May 13
International Humanitarian Law (IHL) prohibits all forms of human rights violations, including human trafficking, slavery, torture, and other means of inhumane treatment. Yet, there is a correlation between the deployment of United States military, peacekeepers, and humanitarian aid workers to post-conflict regions and an increase in the trafficking of women and children. By trafficking, I …
May 12
On Tuesday, I wrote about the basics of Iraq Aid, pointing out a few of the key issues that are being addressed by international aid organizations. One of the most influential of these organizations is the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which has provided over $7.4 billion in aid to Iraq since 2003. …
May 11
A Focus on Federal Legislation Human trafficking is a persistent international and domestic problem and crime, which is bound in violations of human rights, labor, and public health standards. The definition of human trafficking varies from source to source; however, there are common entities to its overall meaning—victims of trafficking include those who are recruited, …
May 10
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which was signed in 1990, protected the rights of persons with disabilities (PWDs), prohibited discrimination in employment, and mandated access to public services and facilities in the United States. It seemed that all the years of hard work and lobbying by activists and the disabled community to gain recognition …
May 10
A few years ago, Iraq was a hot topic of discussion. In the US, it seemed everyone had a friend or family member in some stage of deployment there. The news headlines flashed stories of Iraqi elections, sectarian struggles and attacks on Coalition Forces. Even if US citizens weren’t completely informed on the events taking …
May 06
Poverty, Disability, and Exclusion from Development Strategies A World Bank estimate suggests that 25% of the 1.3 billion most impoverished people in the world experience some form of disability, and according to the UN Development Program, 80% of persons with disabilities (PWDs) live in developing countries. These numbers are steadily increasing due to a number …
May 05
The word “Hamas” tends to elicit a strong response whenever mentioned. There are few people on the fence when it comes to this Islamist political party; most are either tenacious supporters or resolute critics. Perhaps these polemical views have justifiable roots, as either side has an ample supply of news that can be interpreted to …
May 03
Essentialism in Western Media Perspectives Even today, among reputable news sources, there still remains a level of ignorance and an essentialist undertone in Western media perspectives of the “developing world.” For example, in a recent issue of The Economist, I came across a feature on Gendercide in India, which discusses the distorted sex ratios in …
May 03
Osama bin Laden is dead. The news spread like wildfire as it was being released,consuming the feeds of social networking sites, forums and blogs. The reaction in New York City was particularly robust, with people crowding around Ground Zero and chanting “USA! USA!” Many expressed a deep sense of satisfaction at his death, thankful that …
Apr 29
When the earthquake struck Japan, the world was saddened by its catastrophic effects and many organizations, countries and even international bodies all rallied together to contribute to relief efforts. In two of my earlier posts, Help or not Series 1 and Philips Livable Cities Award, I stressed the fact that corporations need to be more …
