of Chinese angry youth (fenqing) by referring to the most recent attack of Michael Wong (a Malaysian Chinese singer and composer) in Renren net.
Barbados: Child Dies in Shooting
Keltruth Corp. reports on a shooting in Barbados which left an eleven-year-old dead, prompting Allegiance to wonder if Barbadians are being treated equally under the law.
Russia, US: Artyom Savelyev's Case
Natalia Antonova writes about the case of a 7-year-old adopted Russian boy, who was sent back from the United States alone on a plane to Russia by his adoptive mother: “Hansen acted out her supposed desperation in a dehumanizing and humiliating fashion. This adopted child had hurt her, and so...
Azerbaijan: Nationalist propaganda
Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines recounts being verbally abused by a fellow countryman after co-presenting with Global Voices Online's Caucasus regional editor at a recent conference. The blogger notes that the reason for being cornered and harassed was her belief in tolerance and democracy in Azerbaijan as well as peace...
Egypt: Let's Shoot those Protesters!
In a debate on recurrent demonstrations, Egyptian ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) members of Parliament lashed out during a verbal battle with Muslim Brotherhood MPs over protesters in the country and said Egyptian pro-democracy demonstrators “should be shot” by police. Bloggers react in this post by Marwa Rakha.
Venezuela: Community Theater Addresses Urban Realities
Nuevo Circo Artístico is a Venezuelan project that uses community theater to engage youth in Caracas to explore the realities of their urban surroundings.
Azerbaijan: Act of revenge against bloggers
Following news that imprisoned video blogging youth activists Adnan Hajizade and Emin Milli have been moved to separate prisons, Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines says that one media outlet reports that the two prisons are among the worst in the country and alleges the move is nothing more than an...
Caucasus: Social Innovation Camp
Although Internet penetration remains low in the South Caucasus, all indications are that new and social media has an increasingly important role to play in the area of democratization and activism. With that in mind, the first Social Innovation Camp in the region took place in Tbilisi, Georgia on 8-10 April.
Lebanon: Virginity and Hypocrisy
“I attended […] a discussion with [the] creator of Jasad Magazine about the language of the body, sexuality and relationships, and the last part was about how virginity and the lack of it are perceived in the Lebanese society. The hymen restoration was brought up, and yada yada…” writes Liliane...
Colombia: Recovering traditions and culture of the Senu people
Through short videos, the indigenous people of the Senu tribes in Colombia have been interviewing members of their community and capturing stories on food: the traditions, the recipes and the meaning behind what and how they eat.
Haiti: Back to School
“You could see some parents crying by the streets watching other neighborhood kids leaving for class; their kids had gone to school once, on January 12th, and never came back”: For Inside Disaster, Emmanuel Midi reports on back to school time in Haiti.
USA: Lesbian Student Sent to “Fake Prom” in Mississippi
An 18-year old girl in Mississippi was barred from attending her high school prom in April because she planned to bring a female date and wear a tuxedo. Gay rights bloggers shared their outrage.
