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< Back Chemical Weapons Used on Pro-Palestine Students at Columbia University By Selin Elif Kose February 29, 2024 On Jan. 19, students from Columbia University assembled in front of Low Library for a “divestment now” rally. The pro-Palestine protest was organized by the Columbia University Apartheid Divest, which is a coalition of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP). Howev er, after the protest, multiple students reported a putrid smell on their clothes, followed by physical symptoms including nausea, headache, and burning eyes for ten students, three of whom later sought medical care. Yet, the administration stayed silent which was quite unusual as Columbia sends alert emails for even small crimes like robberies around campus. Lacking administrative support, the Columbia University Apartheid Divest took the matter into its own hands and started an internal investigation into the incident by collecting testimonies, photographs, and videos from the students at the protest. According to the results of this inquiry and medical reports from hospitals, protestors were sprayed with skunk water, which is known to be a chemical that smells like “sewage mixed with rotting corpses,” and has been used by Israeli soldiers on Palestinians. This chemical was developed by the Israeli company Odortec and is marketed as non-lethal and non-toxic, yet high doses of this can produce severe physical symptoms and, at worst, may even prove lethal. The attackers were students from the School of General Studies who were also former Israel Defense Force soldiers dressed in fake keffiyehs to mix with the crowd. It was later revealed that one of the attackers also had been previously reported as calling Palestinian and pro-Palestine students “terrorists” and “Jew killers” but was not sanctioned. After four days of silence, on Jan. 23, Interim Provost Dennis A. Mitchell issued a statement saying “After the Department of Public Safety received an initial complaint late Friday night, the University immediately initiated steps to investigate the incident, and has since been actively working with local and federal authorities. The New York City Police Department is taking the lead role in investigating what appear to have been serious crimes, possibly hate crimes.” This vague statement faced serious criticism as it lacked transparency and simply did not identify the details and the sides in this incident while also not proposing any alternative safety measures for students. However, this is not the first time the Columbia and Barnard administrations failed to protect the pro-Palestine students on campus and their rights. Notably, three weeks after the Oct. 7 attack, the Department of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Barnard College released a statement on their official website declaring their stance on the conflict and said, “We support the Palestinian people who have resisted settler colonial war, occupation, and apartheid for over 75 years while deploring Hamas’s recent killing of Israeli civilians.” Just two days later, this statement was removed from the website by the Barnard administration without prior notice. This violation of academic freedom and freedom of expression in Barnard sparked protests in other American universities. Yet, Barnard refused to take a step back and altered their policies on political activity, website governance, and campus events, expanding their power to decide what is and isn’t considered permitted political speech and gaining the final say on everything published on the Barnard website. The censorship and limitations on freedom of speech were further followed by the banning of student organizations, Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) by University Director Minouche Shafik in November. This was the reason why Columbia University's Apartheid Divest was created in the first place. The New York Civil Liberties Union has publicly announced that they will be suing Columbia if they will not lift the suspension of SJP and JVP by March 1. The investigation by the NYPD still is ongoing but the victims are still frustrated by the lack of response from their university. The students who were hospitalized because of skunk spray shared that the Columbia administration refuses to reimburse their medical bills. This whole situation remains highly concerning both for student safety and the future of freedom of expression on campus.

According to the erroneous idea we have of philosophy as a discipline totally detached from reality and concreteness, rooted in something metaphysical transcending the tangible world,  Hegel should be considered an anti-philosopher. < Back Aufhebung: The Importance of Hegel's Philosophy in Today's World By Francesca Di Muro October 31, 2023 "I then thought that Hegel would have been very sensitive to this object which has two opposing functions: at the same time not to admit any water (repelling it) and to admit it (containing it) . He would have been delighted, I think, or amused (as on vacation), and I call the painting Hegel's Holiday." - René Magritte According to the erroneous idea we have of philosophy as a discipline totally detached from reality and concreteness, rooted in something metaphysical transcending the tangible world, Hegel should be considered an anti-philosopher. However, there is nothing more embedded in reality than philosophy, and not a more perfect philosopher than Hegel. Careful in refulging any abstract reasoning, he brilliantly highlights reality’s shades and its dynamics. This article has no intention of being a description of Hegel’s philosophy. It has, rather, the mission of showing a Hegelian perspective on our reality, who we are, our lives and our beings. Hegel’s fundamental philosophical trait is its dialectic, which configures itself firstly as a universal law of beings. Born from the refusal of rigid binary logic, it has a triadic configuration. Reality is made up of three different stages, which interact reciprocally, and are in movement and strict correlation. These movements are referred to as thesis, antithesis and synthesis. The thesis is the affirmation, while the antithesis is its negation and the synthesis is no more than the union of both thesis and antithesis; the combination of the negation of what used to be the thesis’ negation (antithesis) and its affirmation. The most important passage is the one from the antithesis to the synthesis; it is the main nucleus of the reflection that is collocated. The synthesis, which etymologically means union of two, is a combination of two paradoxes, holding together parts of the thesis and parts of the antithesis, according to the key concept we refer to as Aufhebung . This German term has no perfect correspondent in other languages, and is often translated to the English term of ‘overpassing’ or ‘to surpass’, in order to convey the idea of overcoming certain parts of the thesis and antithesis; to give birth to a synthesis as union of both. The moment of synthesis, in fact, is also described as overpassing in the sense that it isn’t merely limited to the reaffirmation of the thesis, but to its integration with the negative parts of the antithesis. This is the nucleus of the concept of Aufhebung: an ‘elimination that keeps traces of what is eliminating’, the eradication of the antithesis but the permanence of its experience. And this is where Hegel’s philosophy meets our beings, our lives and our own relations, with things, peoples and ourselves. In what sense? By keeping us aware of the importance of the ‘negative’; of the ‘positivity’ of its role. By putting in contact and enhancing the dialogue between oppositions, the antithesis makes the differences edificant, telling us that the reality is in continuous movement, with encounters to different elements of tragedy, conflict, and defeat. However, it gives energy to them, hence encapsulating their dynamism. Defeat is essential and integral to our reality, through which we acquire knowledge and experience. In other words, defeat is something through which we grow; we develop the synthesis of who we are. The negative is seen as no more than the other side of positive. Through the moment of the synthesis, we can let all of our contradictions coexist, breathe and develop. After a tormented experience, the process of synthesis allows us to regain our identity, creating a certain unity from an initial fragmentation. We, humans, comprehend beauty only after having faced its contrary painfully. And, perhaps, if we learn to see the negative this way, contradictions will find their place in and outside of ourselves, giving meaning to our sufferings and directions to our pains in a superior perspective of unity. In this sense, Magritte’s quote at the top acquires meaning, giving value to both the thesis and the antithesis in defining one’s identity and one’s perspective.

“In each newspaper, you encounter accounts of incredible queerness. For our writers these occurrences are fantastical, and Their Lords do not even want to take them into consideration, whilst they are the reality in itself, because they consist of random events. Who would want to observe, to elucidate and to register them? Events as such are consumed continuously, day by day, and are not exceptions. All of the reality passes us incessantly.” < Back News: Informative or Desensitizing? Amer El Ibrahim February 28, 2025 News. They are everywhere. Opening up our phones, news inundates us immediately. Watching the TV has become a sine qua non means to propagate news intensely, perpetually, with no rest or response. Relatives and loved ones get together in this ridiculous and quite tragic game, filling the void of the silences one always encounters in day-to-day inter-human relationships with some novelty that has happened somewhere: “Have you heard that…?” One really ought to wonder whether these reported occurrences should actually be disseminated or not and whether their spread affects our means to reason and feel in a positive or negative manner. News, as in the reported occurrences distributed by newspapers, social media, TV and so forth, could be well regarded as a means to a greater end. After all, one can know through trusted sources about the atrocities of the Israelis in Gaza, the genocides in Myanmar, the fall of the Boeing plane in South Korea, the casualties and evolution of the war in Ukraine, and the list goes on endlessly. On a more microcosmic level, one is deemed to find out about the local murderer/rapist/pedophile of the country or region one lives in, along with a thorough exploration of their psyche by verified “experts”. Indeed, this showcase of evil, decay, misery, death and injustice, may alight in some the desire to fight against this aesthetic of ugliness type of spectacle (graced by Baudelaire). And on a grander level, it is exactly this news that indirectly creates associations and NGOs that fight the darkness of this world—a rare case of nobility being born out of despair and suffering. However, to my naked eye, this category of noble warriors is or seems an outright minority. For the rest of us mortals, negative news provides a blessed opportunity for morbid entertainment. One feels a type of fear and trembling when one hears about a terrible train accident near one’s city, but, simultaneously, one also feels a certain delight that they were not on that train, that they survived and the others did not. Moreover, the majority of news conveys tragic events, not because of higher ideals but because that is what the public demands . The negativity bias is not an appendage of the pessimist, but a real phenomenon that affects all of us. We are, indeed, much more moved by death rather than the blooming of a flower. Adding to this propensity for negativity which is very much indulged by the rule of supply and demand, the pervasiveness of news in our lives not only entertains us but desensitizes us to the spectacle that life offers us daily. How could one be moved intrinsically by the bleak and silent suffering of the poor pensioner, the next-corner beggar, the lone mother or the common orphan in times when we hear constantly about the piles of corpses gathered in Palestine and Ukraine, the deaths of thousands in floods and earthquakes and the genocides that sporadically occur in Africa or Asia? This is the perfect recipe for bleakness through over-shadowing events. So much death and suffering, yet one remains completely detached from this debacle. Then the following question must be asked: How does one benefit from being a third-party witness to such atrocities? The grandiosity of all these major events that usually happen somewhere far away adds another dimension: magical realism. Through their distance from us, they become almost fabulous events that seem to be spurned out of the fantasy of an imaginative child rather than from the outside reality. Such events are the reality in all of its randomness, cruelty and fugitive play, not a dream-like theater of forces outside of our grasp. This prevalence of negative news has developed and enhanced a spiritual organ or mechanism with which we have already been endowed. This organ acts to rebut such events from our consciousness, which, by the rule of chance and luck, could have regarded us in their course, but which have not. Thus, to achieve this, this organ places such events in the land of the fabulous and magical, even though they might seem to the helpless reason as real as they can get. The heart, as Pascal would say, has a completely different reasoning. This organ also allows a steady march through life, as it diminishes the effect the surrounding human suffering has on us. It is as if one is gently tased, but no more than what someone with an auditive prosthesis could hear. This probl é matique posed by news has been identified since its beginnings almost 200 years ago, by writers such as Dostoyevski or Flaubert. A quote by the former is edifying in this sense: “In each newspaper, you encounter accounts of incredible queerness. For our writers these occurrences are fantastical, and Their Lords do not even want to take them into consideration, whilst they are the reality in itself, because they consist of random events. Who would want to observe, to elucidate and to register them? Events as such are consumed continuously, day by day, and are not exceptions. All of the reality passes us incessantly.” On an ending note, there is no clear path to take regarding news. Out of the pendulum of either/or presented above, a middle way seems to prevail: moderation in the consumption of news. Elimination is impossible, while overindulging is mental and sentimental castration. And one more thing: let us see reality through our own eyes and in itself (as much as one can, thanks Kant!), not through the lens of statistics, assertions or real but miraculous occurrences. Photo credits: Miguel Ángel Arreguin Padilla, 2022

< Back Donald Trump vs The Stock Market Stanimir Stoyanov January 31, 2025 The results of the U.S. election in November 2024 have rippled across the country and the world. The election of Donald Trump has been received with both horror and joy across different fields of society. When it comes to the economy and the stock market, the implications of the election are undeniable. The day Trump was elected, the stock market saw unprecedented gains. This reignited debates about Trump's aggressive political presence and its impact on global markets. As can be seen with the way Trump’s 2024 bid shaped financial speculation, market trends are deeply intertwined with political realities. Trump’s history with the Stock Market Trump’s first term in office emanated mixed yet extreme feelings from investors. His corporate tax cuts and deregulatory agendas were simply manna for Wall Street, which reciprocated with record-breaking market highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average soared by nearly 60% during his first presidency, with much of this growth being attributed to Trump’s pro-business rhetoric and investor-friendly policies. Still, it wasn’t all smooth sailing. Tenuous trade relations with China introduced new uncertainties with material shortages across industries. Dips in the market became commonplace where tariffs were announced, then paused, and then escalated again. Trump’s practice of using Twitter (now X) to openly express his ideas and opinions has led to an unpredictable environment due to the high level of influence his words hold. A single tweet by him could lead to a company’s stock tanking or rallying. While Trump’s first term echoed the bullish market sentiment, investors and the market also have had to deal with many uncertainties during his office. With Trump’s second term having commenced in January 2025, the market is now preparing for a second round of turbulence, while simultaneously showing enthusiasm as seen on the day of the election. The November 2024 Fallout With the 2024 election approaching, the stock market entered a period of heightened volatility. Historically markets have indicated voter attitudes in this case, some predicted a political shift due to economic instability. Prior to the election, polls showcased a very tight race, with most declaring Harris as the candidate likely to emerge from the race victorious. However, online betting sites such as Polymarket saw people betting a total of more than two billion dollars, with Trump’s odds of winning being much higher than those of his opponent, Kamala Harris. This showed that people were ready to bet their money on Trump even if the data signaled against him. As votes were being counted and Trump’s victory became imminent, the stock market began to move rapidly. Nov. 6 saw the market indicators making record gains, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rocketing 3.6%, the S&P 500 up 2.5%, while the Nasdaq climbed nearly 3%. U.S bank shares were also on the rise, and the US dollar rose to its highest value since 2020. Still, this initial growth did not prove sustainable, with markets stabilizing around the end of November and even experiencing some losses at the end of the year. In December 2024, Jerome Powell, Head of the US Federal Reserve, stated that they expect inflation to continue rising in 2025, leading to negative reactions from the market. This act and its after-effects acted as a clear questioning of Trump’s actual influence over the market. The president-elect expressed his opposition to the Federal Reserve, raising concerns about future clashes between the two institutions and undermining Trump’s effective power over the U.S. economy. So, who was the real winner? Trump’s 2024 campaign saw him working closely with influential businessmen such as the richest person in the world, Elon Musk. Gathering increased public exposure and support in large part due to the popularity and social media influence Musk holds, Donald Trump began shaping his campaign around the billionaire and his companies. This led Musk and his companies to make a huge profit following the election. Even though Trump’s policies suggest fewer incentives for the electric vehicle market, Musk’s Tesla Corporation saw a rise of 15% right after the election. Trump’s personal net worth also experienced a substantial increase with his company Trump Media and Technology Group, seeing an initial 30% gain, which later fell to an overall gain of 6%, increasing Trump’s personal stake by around 290 million dollars. Probably the biggest market change following Trump’s win was seen in the cryptocurrency world. Bitcoin immediately surged to an all-time high on the day of the election and then in the following weeks reached over 100,000 dollars, after which it stabilized a bit above 90,000. Ethereum and other altcoins also saw double-digit gains. There might be various factors contributing to this, many of which are connected to Trump. Firstly, analysts believe people prefer decentralized assets amidst political uncertainty. At the same time, Trump’s campaign can be described as a fruitful romance with cryptocurrency. The president-elect has expressed his passion for crypto and has stated that he wants to make the US the “crypto capital of the planet,” pledging an increase of governmental cryptocurrency funds. Additionally, he has promised his campaign supporters Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy the creation of a so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), in which they will have a role in improving the government's handling of funds. Why should the world care? Being the second-largest economy in the world and a leading player in global finance, the United States and its economy have implications in many aspects of social, political and financial life outside its borders too. The day of Trump’s election had effects on markets outside the U.S.; European stocks fell almost proportionally at the rate that U.S. stocks were rising. At the same time, European defense companies saw massive gains, marking both a shift from U.S. military reliance and echoing Trump’s stern stance on Europeans needing to increase military spending. Trump’s Middle East policies and his incentivization of the U.S. domestic oil industry have resulted in oil prices across the world taking a loss, while natural gas prices have spiked. Trump’s aggressive foreign policy and protective attitude towards the U.S. economy have led to increasing fears about possible material shortages in some industries that rely on imports from countries like China. Many things remain unknown concerning Trump's second term, but the only thing certain is that it will not be a mundane one. Amid this pressing backdrop, U.S. markets must brace for a period of both market-oriented policies and uncertainty. From what can be seen, crypto investors and stock market enthusiasts are both enthusiastic and cautious. It is up to us as individuals to decide whether or not we want to capitalize on the changing market, but if we do, it is clear that we should not only follow financial data but also closely monitor the actions of one man named Donald Trump. Photo credits: Gage Skidmore and James Smith on Wikimedia.

If you ever find yourself in Turkey, pack your bags and go east. Drive through the Anatolian plateau until you can almost touch Armenia, and there you will find a piece of history: Ani. < Back Visiting Ani: The Long Lost Capital of Armenia By Viola Luraschi September 26, 2022 If you ever find yourself in Turkey, pack your bags and go east. Drive through the Anatolian plateau until you can almost touch Armenia, and there you will find a piece of history: Ani. Once the “city of 1,001 churches” and the “cosmopolitan capital of medieval Armenia,” Ani now lies in ruins, a product of war, conflict and political tensions. Ani’s early days Ani’s days as the capital of the Bagratid Armenian kingdom were numbered from the start. However, its advantageous location between the Black and the Caspian Seas, its many religious buildings and its sophisticated fortifications were able to secure it the title of capital from 961 to 1045. After the Bagrationi dynasty ruled Ani, the Byzantines took over from 1045 to 1064. The earliest ruins were found by archaeologist Mark Gioloany in 1955, dating back to the 5th century; at the time, Ani was a strategic fortress on a hilltop under the control of the Armenian Kamsarakan dynasty. Size, power and wealth made the city an important trading hub, leading to a growth in cultural capital, so much so that it became the site of the royal mausoleum of the Bagratuni kings. The city saw days of prosperity under the reign of King Gagik I that lasted from 989 to 1020, during which it was one of the largest existing cities with a population greater than 100,000. The Armenian nation found a part of its identity in Christianity, which was adopted as the state’s religion in 300 AD. Its presence is reflected in the ruins of Ani, where historians and archaeologists excavated as many as 50 churches, 33 cave chapels and 20 chapels. Scholars have argued that its gothic style later influenced the early Romanesque and Gothic designs found in many European cathedrals. Ani’s downfall Being a center of cultural exchange and economic prosperity, Ani received much attention from its neighboring states. Over the years, the 85 hectares on which Ani stands were home to numerous languages and civilizations (23), including Armenian, Greek, Turkish, Arabic, Georgian and Persian. Ani’s downfall began in 1064 when it surrendered to Persian control during Seljuk Sultan Alparslan’s 25-day siege, which slaughtered much of the city’s population. Not long after, the Seljuks sold Ani to a Muslim Kurdish dynasty, the Shaddadids. Under the Shaddadids, the people of Ani saw an attempt at reconciliation. However, the populace appealed to the Christian Kingdom of Georgia, which was able to capture the city a total of five times between 1124 and 1209. The first three times, Ani was recaptured by the Shaddadids. However, when it was taken in 1199 by Queen Tamar of Georgia, it was placed in the tight grip of generals Zakare and Ivane, who established control under a new dynasty: the Zakarids. During the reign of the Zakarids, Ani saw prosperity once more through further fortifications and an increase in religious buildings. While the Mongols failed to gain control of the city in 1226, they were successful in 1236 when they massacred a large portion of the population. By the 14th century, however, Ani was under the reign of a succession of Turkish dynasties. Through the years of Turkish rule, the Jalayirids and the Kara Koyunlu were the only two dynasties that made Ani their capital. The 1319 earthquake further destabilized the city by reducing the infrastructure to shambles. When the capital finally transferred to Yerevan, Ani lost most of its wealth and power. The city joined the Ottoman Empire in 1579 under the rule of the Safavids; by then, only a tiny fraction of the town remained inside the walls, and by 1735, the last monks left the monastery in the Virgin’s Fortress or Kizkalesi. Ani was left abandoned. Modern day Ani Few make their way to what was once the great city of Ani. In the second half of the 20th century, tourists stayed away from the geopolitical fault line on which Ani stood; the land between North Atlantic Treaty Organization member Turkey and Soviet-controlled Armenia. For many Armenians, Ani is yet another reminder of what the Turkish took from them. I made my way to Ani in July of 2022. Upon arrival, the old city walls are the first thing you see — colossal walls made of large boulders, big enough to make anyone feel small. Aside from my family and me, there were only two other tourists and a few locals. Ani lacks attention and restoration; once beautiful churches are now being covered in weeds, the affreschi on the walls have been scratched and written on and a few pieces of wood pretend to prevent the remaining structures from collapsing. Once a city of cultural exchange and economic prosperity, Ani is now a place of loss and mourning for the Armenian nation and a strategic advantage for the Turkish. If you ever manage to explore Ani, I suggest you visit during the last light of day, when the sun shines a little more orange, bringing out the reds and yellows of the local basalt stone.

< Back Daring More Progress: Freedom, Justice, and Sustainability are Germany's new Leitmotifs. Florian Heydecker December 31, 2021 On November 24, the Social Democratic Pary (SPD), the Greens, and the Liberal Party (FDP) presented the coalition agreement for the next four years of government. The paper is the result of almost two months of negotiations that aimed at forming the first three-party coalition and the first government after sixteen years of Angela Merkel. Two weeks later, Olaf Scholz, SPD candidate and Minister of Finance in the previous government, was elected Bundeskanzler (Chancellor) and took office on December 8. Now Germany has a new leader, a new government, and a new agenda. The parties called their coalition ‘traffic light’ referring to their colors: red for SPD, yellow for the FDP, and the Greens. Briefly, the traffic-light coalition will increase the minimum wage, respect the balanced budget amendment, implement the coal phase-out, and legalize cannabis. Post-Merkel Germany will revolve around these new axes. Voting rights & Cannabis The new government is committed to lowering the active voting age for elections to the Bundestag and the European Parliament to 16. The traffic light coalition also wants to revise the electoral law “within the first year” to prevent the Bundestag from growing. Furthermore, the government wants to introduce the controlled distribution of cannabis to adults “for consumption purposes” in licensed stores. This reform would supervise quality, prevent the distribution of contaminated substances and ensure the protection of minors. The regulations for marketing and sponsorship of alcohol, nicotine, and cannabis will become more restrictive. Minimum wage & Housing The statutory minimum wage should increase to 12 euros per hour in a one-off adjustment, hence overcoming the current wage of 9.60 euros per hour. The minimum wage commission is then to decide on further increases and adapt it to the national and international circumstances. In addition, the coalition agreement outlines the goal of building 400,000 new homes per year, including 100,000 publicly subsidized homes. An “affordable housing alliance” will be established, and a new non-profit housing scheme with tax incentives and investment subsidies is to be launched immediately. The rent brake will be extended and tightened. In areas with a tight housing market, rents will be allowed to rise only up to 11 percent within three years instead of up to 15 percent as before. Climate The traffic light coalition wants to bring forward the coal phase-out. “Ideally, this will already succeed by 2030,” the agreement said. This eight-year process will revolve around the expansion of wind and solar power. By 2030, 80% of electricity consumption is to come from renewable energies. This will require more gas-fired power plants. The partners want to more than the triple solar capacity to 200 gigawatts (GW), by making photovoltaics mandatory on commercial roofs, among other things. They also want to accelerate the expansion of offshore wind energy, which is to climb to 30 GW in 2030 (previously 20 GW). Two percent of Germany's surface area is to be reserved for onshore wind energy. The phase-out of coal is also to be accelerated via European trading in CO2 pollution rights. The coalition, therefore, intends to lobby the European Union (EU) for a minimum price for these certificates, which power plants require. If this is unsuccessful, it will be fixed nationally such that the price does not fall below 60 euros per ton. In the future, climate protection will be more strongly integrated into the decisions of the German government than in the past. Each ministry is to review its draft laws for climate impact and compatibility with national climate protection targets and provide an appropriate justification — the so-called climate check. The Federal Climate Protection Act will be further developed “consistently” before the end of 2022, and an emergency climate protection program will be introduced. Nuclear weapons The new federal government wants to abandon Germany's fundamental rejection of the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and thus deviate from the previous. Germany will participate in the Conference of the Parties as an observer. The controversial treaty banning nuclear weapons was adopted by 122 of the 193 countries of the United Nations in 2017 and entered into force at the beginning of this year. It prohibits the possession, acquisition, development, and deployment of nuclear weapons. All nuclear powers, as well as all NATO countries, and thus also Germany, have so far rejected it because they considered the previous treaties to be a better basis for nuclear disarmament. Transport Starting next year, the regional funds for local transportation will be increased. Quality criteria and standards for services and accessibility for urban and rural areas will be defined by both the federal states and local authorities together. Deutsche Bahn AG will be retained as an integrated group, including the group's internal labor market, under public ownership. Internal structures will be made more efficient and transparent. The infrastructure units (DB Netz, DB Station und Service) of Deutsche Bahn AG will be merged into a “new infrastructure division oriented toward the common good.” Cross-border traffic will be strengthened and night train services developed with the EU and the member states. By 2030, 75 percent of the rail network is to be electrified. Germany aims to become the lead market for electromobility, with at least 15 million electric cars in 2030. The SPD, Greens, and FDP also want a reform of the truck toll. In 2023, a “CO2 differentiation” of the truck toll is to be implemented. Commercial road haulage of three and a half tons or more will be included in this toll, and a CO2 surcharge will also be introduced — on condition that a double burden from the CO2 price is ruled out. Migration and right to stay Visa issuance is to be accelerated and increasingly digitized. Residence permits should not expire during temporary stays abroad. The “complicated system of toleration” is to be reorganized. “Well-integrated young people,” up to the age of 27, will be allowed to stay after three years of residence in Germany. People who have lived in Germany for five years by January 1, 2022, have not committed any criminal offenses, and are committed to the free democratic basic order will be able to obtain a one-year probationary residence permit. For faster asylum procedures, the new coalition wants to relieve the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees. “We want faster decisions in asylum proceedings, as well as a standardization of jurisdiction and will quickly present a bill to this end,” the three parties announced. Financing The Balanced Budget Amendment enshrined in the Basic Law is to be complied with again starting in 2023. In the coming year, however, new loans will have to be taken out again due to the ongoing consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic. Municipalities with high levels of old debt are to be relieved. “In 2022, there will also be continuing pandemic consequences to deal with, which will continue to constitute an exceptional emergency in the sense of the debt rule,” the agreement said. “Beginning in 2023, we will then limit debt to the constitutional margin provided by the debt brake and comply with the debt brake requirements.” Foreign Policy The signal of continuity in German foreign policy could not have been clearer. At the G20 summit in Rome, Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) and her vice-chancellor and successor Olaf Scholz (SPD) took part in a virtual duet and completed all the important talks together. The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden continues to rely on a strong Germany that assumes responsibility within the EU, NATO, and the international community. The U.S. will pay particular attention to how the new German government positions itself vis-à-vis China and Russia. Washington D.C. is pushing for a more confrontational approach to its strategic rival, whereas Merkel's government has tended to focus on dialogue and good trade relations. As for China, Merkel is already sorely missed in Beijing because she spoke her mind honestly, but also always showed understanding for China and pursued a more business-oriented China policy. Beijing hopes that Scholz is also aware of how dependent Germany is on economic cooperation with China. Yet, the Greens and the FDP not only want to do more for human rights, including the persecution of Uyghurs and Tibetans and the situation in Hong Kong but also advocate free trade and fair market access. This last aspect resonates well with the increasing tensions between Beijing and the U.S. Further developments will become more visible in the future. Back to Europe, Russia does not expect a fundamental improvement in its relationship with Germany given the severe tensions of recent years. Moscow-based Germany expert Vladislav Belov, however, expects the chancellor to continue to set the foreign policy lines. He does not see a new confrontational course under Scholz. “The coalitionists are not starting from ‘red lines’ but a constructive approach,” said the head of the Germany Center at the European Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences. On the other hand, Turkey will likely face a tougher course from the new German government concerning human rights issues and the EU-Turkey refugee deal. Both SPD and the Greens are committed to emphasizing the respect of human rights and the right to asylum. Concerning Israel, a policy of continuity can be expected from the traffic light government as a whole. The new government is also committed to a two-state solution in the Middle East. Meanwhile, Palestinians are expected to make “progress on democracy, the rule of law and human rights.” Israel is expected to halt settlement expansion in the Palestinian territories and, hence, promote a future peace settlement. Finally, the EU expects a solid continuation of Merkel’s European commitment. With the SPD, the Greens, and the FDP as pro-European parties, Paris expects a certain continuity of previous German policies. Scholz, as an already well-known and experienced politician, gives Paris a certain degree of security and is seen as a desirable partner. Some concerns might arise due to different views between the Greens and the FDP. France also observes the way Germany will combine climate investments and strict debt policy. The strengthening of the collaboration with Italy has also become a further point of the EU balance. Thus, the new German government entails both continuity and rupture with the Merkel era. Although Olaf Scholz should preserve, if not even strengthen, Germany’s transatlantic and European commitment, the coalition will adopt a more liberal line for national politics and a harder approach with regards to human rights and the rule of law abroad. Post-Merkel Germany has taken its first steps, the race has just begun.

< Back Frontex : The EU Agency That Has Been Accused of Covering up Illegal Migrant Pushbacks By Viola Luraschi December 31, 2022 What is Frontex? The European Border and Coast Guard Agency, also known as Frontex, was established in 2004 under the European Union to help members and Schengen-associated countries manage their external frontiers. European borders have witnessed an unprecedented rise in asylum-seeking migrants and refugees in recent years. Thus, Warsaw-based Frontex, tasked with coordinating maritime operations and external land borders, has served as a prominent presence at several international union-country airports. The accusations against Frontex On April 29, 2022, the resignation of Fabrice Leggeri, former Director General of Frontex, was approved. The resignation followed an in-depth investigation by OLAF, the European Anti-Fraud Office, whose European Union-designated role is to combat illegal activities. The inquiry found the agency guilty of “harassment” and “misconduct.” Frontex was accused of playing a role in violating the fundamental rights of refugees in Greece by forcing the return of migrants. The Frontex reporting system has concealed numerous pushbacks in the Aegean sea, and in the words of Giorgios Christides, “between March 2020 and September 2021 (the agency) was involved in 222 incidents in the Aegean, resulting in the summary expulsion of at least 957 and potentially 8,355 asylum seekers.” The OLAF reports include 20 witnesses and over 120 pages of research conducted over 16 months. A pushback case that underlines the illegal actions of Frontex dates back to August 2020. On the morning of Aug. 5, the Greek Coast Guard dragged an inflatable raft with around 30 migrants back toward Turkey instead of taking them to Greek shores where they were headed. In one of many similar cases, an aircraft operated by Frontex was streaming the pushback live. A handwritten note on Nov. 16, 2020, by Frontex employees states that they had “withdrawn [their] FSA (Frontex Surveillance Aircraft) some time ago so as not to witness” the human rights violations. This statement clearly shows that the European Union agency was aware of the violations but instead decided to ignore the situation that it was established to prevent. Furthermore, the report included evidence that taxpayer money was used to fund the pushbacks. The Aug. 5 incident was led by the vessel “CPB 137,” which was co-owned by the agency. Leggeri was also accused of obstructing previous investigations regarding his agency’s illegal activity. Furthermore, his private messages revealed his conservative beliefs about the refugee crisis. Samuel Abraham: a personal account On Apr. 10, 2021, Samuel Abraham and 62 other people left the Libyan shore in a small rubber boat. Out of the 63 people who set off on the journey, only 51 were alive by the end. Abraham recounted, “the plane circled over our heads again and again, but no one helped us.” This plane was operated by Frontex, who witnessed the perilous situation below but refused to act. Moreover, he said that during their five days at sea, a cargo ship appeared; however, no help was offered, and the three people who jumped from the boat in attempts to reach the vessel failed and drowned. The secrecy behind the content of OLAF’s report Regulation 1049 of 2001 outlines the fundamental right of both residents and citizens of the European Union to access documents of and held by its institutions. While this regulation aims at promoting transparency and ensuring accessibility to all citizens, Article 4 (of Regulation 1049) identifies exceptions that can deny total or partial access to documents. It is under this article that Frontex continues to keep the OLAF report classified. However, some investigative journalists (Der Spiegel and Lighthouse Reports) have been able to leak parts of its contents. Resentment in response to the agency’s secrecy is widespread, especially considering the report’s allegations of misuse of union funds and international law breaches. The inaccessibility of the documents has meant that the agency’s victims have been unable to exercise their right to an effective remedy. Therefore, their right to a fair trial has been obstructed. However, it must also be noted that hindering investigations is not inherently illegal and, depending on circumstances, may even be deemed appropriate. Yet, when considering the far-reaching implications of the report, it is only normal to question the inconsistency between the findings of the report and the actions that will be taken against Frontex. The aftermath of the OLAF report Only one resignation has occurred as a consequence of the OLAF report: that of Fabrice Leggeri. The European Parliament has continuously refused the approval of the agency’s budget. In September, Frontex announced “recent changes within the agency,” among which the suspension of operations in the Aegean sea was unmentioned. Article 46 of the Frontex Regulation states that the Executive Director should “suspend or terminate activity by the agency, in whole or in part, if he or she considers that there are violations of fundamental rights or international protection obligations related to the activity concerned that are of a serious nature or are likely to persist.” However, there is still a lack of Serious Incident Reporting on the island of Samos in Greece, where it was flagged that authorities were using intimidation tactics that discouraged incident reporting. The European Commission has continued to be reluctant to take a stance on the matter.

Rap seems to attract the worst of both worlds, awfully behaving artists and their near-blind cult following. The most despicable behavior can be forgiven so long as the musician continues to produce good music. Hip-hop fans have ease separating the rap from the rapper it seems, but this can set a dangerous precedent for the future. < Back Separating the Rap from the Rapper Pracheth Sanka February 28, 2025 Certified Lover Boy, or Certified Pedophile? This was the question fans of the rapper Drake had to ask themselves last summer. American rapper Kendrick Lamar popularly uttered these words during his and Drake’s widely publicized feud in early 2024. Lamar levied heavy accusations against the worldwide superstar , insinuating that Drake, or at least that members of his entourage, are sexual predators. While his claims are not yet fully verified , there remains select evidence to back up Lamar’s claims, like when Drake kissed an underage fan at one of his concerts, even after confirming that she was just seventeen. Still, even after these claims surfaced and being embarrassingly outrapped by Lamar, Drake’s superfans remain loyal to him. As an admirer of hip-hop, watching the “beef” from an outside perspective was a glorious experience. The clever wordplay and production of a song like “ Meet the Grahams ” satisfied the musician in me, and Drake’s humor on “ Family Matters ” made me audibly laugh, as he wittily struck back at Lamar’s assertion that his racial ambiguity precluded him from using a certain racial slur, the n-word. But the rivalry also highlighted a troubling pattern in the rap community: the blind adoration for the superstars. Drake, despite the alarming allegations and real-life instances of pedophilia, remained the year’s top-performing rapper and is arguably as popular as ever. If you look at his subreddit and all over Instagram reels, you can find avowed enthusiasts jumping to defend his honor and legacy as one of hip-hop’s “Greatest of All Times.” Even Lamar is not immune to this phenomenon; en route to his Grammy near-sweep and Super Bowl headline , accusations of his domestic abuse emerged from the Drake feud. This cult-like following, the unconcerned attachment to our favorite artists, is a worrying trend, one that has grown over the years in the hip-hop sphere. Formerly known as Kanye West, Ye’s narcissistic and arrogant behavior at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards was cause for concern, yet his fans remained more or less supportive of his music at that point. Now, nearly sixteen years later, some of those same fans keep him in high regard despite his anti-Semitic and, to put it very, very mildly, politically incorrect turn. It seems astounding that even with his—and other rappers—persistently deplorable behavior, they can maintain large followings and even grow in popularity. These instances of course take us back to the age-old question, can we separate the rap from the rapper? Part of the issue lies within rap’s inherent relatability. While most may not connect with the sometimes grandiose and braggadocious rhymes, hip-hop’s roots are in the stories of inner-city neighborhoods, often giving a voice to the voiceless youth and marginalized who listened to it. As the genre evolved, so did its subject matter. Rappers began to speak about their mental health struggles and personal battles, something that struck a chord with many avid rap fans globally. Take XXXTentacion, who before his untimely death in 2018, released songs that talked about suicide, depression and heartbreak. Some of his hit songs, written when he was just in his late teens, include “ Everybody Dies in Their Nightmares ” and by far most popular “ Sad! ”, both of which talk about the rapper’s fight with suicidal ideation. His youth, relatability and talent propelled him into mainstream stardom, where he gained cult status and where he now remains one of the most listened-to artists even seven years after his death. But this popularity stands in contradiction to his often deplorable behavior. He was an admitted abuser who physically assaulted his pregnant girlfriend and he reportedly stabbed nine people. His connection to his fans and other musicians, as well as his early passing, seems to have given XXXTentacion’s legacy a shroud of innocence, hiding the dark past that mars it. Many other rappers can play on this relatability factor to conceal their misdeeds. The aforementioned Ye does this exceptionally well. While his current musical output is fraught with the use of artificial intelligence and controversial lyrics , his music of old gave listeners an insight into his upbringing, bridging themes of class, love and faith. His production prowess also lends to his status as another one of hip-hop’s greatest. This greatness has in many ways overshadowed his rampant anti-Semitic, pro-Nazi and racist behavior. Many fans still lay in wait, hoping his new projects will be a return to his prior merit, especially after their disappointment with his last two endeavors, Vultures 1 and Vultures 2. While some have jumped ship, his cult status maintains many of his faithful who seem to willingly ignore his peculiar behavior. But sometimes, it has little to do with the rapper’s perceived greatness or approachable lyrics. It's just that the artist has made good music and the perceived injustice is not deemed to be bad enough. Travis Scott is a prime example of this phenomenon. Known for his spacey and production-heavy songs, he is a hit-maker who regularly performs in front of sold-out crowds. One of these sold-out performances, the 2021 Astroworld Festival, turned out to be a dark stain on his record, as the overcrowded swarm of concertgoers began to collapse , leading to the deaths of ten people and the injuries of many more. While the incident was not entirely his fault, the rapper caught criticism for continuing to perform despite the visible conditions of the crowd and for his later response to the tragedy. Since the incident, Scott has released a best-selling record and embarked on the accompanying best-selling tour, indicating that his irresponsible and erratic behavior surrounding the Astroworld tragedy was just a small blip in his rap career. Clearly, even the loss of life does not deter the most ardent of rap fans. Rap seems to attract the worst of both worlds, awfully behaving artists and their near-blind cult following. The most despicable behavior can be forgiven so long as the musician continues to produce good music. Hip-hop fans have ease separating the rap from the rapper it seems, but this can set a dangerous precedent for the future. It’s already been seen with the recent arrest of artist A$AP Rocky, who is going to trial over allegedly firing a gun at a friend. Facing 24 years in prison, I’ve seen many fans proclaim dissatisfaction with having to wait that long for a new album of his, rather than voice distaste for his assault charge. Whether those comments are said in jest or not, this tacit acceptance of shameful behavior can enable even worse actions from some of our favorite stars. This endemic issue will inevitably grow larger as the genre continues to rise in popularity, and fans will have to ultimately decide whether they will stick to choosing the rap, or have the courage to ditch the rapper. Photo credits: Super 45 | Música Independiente at Flickr

< Back Turkey Inches Closer to Landmark F-16 Acquisition By Yasmin Abbasoy January 31, 2024 The unending odyssey of the F-16s has perhaps been the most salient conflict in U.S.-Turkey relations in recent years. President Erdoğan’s 2021 request to purchase 40 of these jets along with a number of upgrade kits for its existing fleet introduced a significant point of leverage to the traditionally strained relations between the two states – one which has been maneuvered to apply to almost every aspect of foreign policy since. Recent dramatic developments in global politics have also drawn the uneasy allies closer in some arenas and further out in others. A common interpretation of the Turkish request is that it was made as a sort of last-resort bid for U.S. loyalty – a final chance for the U.S. to step up as Turkey’s most important ally, and the endmost bulwark against the culmination of a potential Turkish pivot to Russia. The concept of a F-16 sale did after all materialize as a reaction to Turkey’s ejection from the F-35 joint fighter program, a network of U.S. NATO allies which have been funding the development of the new-generation planes with the eventual hope of integrating them into their defense apparatus, which came about as a result of the purchase of the Russian S-400 system on Turkey’s part. The justification for this purchase, which triggered a harsh round of sanctions, was U.S. reticence on the transfer of the F-35 planes, mostly in reaction to Turkey’s aggressive conduct in Cyprus and Greece. The delay in the F-16 sale did not truly materialize in a turn eastward for Turkey, mostly due to the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Erdoğan did, however, take a more subdued stance on Russian aggression than many of its NATO allies, keeping comparatively closer ties with Putin that allowed Turkey to host potential peace negotiations in 2022. Furthermore, Turkey has kept itself relatively well-integrated with Russia, as demonstrated by the significant increase in trade between the two countries post-invasion. Given the outsized presence of Russia in the U.S.-Turkey relationship, it is fitting that Russia would be the nation to indirectly provide Turkey with its most important bargaining chip vis-a-vis the United States. The invasion of Ukraine brought the concept of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) strength and unity to the forefront of the global political consciousness, which contributed in large part to Finland and Sweden applying for membership. Potential members must be approved by all existing NATO nations, as happened to Finland. Sweden, however, was a tougher sell: it had an unofficial arms embargo on Turkey and had previously provoked ire from Turkey on its allegedly permissive attitude towards the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, which it sees as a separatist terrorist organisation. Using these justifications, Turkey has been able to delay the ratification of Sweden’s membership indefinitely, dealing an important blow to the conception of a strong, united NATO that the U.S. has been central in promoting. Significant progress has recently been made. In light of security guarantees from Sweden, the Foreign Commission of the Turkish Parliament has approved the membership bid. This means the ratification is now able to be put to a vote in the assembly, in which Erdoğan and his allies hold a majority. Afterwards, Erdoğan must sign the bill into law in order to end a full 19 months of continuous delays to the process. Erdoğan has, since the beginning of the process, been very careful in emphasizing the role of the F-16s in the ratification procedure–the ratification is widely interpreted as a form of concession to the United States, one which deserves some sort of recompense. It was not, however, the end-all of this diplomatic snag until very recently. The past few weeks have seen a revealing shift in Turkish rhetoric regarding the potential sale: officials have always been quick to point out their discontent with what they have seen as an unfair conflation between the ratification and the F-16 deal on the part of the Biden Administration, with Erdoğan himself calling the rhetoric “deeply upsetting.” The Department of Defense has been forced to clarify that no such linkage between the two topics has been officially acknowledged. The beginning of December, however, saw Erdoğan tying progress on the ratification to the F-16 sale, mentioning his expectations of further steps from the Biden Administration in exchange for his own work in the Turkish parliament. Biden has consistently been very supportive of the sale, having already unofficially informed Congress and expressing an intention to complete the sale repeatedly. The primary obstacle is the attitudes of key figures in Congress, who have been characteristically reticent about supplying Turkey with more weapons. Key members of the committees engaged with foreign affairs work in both the House and the Senate have cautioned that the approval for Swedish membership will not be enough for Turkey to secure the jets it has been seeking for so long, which has been a major point of concern for Ankara. Politicians on both sides of the aisle have more than sufficient basis for their worries, however, as Turkey’s recent military maneuvers have done little to endear it to the Americans. In Azerbaijan, Turkey provided political support to the ethnic cleansing of the 120,000 ethnic-Armenian citizens of the breakaway Republic of Artsakh, which had been situated within Azerbaijani borders in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. This put it in direct opposition to the US and other Western partners, who all roundly condemned the events. In Northern Syria, Turkey has been battering civilian infrastructure such as power stations and hydraulic plants in response to a terror attack in the vicinity of the National Assembly which was claimed by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party. Turkey has also targeted the Syrian Defense Forces, U.S. allies which are considered to be linked to terrorist organizations by Turkey. Furthermore, Turkish action close to a U.S. base in the area resulted in the unprecedented downing of a Turkish drone. Turkey has also had a historically strained relationship with Greece, having an established record of invading Greek airspace with political motivations and the eventual goal of normalizing its unique and expansionist conception of maritime borders. As Congress seems unwilling to be persuaded on the matter, Erdoğan has pivoted to place even more importance on the ratification process as a large concession on the part of Ankara. If Washington responds favorably to these developments, the long-debated F-16 sale could finally materialize, marking a new chapter in the complex dynamic between the two nations.

How the repatriation of 17,000 ancient objects can restore collective memory in a war torn country. < Back From Hobby Lobby to Iraq: The Historic Repatriation of Ancient Objects Restores Collective Memory By Lara-Nour Walton October 30, 2021 You may think that the connection between the craft store chain, Hobby Lobby, and the ancient Mesopotamian Gilgamesh Tablet could be tenuous at best. But you would be mistaken. In 2017, the Evangelical Christian owner of Hobby Lobby, Steve Green, opened the Museum of the Bible, a project that seeks to document the history of the Holy Book. Up until recently, many of the institution’s collections featured ancient Near Eastern art with questionable provenance. In 2010, Hobby Lobby combatted smuggling allegations after sneaking clay cuneiform slabs and seals (falsely labeled as Turkish tiles) into the United States. Green was warned prior to the purchase of these artifacts that they were most likely unlawfully looted from Iraqi historical sites. However, this warning went unheeded and Hobby Lobby became subject to a civil complaint. In 2019, one of the museum’s highest profile acquisitions, a fragment of the Dead Sea Scroll, was found to be a forgery. And now, the company is yet again under national scrutiny as it atones for its art-collecting sins in a major repatriation campaign. Amid power vacuums during both the Gulf War and American invasion, Iraqi museums, unexcavated caves, and monuments were looted. These thefts fueled the antiquities black market and resulted in the displacement of thousands of ancient objects. To return these objects to their motherland is, according to UNESCO Director General Audrey Azoulay, a triumph “over those who mutilate heritage and then traffic it to finance violence and terrorism.” But, the return of these ancient artifacts means so much more. It represents the restoration of Iraqi history and the rehabilitation of our collective memories. Since August of this year, some 17,000 looted artifacts hailing from both Museum of the Bible and Cornell University collections have been returned to Iraq. Among the restituted objects is the storied Gilgamesh Tablet whose tumultuous journey back to Iraqi soil is emblematic of the unpredictable nature of antiquities trafficking. The clay fragment that recounts an ancient Sumerian tale of a bull-slaying demigod was stolen from the Iraqi museum during the 1991 Gulf War. UNESCO reported that it was then allegedly bought by a Jordanian antiques dealer, who passed it onto a coin dealer in London. Later, it served as the centerpiece of a Museum of the Bible exhibit in Washington, D.C. before being seized by homeland security agents. Today it resides in the Baghdad Museum. For many, the return of these ancient objects is not merely about “rightful” ownership. Rather, it signifies a reunion between Iraqis, whose heritage has been subject to immense erasure over the last three decades, and their cultural pasts. U.S. ambassador to Iraq, Fareed Yasseen, described the repatriation as “a culmination of years of effort to heal Iraq’s cultural heritage wounds.” But many of these wounds cannot be mended. Several archaeologists discourage research into potentially looted objects because it deprives countries of origin from the opportunity to study the pieces themselves. However, the artifacts returned by Cornell University have been thoroughly studied without the consultation of Iraq. “We missed this great opportunity to study our tablets, our heritage,” lamented Hassan Nadhem, the Iraqi minister of culture, tourism and antiquities. “This is a kind of bitterness in our mouth.” Other wounds that emerged as a result of political instability and American neo-imperialism are manifested in the robust terrorist organizations that operate within Iraq. The destruction of Nineveh, the shameless rampaging of the Mosul Museum, and the dynamiting of centuries old Muslim and Christian shrines in recent years by the Islamic State are the most tragic cases of all. The art that was destroyed at the hands of extremists is irretrievable. Not even the repatriation of 17,000 Iraqi artifacts can restore the history that has been lost as a result of iconoclasm. The Gilgamesh tablet was returned on September 23, 2021. The repatriation was dubbed “a major victory” by UNESCO. But Hobby Lobby and Cornell’s return of these artifacts should not be viewed as a favor to Iraq or as some unforeseen joyous homecoming – it was simply a matter of national responsibility. The United States played an instrumental role in the destruction and pillaging of Iraq. During the 2003 invasion, U.S. soldiers were documented looting museums alongside disillusioned Iraqis. The de-baathification policies and America’s systematic dissolution of the Iraqi military directly led to the formation of the terrorist organizations that continue to chip away at Iraq’s already-dwindling cultural heritage. However, when news of repatriation campaigns hit media outlets, or when black clad men defacing lamassus appear on American television screens, it seems so far, as if the U.S. had nothing to do with the displacement of Iraqi objects or the subsequent defacement of ancient artifacts. But this is to be expected. Scholar Hamid Dabashi once said: “imperial cultures thrive on their intentional amnesia.” His words ring true as the U.S. feigns blamelessness, incredulity, or even sympathy when acknowledging the conflict in Iraq — a conflict that rages on as an immediate result of American disregard for the histories of other nations. Thus, it is art, the fight for its repatriation and its mere existence, that helps create the framework for collective memory. It is art that is the ultimate antidote to an empire’s amnesia.

< Back Tug-of-War: Chinese and American Shared Interest in Greenland Téa Breedon February 28, 2025 President Trump’s recent inauguration has sparked a series of policy shifts, driving changes in American conduct on a global stage. Among the most notable of these changes is Trump’s declaration of pursuing expansion to Greenland, echoing his past calls for American annexation of the Arctic territory. Trump’s interest in Greenland is largely tied to its potential for strengthening U.S. military presence in the Arctic, thereby enhancing its surveillance of adversaries to the east and safeguarding U.S. national security. Similarly, the Jinping administration attempted multiple Greenland grabs between 2016 and 2018, aiming to take control of the country for economic purposes. Rich with rare minerals yet sparse in population, Greenland serves as the perfect base for Chinese ambitions in the Arctic. Despite China being one of Greenland’s largest trading partners, accounting for all of Greenland’s seafood, ice and water exports, the nation responded with caution, wary of the risk of debt traps placed by entering into major material infrastructure deals with China. Together, these two global actors share an interest in territorial expansion to Greenland, identifying such ambitions as central to their nation’s success. In 2016, General Nice Resources —a Hong Kong-based company—made attempts to acquire a decommissioned Danish naval base, but Copenhagen rejected the bid due to concerns about jeopardizing the country’s relationship with the United States. China made a second pass at the region in 2018, offering to invest in Greenland’s airport infrastructure by modernizing its runways. Like the first, this attempt was blocked by Copenhagen, but it represents growing efforts to increase Chinese influence in the region. Aside from its rich resource bank, Greenland is appealing to China for its value to the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)—Beijing’s trade strategy aimed at connecting China to Asia, Africa and Europe via land and maritime networks. Establishing influence in Greenland would enhance Chinese access to Arctic shipping routes, explaining why Greenland has emerged as a popular target for geographical expansion. In 2019, Trump advanced a proposal for the U.S. to acquire Greenland, stemming from concerns about U.S. national security. Due to Greenland’s limited naval defenses and strategic location near the U.S., the USSR frequently used the island’s surrounding waters as a base for Soviet nuclear submarines, allowing them to monitor the U.S. and its NATO allies during the Cold War. Concerned about China adopting a similar strategy to that used by the Soviet Union in the 20th century, Trump issued a proposal for American annexation of the island. In addition to its role in deflecting Chinese expansion and influence, Greenland is of strategic significance to the U.S. for its relative distance from European conflicts and its value as a pitstop for aircraft refueling and military reconnaissance. In short, Greenland’s geographical position acts both as a buffer against global conflict and a vantage point for monitoring international activity. Despite the potential benefits of successfully acquiring Greenland, could the competition for control prove problematic for both nations? Might American annexation of the Arctic territory trigger Chinese attempts to challenge U.S. influence? Lessons learned from the Japanese attacks on Pearl Harbour shine light on these inquiries, pointing to the risks of over-reliance on the strategic significance of territorially-removed states. The Hawaiian naval base—most notable for its distance from adversaries and, thus, its potential for safeguarding the U.S. from international threats—suffered surprise Japanese military attacks in December 1941, forcing the U.S. into WWII in the following weeks. These attacks ended the debate over whether the U.S. should risk intervention in both the Pacific and European quarters of WWII, illustrating the dangers of over-dependence on the geographical advantage of a territorially-removed region such as Pearl Harbour. In this respect, assuming immunity to attacks based solely on geographic advantages is naive, potentially leaving a nation unprepared for international threats. Thus, should his plans come to fruition, Trump’s annexation of Greenland might provoke Chinese counterbalancing efforts, leaving the U.S. unprepared for a power struggle over the territory. The risk of an inter-state power struggle over Greenland is heightened by China’s condition as a declining power, making the 2020s rife with potential for conflict. China’s former One-Child policy —spanning from 1979–2015—initially intended to provide economic stimulus by creating a generation of unencumbered parents has recently led to a shrinking workforce and demographic decline. Consequently, the country is likely to find means to climb out of such decline—including territorial expansion to Greenland. In this sense, despite the common assumption that China is a global superpower, its current trend of economic downturn suggests a more precarious position that could fuel ambitions in—or competition over—Greenland. Greenland has become a focal point of strategic competition between the U.S. and China, with a mutual struggle risking triggering a new arena for great power rivalry. The historical lessons of overestimating geographic security, as seen by Pearl Harbour, highlight the potential dangers of relying on territorial distance to ensure national security. As China grapples with economic challenges and the U.S. seeks to reinforce its Arctic presence, it has become clear that Greenland could play a crucial role in shaping the future of international dynamics. Photo credits: New York National Guard, 2016

Now that I know two different worlds – an “elite” institution like Sciences Po and a “regular” public university like Heidelberg University – I have gained a whole new perspective on the academic and student life of Sciences Po. < Back Former Menton Student, Philipp Frank, Offers an Insider’s Outsider Perspective By Philipp Frank December 30, 2021 Questioning your past choices and worrying about the future are fundamental human traits. They are particularly prevalent among us young, adolescent students still trying to figure out how we want to live our lives. Studying at a university – especially if it is an international, multicultural and world-renowned institution like Sciences Po – is both exciting and stressful. However, it is first and foremost an unbelievably formative time that each and every one of us should try to get the most out of. As some (I hope not too few) of the current 2As know, I was a 1A student at the Sciences Po Paris Menton campus last year. I dropped out at the end of summer to begin studying law at Heidelberg University in Germany this winter. Now that I know two different worlds – an “elite” institution like Sciences Po and a “regular” public university like Heidelberg University – I have gained a whole new perspective on the academic and student life of Sciences Po. I believe that sharing this experience can give 2As some fresh insight and 1As – especially those among you still trying to figure out how to fit in or whether Sciences Po is the right choice for you – a different idea of what to expect. The academic life The educational system of Sciences Po is largely based on suffocating students with work. Whether it is presentations, exams, research papers, homework or simply revising lecture material – you are made to work a lot. There is some form of assessment that will influence your end-of-semester “relevé de notes” almost every week. There is free time, of course: days when you are free for a trip to Monaco or a swim at Sablettes. Moreover, all the work in the world will thankfully not stop people from going out and partying anyways. Nevertheless, no student can claim that Sciences Po does not significantly predetermine their daily and weekly schedule or that it leaves much room for them to manage their time themselves. Hence, the Sciences Po system is applying artificial pressure by making important decisions for you and requiring you to work long, hard and disciplined hours. This is training your physical and intellectual strength, resilience, and endurance to work successfully and effectively under pressure for a long time. Furthermore, you learn how to confront, analyze and summarize a lot of material and break it down to its essentials in the very short amount of time that is allocated to single tasks. In short, Sciences Po is aiming to transform you into a highly effective working machine – a very important trait to have personally and later in your career. However, there is a flipside to the Sciences Po system, for which the German language offers a wonderful word: “ verschulung .” Verschulung is negatively connotated. It means the implementation of educational methods from high school in educational programs that do not take place at high school (such as a university degree) and for which different educational methods are preferable. These educational methods include largely predetermined curricula, mandatory attendance, and dull knowledge transfer and retrieval — sound familiar? The consequence of verschulung at the university level is, in my opinion, that the ability to learn to work on your own and take personal responsibility falls short. To illustrate this problem, take the system of my current university: there is no mandatory attendance for any course, not even for the main ones. No professor or other lecturer checks or cares whether you come to class. There are no presentations, no oral contributions, no homework. Only exams and research papers count, which take place once during and in between semesters – and you do not have to take most of them right away. In short, everything is voluntary and, in theory, you do not have to work at all. This can be very liberating, but it puts a different kind of pressure on you because upon receiving your exam grades, you are confronted with reality. You see how well prepared you were and to what degree you lied to yourself. The university does not directly make you study; your motivation and your discipline have to come from yourself. Thus, in the long term, you learn to assess yourself, the limits of your knowledge and your intellectual capabilities, and how to make decisions based on that. You decide whether it is worth going to a lecture. You decide whether you have revised a topic enough or not. You decide whether you want to take one day off or maybe even four. Nothing is forced on you, everything lies in your hands, and at the end of the semester, you get what you deserve. This is not to say that Sciences Po students do not have or cannot learn these skills. However, having studied both at Sciences Po and Heidelberg University, I can confirm that the latter has challenged my discipline and motivation to study for the better. The tightness of the Sciences Po system has another consequence: the fact that there is only one degree for all students means that everyone is trained in more or less the same way of thinking. Regardless of where the people you meet come from, they are all social scientists in the making, hearing the same lectures, writing the same papers, learning the same logical methods. While I could not possibly claim that Sciences Po students generally have the same opinion (in fact, it is quite the opposite), I simply want to recommend to everyone to use the time abroad during your third year or your master’s degree to get to know people from a different academic background. I am a member of a debating club in Heidelberg and I cannot emphasize enough how fascinating it is to see students of law, maths, biology, and German literature debate each other and approach the same topic from four completely different perspectives. Social life My Heidelberg debating experience reminded me of another Sciences Po asset: the campus as a melting-pot of internationality and multiculturalism. Its importance and influence on personal development cannot be understated enough. The intercultural exchange taking place at Sciences Po comes in so many forms, whether it is language, food, associations, all forms of habit, or simple conversations. It might be boring to sit with six students of social sciences, but it can equally be exciting to sit with six students from six different countries and cultures. However, everyone living and cherishing this experience every day is well aware of this asset, so I have kept it short here. Much more interesting at this point is the nature of the social life of such a small campus as Menton. Here, everyone knows everyone, more or less. This has several implications, the first being that getting to know people and finding friends is much easier. A small campus and a well-connected student community in which various associations stage events for everyone to come to on an almost daily basis makes it easy to talk to new people, network to promote the new association that you founded, or look for a running buddy. This is in stark contrast to Heidelberg University, where lecture halls can be crammed with up to 400-600 people - try finding someone particular you met during Integration Week there… The small size of the campus has another implication though, as it makes social life in Menton much more personal, whilst leaving students with much less anonymity. This can be stressful and frightening in certain situations – gossip spreads much faster. Yet, overall, it gives the student community the chance and responsibility to integrate everyone. It is difficult to be lonely at Menton, because certain “student institutions'' hold the community together and, if needed, somewhat accountable. I am particularly thinking of the Feminist Union in this case, whose work and effort to raise awareness for sexual assault and educate about consent and sexual health I deeply admire, even more so now in retrospect after having left Menton and seeing that such associations are much needed elsewhere. Life at Sciences Po is hard-working, vibrant, and exciting. It is very formative because you are thrown into a stressful, multicultural melting-pot for only two short years. Time flies, especially at Menton, which is why – regardless of whether you like the system or how long you stay – you should dive all in and make the most of it.

The extreme right was never a force to be reckoned with in the history of France and only in the last decade did it become an actual threat to democracy and the well-being of the state. There are resemblances from the past to today’s situation, especially to the interwar period when such tendencies had an important sway. < Back The Extreme Right in France: Comeback or Novelty? Amer El-Ibrahim September 30, 2024 The rise of the extreme right in Europe is a subject that is ubiquitous in today’s conversations. We only think of its present popularity when it comes to our minds, but what about its history and its implication in today’s affairs? The results of the recent elections in France have made it clear that the right is now a force to be reckoned with, but was it always like this? First of all, the notions of the political “left” and “right” stem from the French Revolution, when, in the former National Assembly, people who were loyal to the crown sat on the right, while people who supported the revolution sat on the left. The right came to be recognised as wanting order above progress, supporting traditional institutions such as the family and the church and usually enforcing a strict social hierarchy. Meanwhile, the left was seen as being the exact opposite of the right, wanting change and reforms, from the political to the religious and social spheres. However, the extreme right in France did not appear until much later, tracing its origins back to the period of The Third Republic, when the country suffered terrible financial and territorial losses as a result of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. In times of despair and crises such as the defeat in front of the Germans, a hurt national sentiment is as likely an outcome as is hunger and alienation. This was observed when the victorious party took Lorraine and Alsace; people became polarized and were pushed to one political spectrum or the other. The Dreyfus Affair of 1894, when a Jewish officer named Alfred Dreyfus was accused of treason on false chargers much motivated by his ethnicity, crystallized the extreme right as a force. Until this event, French nationalism was seen as a part of the left, specifically as liberal nationalism, but during this affair nationalism was integrated into the far-right sphere, evolving into ethnic nationalism and blending with xenophobia and anti-Semitism. An important figure of the right was Charles Maurras, founder of integralism—a concept which stipulated that Catholic thought should be at the core of the state—who joined the small monarchist Action Francaise in 1898 He was the spiritual architect of this party and transformed it into a beacon of the extreme right by postulating his idea of integralism and by embedding in it a nationalism that bordered on xenophobia,anti-Semitism, anti-parliamentarian views and hatred towards the Republic. The Action Francaise was a forerunner of the right in France and the most relevant extreme right party that resulted from the Dreyfus affair. Its popularity reached its height during the interwar period when a number of extreme right parties made their appearance, prompted by the general rise of fascism in neighboring Germany and Italy. One of them was the Jeunesses Patriotes, founded by the multi-millionaire Taittinger. Another one was the Croix-de-Feu, originally an association for veterans decorated with the “fire-cross”, became nationalist and anti-parliamentary leanings during the leadership of Colonel La Rocque. However, both failed as parties mainly because of the lack of revolutionary spirit, being the armed hand of the bourgeois order rather than projecting a new one. The Faisceau was the first movement that was inspired by the Italian fascist party. The party was founded by Maurras’s former right hand, George Valois, who developed a strong leaning towards fascism, along with anti-bourgeois and prone to violent stances. Valois’s inflammatory rhetoric soon isolated the party and threw it into anonymity. The last generation of the right-extremists of the interwar period developed at the end of the thirties and is characterized by Jack Doriot’s Parti Populaire Francais (PPF) and Marcel Deat’s Rassemblement National Populaire. These parties were different from the others of their sort because the national question was not the founding basis of the parties, the social part and the idea of a new corporatist society being their main preoccupations. Additionally, their short-lived success was due to the fact that both leaders were affiliated in the past with left-wing organizations, subsequently rallying the working class into their movement. Nonetheless, the variety of the extreme right during the interwar period does not prove a propensity of people towards this spectrum, rather it showcases the generally anti-democratic values and attitudes of the citizens as anti-parliamentarism was very popular throughout the period. Although the right press and the ideas it diffused were widely popular, the parties’ electoral fortunes dwindled, so they were not able to take power. However, the establishment of the Vichy regime led by Marshal Petain after the May defeat in 1940 was the synthesis of varied branches of the extreme right, from Maurassians to fascists, which did not express themselves in plenitude during the 1930s. The main philosophy of this regime could be summed up by the triad “work, family, country” and it consisted of accentuated nationalism, the refusal of individualism and egalitarianism, as well as the search for national unity, the rejection of cultural freedom and an anti-intellectual sentiment. Nevertheless, this regime was not just a regular puppet state controlled by the Germans, rather it was a long-awaited opportunity to implement a national revolution that would cleanse France of the decay that parliamentarism had brought. In the years following the war, the extreme right had to deal with the legacy the Vichy regime left, which was not favorable to them. The most important extreme right movement of the Fourth Republic was the Jeune Nation, which was the first organization that branded itself as neo-fascist. Its success can be traced to the fact that it purified itself of Petainiste views, but it was limited mostly to students rather than the masses and was dissolved by the authorities in 1958 for agitation for violent actions. The transition to the Fifth Republic and the Gaullist regime stifled the extreme right even more, which would plunge into marginality for the next 20 years. Born from the student revolts of May 1968, the Ordre Nouveau (ON) was the major extreme right organization in the 70s. It emphasized anti-communism and anti-immigration, contesting initially the electoral system, but later creating a legitimate political party that ran for elections called the Front National (FN). The movement exploited the nostalgia for the Vichy Regime embodied by Catholic fundamentalists, integralists and other remnants of interwar extreme-right parties. The spirit of the party was concentrated on anti-communism, nationalism, anti-immigration, a strong state and defense of traditional values. Jean Marie Le Pen, founder of the party and its leader until 2011, opposed the fascist leanings of the ON members of the party and emphasized the need for the party to remain legal. This conflict inside the party resulted in the ON leaving, thus offering space for other closeted right extremists. Other parties resulted from this split, but they remained completely marginal. From the 1970s to the present times, the FN remained the main extreme right force in France. Its first breakthrough happened in 1983 and after this point, its popularity only grew, but the party never exceeded the 20 percent mark in elections until 2012, when the leadership was moved to Le Pen’s daughter, Marie Le Pen. What one can gather from all of this is that the extreme right was never a force to be reckoned with in the history of France and only in the last decade did it become an actual threat to democracy and the well-being of the state. There are resemblances from the past to today’s situation, especially to the interwar period when such tendencies had an important sway. By focusing mainly on what happened in the last century, I wanted to highlight that such movements leaning towards the extreme right are something recurrent and that the danger of them taking power has always existed. The only difference is that this year they almost won. However, similar to the interwar period, their newfound popularity seems to stem from discontent regarding the current government and state of affairs, and not from an actual conviction in what they postulate. But this remains only an impression and should be regarded with doubt.

When I attended the Sciences Po rentrée solennelle and I heard myself called an elite member of French society; I felt very confused. < Back Elitism at Sciences Po By Saoirse Aherne September 29, 2021 About three days before my flight was set to leave for France, I found myself huddled around the kitchen table with my parents engaging in a long conversation about the adventure on which I was about to embark. At some point, my Dad turned to me and warned me that universities in Europe were far more classist than those in Canada. I brushed off his comments. I assumed my dad was describing the Europe of his time, the culture he left 19 years ago. I couldn't picture an academic setting that would push a narrative of superiority or intellectual elitism — how alien, how foreign. Just about anyone in Canada can get into university. Sure, some institutions carry a little more prestige, but at an undergraduate level, the world of Canadian post-secondary education is incredibly relaxed. Then I arrived at SciencesPo Menton. I attended the rentrée solennelle and I heard myself called an elite member of French society; I felt very confused. Elite? That word carries some heavy connotation for me. Division, oppression, superiority, social stratification-isolated-out-of-touch-legacy….. These ideas swirled around my head as I sat in the Descoings Amphitheatre. Who would willingly define themselves as an elite? The thought of being seen as a member of some special social club made me feel a little ill, and it became clear that my reaction was not unique in speaking to other American and Canadian students. I had to stop myself from spiralling, and question whether the way I had come to understand the elite was different from its meaning in France. Perhaps my issue was not with the ideology of SciencesPo but rather was founded in my own cultural ignorance. I became curious — what does it mean to be an elite here in France? Can the idea of an elite play a valid and productive role in modern society, or is this an archaic concept that needs to be laid to rest? In speaking to a French track student who will remain anonymous, I encountered quite a different definition of the elite from the one I had come to know. This source defines the elite as a “part of a given population that has the most… cultural capital” and thus the power to influence society. However they also make a distinction between “theoretical” elites and “true” elites. To be an elite, this source believes that one must manifest cultural capital in the form of productive action. One must use education and power to contribute to societal progress. Hence the source denotes that elites can be valuable to society but only when they utilise the power bestowed to them by their cultural capital, and further suggests that only those who do, constitute legitimate elites. This perspective seems to merge meritocratic values with the concept of elites, something that I as a Canadian student would never have considered possible. However the definition produces more questions if we return to the tendency of Sciences Po to label its students as elite. Have we truly had the opportunity to accumulate cultural capital and use it to the benefit of society? Many students underwent rigorous and selective application processes to arrive here, but does that in and of itself make them elite? According to my source, it does not. We cannot adopt the powerful identifier that is “The elite” whilst spending our time partying and invading Sablettes. As of now, we are merely “elites in potential.” This assertion creates some conflict when we consider the manifestations of elitism on our campus. I'm referring specifically to the selectivity of student organisations in Menton. Discovering that student associations have rigorous application processes and further reject many candidates was a huge surprise to me. My English track peers and I have discussed on numerous occasions how confusing it is that some people are denied the opportunity to volunteer their time to causes about which they are passionate. At the core of this application tradition is the belief that a hand-picked group of the most qualified individuals is more efficient and capable than a large group of interested people. In all honesty, that doesn’t sound too unreasonable. However, I’ve encountered many people who were denied entry to associations in spite of being highly qualified for a position. It seems as if the validity of association boards is characterised by the exclusion of other students — selectivity is a means to achieve legitimacy. Finally, if we return to my source's assertion that the state of being an elite must be earned through action, why is it that we deny “potential elites” in our student body the opportunity to manifest their cultural capital in a productive manner? My source makes a point to say, “we should not categorise French students as a pro-elite group.” French society is deeply split on the validity and responsibilities of the elite. However, the source also recognizes that having grown up with an understanding of Les Grandes Écoles , and having internalised the validity of the selective process through schooling, French students have a “specific opinion of the Elite.” Looking at the history of elites in France can provide some insight as to why the notion of elites remains so prevalent in the French education system. A study by Mara P. Squicciarini of Bocconi University, and UCLA Anderson’s Nico Voigtländer found that the French revolution was driven by “enlightened elites.” Indeed, it was educated scientists and philosophers who drove social change and upended the French monarchy. This study found that regions in revolutionary France with higher proportions of knowledgeable elites were far more likely to support education for the masses, freedom of the press, and equal rights. It is unsurprising that elites have come to be associated with the protection of freedom and education in France. Such that the contributions of this class built the foundation of modern French values, there is a logic to the belief that they should continue to strongly influence politics in this nation. Ultimately, this study concludes that “the presence of ‘enlightened elites’ can encourage positive growth and democracy-building.” Perhaps the state of being an elite in France is less defined by a special quality or superior intellect, and more founded in a passionate desire to improve French society. Indeed, this definition seems to echo that which my source provided. But this does not explain the origins of anti-elitism in France, which is just as prevalent as elitism itself. Consider the Gilets Jaunes, a popular movement that attacked the supposed oligarchic French political system, claiming it was governed by rich, out-of-touch Elites. My source agrees that these movements are founded on a valid critique of classism in the French system, wherein “it is very hard for the son or daughter of a worker to gain legitimate cultural knowledge.” According to the French Observatory of Inequalities, students whose parents hold high income jobs are 12 times more likely to enter l’Ecole Nationale d’Administration , one of Les Grandes Écoles , than those from poorer backgrounds. It is important to note that l’Ecole Nationale d’Administration has a reputation for producing presidents, heads of state and senior officials in the French administration. Thus, in excluding a social class from accessing schools such as l’ENA, huge portions of the population come to feel unrepresented by their government. In a way, Les Grandes Écoles have become emblematic of class division within French society. To justify this claim, one need only look at Macron’s announcement on April 8th that l’ENA will be abolished and replaced by a "Public Service Institution.” This comes two years after Macron introduced the idea of closing l’ENA as a response to the Gilets Jaunes movement. Considering this, why is it that we, at Sciences Po, continue to build an identity around elitism? The emotional attachment to the historical revelry that surrounded the academic elite is not productive. My source states that to combat anti-elitism, equality of opportunity must be established within the French education system, though this is an idealistic objective. A change of that nature requires that we reframe the notion of the elite; it requires us to stop calling students elite when they have yet to make societal contributions. The practice of calling a student elite based merely on their place of study denotes that one need not achieve legitimacy through action, thus breeding “theoretical elites” who lack a sense of responsibility to the betterment of society. Macron’s closure of l’ENA suggests that French culture and political opinion is shifting in its view of the elite. If SciencesPo is not careful, it shall be left behind in this tide of changing perception.

Ayant vécu toute mon enfance en Argentine, je n'avais jamais entendu l'expression « les Américains » pour désigner les ressortissants des Etats-Unis jusqu'à mon arrivée à Sciences Po. < Back Nique l'Amérique (attendez, les États-Unis ou le continent) By Amalia Heide March 30, 2024 Ayant vécu toute mon enfance en Argentine, je n'avais jamais entendu l'expression « les Américains » pour désigner les ressortissants des Etats-Unis jusqu'à mon arrivée à Sciences Po. Je pense que cet usage particulier de l’ethnonyme a été l'un des chocs culturels les plus importants que j'ai vécus en France. Ce qui m'a le plus surpris, cependant, c'est de découvrir que même les professeurs et les universitaires se réfèrent aux États-Unis en tant qu'« Amérique » et aux États-uniens en tant qu'« américains ». Cette expérience, si troublante et étrangère à mes oreilles, m'a amené à réfléchir profondément à l'importance des nomenclatures dans les identités collectives. Je précise que je ne cherche pas, dans cet article, à porter un jugement de valeur sur les citoyens états-uniens qui utilisent le terme « américain » pour désigner leur identité nationale. Je comprends qu'il s'agit d'une coutume, d'un processus d'apprentissage social qui est souvent dénué de toute malveillance à l'égard des habitants du continent. Au contraire, mon intention est d'offrir une perspective alternative à l'approche prédominante sur les campus en explorant la compréhension de ce phénomène d'attribution d'identité. Pour réfléchir à cette question, je trouve intéressant de commencer par comprendre l'importance des mots. Comme le dit Locke, « les mots sont les signes des idées ». Les idées sont des représentations mentales qui dépendent dans une certaine mesure de la subjectivité de l'individu. Par conséquent, les mots sont les symboles de notre subjectivité. En ce sens, les mots ne DESIGNENT pas de manière neutre mais SIGNIFIENT. L'exemple de l'utilisation des ethnonymes « Palestine » et « Israël » est illustratif. Il ne s'agit pas de noms propres neutres, bien qu'ils désignent parfois la même zone géographique. Leurs significations diffèrent, impliquant des tensions socio-économiques et politiques. Dans ce cas, les tensions sont évidentes, je n'ai pas besoin de les expliciter. Elles ne sont pas aussi évidentes dans le cas qui nous intéresse ici : Qu'implique l'utilisation de l'ethnonyme "Amérique" pour désigner l'État-nation des États-Unis d'Amérique ? Tout d'abord, le double usage du mot "américain" pour désigner les habitants d'un État et les habitants d'un continent pose des problèmes concernant l'identification : à laquelle des deux entités faisons-nous référence dans son utilisation ? Le mot perd ainsi sa fonction principale de désignation et de repérage. C'est pourquoi la Real Academia Española, l'équivalent de l'Académie française, préconise d' « éviter l'emploi d'Américain pour désigner exclusivement les habitants des États-Unis, emploi abusif (...) Il ne faut pas oublier que l'Amérique est le nom du continent tout entier, et que tous ceux qui y vivent sont des Américains . » Cependant, cette confusion entre l'État-nation et le continent ne peut être interprétée UNIQUEMENT comme la conséquence d'un abus de langage. La langue, outil fondamental d'expression et de communication des idées, reflète les perceptions et les conceptions qu'une société a d'elle-même et de sa relation au monde qui l'entoure. Quelle est la relation entre les Etats-Unis et le continent en termes d'identité ? La création de l'État-nation implique la définition d'un territoire administratif fixe. Depuis la déclaration d'indépendance, l'aire géographique des États-Unis d'Amérique s'est progressivement étendue sur un demi-siècle. Cet prolongation de la frontière vers l'ouest est une première manifestation de ce que les treize premières colonies envisageaient pour les États-Unis : un État expansionniste ayant pour but « d'accroître sa domination économique et politique dans un autre espace géographique » (définition du terme "expansionnisme"). C'est une première indication du rapport des Étasuniens au continent américain : en réalité, il n'y avait pas de démarcation nette, permanente et définie entre les deux entités, puisque les frontières n'étaient pas figées et la volonté politique était qu'elles ne soient pas immuables dès sa fondation. De même, le colonialisme d'outre-mer initié par les États-Unis confirme et approfondit cette ligne de distinction opaque entre l' « Amérique » en tant que continent et en tant qu'État-nation. En effet, après la guerre avec l'Espagne sur le territoire cubain en 1898, les États-Unis ont non seulement annexé les colonies espagnoles des Philippines, de Porto Rico et de Guam, mais aussi les territoires non espagnols d'Hawaï et des Samoa américaines. En outre, nous pouvons observer sur la deuxième carte comment les États-Unis sont intervenus dans les autres pays souverains du continent américain au cours du 20e siècle. Si l'expansion directe par l'annexion de territoires est une forme évidente d'expansionnisme, l'interventionnisme est une stratégie plus subtile mais tout aussi efficace pour étendre la portée de l’influence de l'Etat-nation états-unien. Ayant une politique expansionniste depuis leur fondation, « les États-Unis », « l'Union », « la République » étaient des noms propres qui désignaient mais n'exprimaient pas l'essence de la perception de soi et de la perception extérieure de l'identité nationale des " gringos ". Ainsi, l' « Amérique » est un concept linguistique qui agit comme un miroir de cette ambiguïté conceptuelle, contribuant à la construction d'une identité nationale qui se présente comme la représentation même d'une région géographique entière. Dans ce contexte, la doctrine Monroe et son slogan « l'Amérique aux Américains » peuvent être interprétés comme « le continent aux États-Unis. » Je ne souhaiterais pas que mon propos soit mal compris : je ne rejette pas entièrement les autres raisons historiques pour lesquelles les Étasuniens se désignent eux-mêmes comme des «Américains». En effet, cette utilisation du terme a été introduite par les Britanniques pendant la guerre d'indépendance. Petite réflexion curieuse : ironiquement, l'attribution de l'ethnonyme "américain" aux treize premières colonies des États-Unis peut être attribuée au colonialisme. Cependant, si l'ethnonyme était courant depuis l'indépendance en 1776 pour désigner l'identité nationale des Etats-Unis auprès de la société civile, il n'était pas employé de manière systématique. Le problème est de comprendre que la systématisation de cet usage répond à une instrumentalisation politique. En effet, le premier président à prendre ses fonctions après la guerre hispano-américaine fut Teddy Roosevelt. Impérialiste convaincu, il systématise l'usage de " America " avec des slogans tels que " God Bless America ". Le slogan " Make America Great Again ", au 21e siècle, suit la même dynamique. En tant qu'étudiants en sciences politiques, nous savons qu'un slogan ou la formalisation d'un terme sont rarement le fruit du hasard. Ils répondent à un projet politico-identitaire, et dans ce cas, cela est un synonyme d’comme nous l'avons déjà vu, un projet impérialiste. En guise de conclusion, je dois admettre que l'instrumentalisation de l'ethnonyme "Amérique" était une idée brillante. Cette stratégie constitue aujourd'hui un exemple de soft power . Pourquoi dis-je cela ? L' « Amérique » joue un rôle crucial dans la perception des États-Unis par les populations situées en dehors des Amériques. Il y a une fusion plus ou moins volontaire de ces deux termes qui aboutit à l'amplification de l'image des États-Unis et, en même temps, à l'invisibilisation ou à l'occultation d'une identité collective régionale, continentale et/ou nationale. Pour illustrer mon propos, nous pouvons nous tourner vers le continent européen comme un parallèle utile. Imaginons que les Allemands se nomment eux-mêmes « Européens ». Cela signifie que lorsque l'on dit « les Européens », on peut faire référence à la fois aux habitants du continent dans son ensemble et exclusivement à la nationalité allemande. Par exemple, si quelqu'un dit « les Européens ont subi un tremblement de terre », comment savoir de qui on parle ? De même, lorsque nous entendons « nouvelles d'Europe », s'agit-il d'événements survenus dans un pays particulier ou dans la région en général ? En outre, il est clair qu'indirectement, notre esprit aura tendance à associer l'« Europe » d'abord à l'Allemagne plutôt qu'aux 50 autres États souverains du continent. Il peut en résulter une amplification de l'importance de l'Allemagne et une diminution de la pertinence des 50 autres États. Dans les relations internationales, cette dimension identitaire et la représentation qu'elle implique peuvent peser lourd dans l'équilibre des forces. Cela plairait-il aux français par exemple que les Allemands s'approprient exclusivement le terme “européen” ? Ne se sentiraient-ils pas exclus si la plupart des personnes non-françaises associaient les Européens exclusivement aux Allemands ? Ici, je n'ai donné l'exemple de l’Allemagne, un État membre de l'UE. Cependant, l'Union européenne a tendance à s'approprier du terme ‘européen’ souvent au détriment des États qui n'en sont pas membres, ce qui pose également problème. Enfin, tout ce blabla pour expliquer pourquoi il peut être gênant pour un habitant du continent américain d'entendre comment les États-Unis ont triomphé dans leur appropriation de ce gentilé avec tant de connotations et de problèmes politiques, géostratégiques et identitaires. Il est difficile de s'habituer à comprendre comment, en Europe, il est devenu si normalisé d'appeler un Yankee « Américain. » À cela, on pourrait me dire (et on me l'a déjà dit sur ce campus) qu'en tant qu'Argentine, je suis « latino-américaine » et non « américaine ». Je pense qu'il est important de réaliser que, premièrement, le terme "latino-américain" a été introduit par l'Europe. Deuxièmement, le fait d'être latino-américain ne signifie pas que je ne suis pas américaine. Ces deux identités ne s'excluent pas mutuellement. Tout comme un Italien peut être à la fois européen et méditerranéen. Je vous laisse avec un couplet de l'emblématique chanteuse argentine Mercedes Sosa : « L'Amérique attend Et le siècle devient bleu Pampas, rivières et montagnes Libèrent leur propre lumière La copla n'a pas de propriétaire Les motifs ne commandent plus La guitare américaine En se battant, elle a appris à chanter. » -- Chanson pour mon Amérique

< Back L’Europe sous Trump: qu’adviendra t-il de l’Ukraine? Anna Halpern December 31, 2024 « Vous devez comprendre que si l’Europe est attaquée, nous ne viendrons jamais vous aider et vous soutenir » : voici les mots de Donald Trump à Ursula von der Leyen en 2020, selon Thierry Breton. Nombre d’entre nous en Europe se sont réveillés le 6 novembre en nous demandant ce que nous réserve le futur, et comment faire face à un nouveau mandat de Trump, dont la perspective se dessinait de plus en plus clairement. Cela faisait déjà des mois que l’Europe se préparait à cette possibilité sans pour autant avoir une solution unanime. La question phare: qu'adviendra-t-il de l'Ukraine si Trump redevient président, et comment la communauté européenne peut-elle se dissocier des Etats-Unis sur le plan sécuritaire? Quelle est donc cette nouvelle position États-Unienne sur la guerre en Ukraine qui fait trembler l’Europe? Donald Trump a fait de la fin de la guerre en Ukraine, et surtout de son financement en grande partie par Washington, l’un des points clés de son programme électoral. Il s’est fait le porte drapeau d’un non-interventionnisme , d’une réduction de l'armée et d’un ‘chacun pour soi’ ou il envisage la défense des alliés des Etats-Unis—notamment l’Europe et Taiwan —comme un service rendu qu’ils devraient payer. Sous ses promesses de pousser pour un cessez le feu immédiat et de « mettre fin à la guerre en Ukraine en vingt-quatre heures , » les observateurs sont nombreux à craindre une menace de retrait de l’aide américaine pour tordre le bras de Zelensky et le pousser à négocier une fin potentiellement désavantageuse à la guerre. En préparation d’une politique américaine bien moins avantageuse, les vingt-sept essaient de se recentrer sur des solutions européennes. En effet, pas plus tard que ce jeudi douze décembre, le Président français et le Premier ministre polonais ont discuté de l’option poussée par Emmanuel Macron d’envoyer des troupes en Ukraine. Cette option serait indépendante de l’OTAN et de l’UE, mais impliquerait une base « bilatérale. » Ce n’est pas la première fois que le Président français envisage l’envoie de troupes au sol. En effet, cela avait été abordé en février, ou il avait parlé d’une « ambiguïté stratégique » en n'écartant aucune option militaire. Néanmoins, cette idée ne fait pas consensus, que se soit l’Allemagne en février ou la Pologne plus récemment, nombreux sont les pays qui ne seraient pas « considérés comme disposés à envoyer éventuellement des troupes. » Ce manque de consensus se reflète aussi au niveau de l’ambition de restructuration de la politique et des capacités défensives de l'Europe. L’Union européenne n’a pas d'armée commune, mais possède une politique de sécurité et de défense commune ou PSDC et un Fond Européen de défense ou FED . Bien qu’une ‘boussole stratégique’ commune ait été établie pour clarifier les objectifs sécuritaires européens, les divergences sur le degré d'intégration militaire auquel l’UE devrait aspirer sont largement visibles. D’une part, le nouvel air Trump ainsi que la guerre en Ukraine indiquent un besoin d'autonomisation de l’Europe en matière sécuritaire. D’autre part, la mise en place de cette autonomisation et du soutien à l’Ukraine fait division. En premier plan, les divergences intra-européennes sur le sujet de l’emprunt commun et de l’achat de munitions plutôt que des dépenses à des fins civiles, soulignent un manque de coordination et d’alignement stratégique au sein de l’Union. Une question qui ressort souvent dans ces divisions, est la problématique d’une armée européenne. Cette idée historiquement soutenue par l’Allemagne et la France et largement opposée au sein des pays de l’Europe de l’est a été remise sur le plateau depuis le début de la guerre en Ukraine. En effet, les pays européens qui pour beaucoup sont au sein de l’OTAN et ne remplissent pas leur quota de 2% du budget pour l'armée, se sont retrouvés en besoin d’un grand changement et d’une remilitarisation face à un retour inattendu de la guerre sur leur continent. Bien que ce ne soit pas la première fois que cette notion d’ « Europe de la défense » apparaisse, est-ce que cette fois les européens réussiront à faire front commun? Les suggestions sur les dépenses communes, pour donner plus de cohérence à leurs armées, la notion de promouvoir des achats d’armement d’industriels européens et l'établissement d’objectifs communs semblent des signes prometteurs. Mais on est encore bien loin de la notion d’une armée commune car les divisions de culture militaire entre les pays sont encore trop fortes, et les objectifs politiques trop divergents. Ces divisions intra-européenne s'imposent donc comme une grave difficulté en essayant d'imaginer l'Europe sous Trump. En effet, il est clair qu’aucun consensus n’existe encore pour y répondre. Entre les pays les plus fortement défenseurs de l’Ukraine qui envisagent l’envoie de troupes sur le terrain, et ceux qui commencent à se demander si tous les efforts européens pour l'Ukraine sont bien raisonnables face à des troubles économiques et politiques grandissants, il est dors et déjà possible de dire que les rêves de fédération de certains pro-européens est loin d'être une réalité à ce jour. Néanmoins, il est tout de même important de souligner que l’Europe a réussi à se coordonner. Elle a envoyé une aide non négligeable, et à vu une augmentation de l’investissement militaire à travers un grand nombre de ses membres. Cette adaptation révèle sa capacité à faire face qui pourrait lui permettre de se placer dans le top des puissances militaires dans le futur.

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En ces temps de mutation profonde du monde du travail, la controverse portant sur la forme que doit prendre une bonne workweek anime les gouvernements et les sociétés. Décriées ou célébrées, les tentatives actuelles pour réformer la semaine de travail traditionnelle se multiplient à travers le monde et nous incitent à repenser notre rapport à la production et à l’emploi. < Back Les ‘Five-Day Workweeks’ en Débat: Revisiter Notre Rapport à la Production et au Travail Margarita Kopsia October 31, 2024 Les sondages réalisés par CNN Business révèlent que « 77% des travailleurs aux États-Unis » seraient en faveur de la semaine de quatre jours, convaincus que cela aurait un effet positif sur leur bien-être. Les expérimentations sur la four-day workweek se multiplient alors à travers le monde, portant avec elles l’espoir d’un meilleur équilibre entre vie privée et vie professionnelle et promettant de meilleures performances économiques. Traversant les pays, les secteurs économiques, les entreprises et les employés. Elles réunissent également tous ces acteurs autour d’une même préoccupation: celle de trouver des solutions plus efficaces pour atteindre un meilleur équilibre entre productivité et épanouissement personnel. Ce renouvellement dans notre manière de penser et d’organiser le travail pousse alors des acteurs de plus en plus nombreux à donner une chance à la semaine de quatre jours. Ce mouvement ne fait pas pourtant l’unanimité et au mécontentement de nombreux, la Grèce a récemment tendu en faveur de la semaine de six jours dans le cadre de sa politique économique, afin de stimuler la croissance dans certains secteurs. Ainsi, le débat sur la durée et la fréquence qui sont censés caractériser la workweek « idéale » est bien là. Mais qu’est-ce que le terme workweek est-il censé refléter et pourquoi parle-t-on de plus en plus ces dernières années de ses différentes variétés? La notion de workweek— signifiant littéralement “semaine de travail”—se réfère généralement au nombre d’heures ou de jours que l’individu moyen passe à travailler au cours d’une semaine. Ainsi, si la représentation que chacun peut avoir de la semaine « parfaite » varie fortement—entre temps consacré à travailler ou à s’épanouir individuellement—celle qui s’est historiquement, traditionnellement et culturellement imposée l’est beaucoup moins. En effet, la semaine de cinq jours, qui dure entre 30 et 39 heures environ dans l’Union européenne, constitue une réalité depuis de nombreuses générations déjà et semble avoir bien pris place dans nos habitudes à travers l’écrasante majorité des populations et des secteurs de travail. Mais suscitant curiosité, espoir ou incompréhension, la Belgique fut dès 2022 « le premier pays dans l’Union européenne—et le troisième seulement dans le monde, après l’Islande et la Nouvelle Zélande—à introduire formellement la four-day workweek comme une option pour ses travailleurs, » en augmentant le volume horaire de travail requis pour les quatre jours restants, qui passe alors de huit heures par jour à neuf heures et demi: « rendre les gens et les entreprises plus forts » est l'objectif affiché par le Premier ministre belge Alexander de Croo. Le Royaume-Uni figure parmi les pionniers en expérimentation de la four-day workweek, dont le succès à même ouvert la voie à la rédaction du « Flexible Working Bill » censé entrer en vigueur en Juillet 2025 . Ce projet de loi prévoit de laisser aux employés plus de liberté concernant leurs horaires et milieux de travail privilégiés, suite aux constats du CIPD dont les recherches ont montré que « 6% des employés ont changé d’emploi [en 2022] précisément par manque d’options de travail flexibles et que 12% parmi ces derniers ont quitté leur profession entièrement faute de flexibilité au sein du secteur. Cela représente 2 et 4 millions de travailleurs respectivement. » L’argument qui revient est comparable à celui des autres pays qui donnent une chance à la semaine de quatre jours, le ministre des Affaires et du Commerce Kevin Hollinrake affirmant qu’ « une force de travail plus heureuse signifie plus de productivité, et c’est pour cela que nous soutenons des mesures qui donnent aux travailleurs à travers le Royaume-Uni davantage de flexibilité quant à “où” et “quand” ils travaillent. » Face au nombre grandissant d’entreprises, d’administrations publiques voire d’États qui semblent récemment remettre en question cette vision généralisée de ce qu’est une bonne workweek , conciliant efficacité, productivité et équilibre, le Japon prend position. Espérant « rendre les postes plus attractifs en passant de cinq à quatre jours hebdomadaires, » faire face au coût économique du vieillissement de la population ou même pour « lutter contre le burnout, » le Japon a récemment commencé à opter lui aussi en faveur de la semaine de quatre jours. Soucieux de préserver le bien-être de ses travailleurs, doper leur productivité mais aussi dans le but d’attirer plus de talents, c’est dans le cadre de sa « work style reform campaign » que le gouvernement japonais incite les entreprises à adopter une plus grande « flexibilité » quant aux horaires et jours travail qu’ils imposent à leurs employés. Depuis l’année 2021 que le concept acquiert une certaine popularité parmi les rangs des grandes entreprises japonaises telles que Panasonic ou Hitachi, mais il peine étonnamment à s’imposer parmi les travailleurs eux-mêmes pour cause de la « workaholic culture » qui caractérise la société japonaise. Car en effet, travailler « moins »—même si cela peut se traduire à travailler « mieux »—peut être mal vu parmi des employés qui sont de plus en plus prêts à sacrifier du temps de leur vie privée pour leur vie de travail. Martin Schulz, économiste en chef chez Fujitsu, confie alors à CNBC que « faire partie d’une compagnie c’est presque comme faire partie d’une communauté, et cela résulte souvent en des heures de travail plus longues, qui ne sont pas forcément plus efficaces. » Ainsi, selon ce même article, seulement 150 parmi les 63 000 travailleurs éligibles chez Panasonic pour une telle flexibilité du travail ont finalement opté pour cela. Nous sommes donc témoins aujourd'hui d’un mouvement international, mais divisé, en faveur de la semaine de quatre jours, à la lumière du nombre grandissant de pays qui multiplient les expérimentations et réglementations suivant cette nouvelle direction. Espérant concilier productivité et bien-être, l’équilibre entre vie professionnelle et vie personnelle semble de plus en plus difficile à trouver au fur et à mesure qu’il est remis en question par ces différents pays, dont les semaines de travail deviennent plus courtes et plus denses. S’écarter de la semaine de quatre jours: le cas de la Grèce avec la nouvelle loi 5053/23 Le chemin qui est emprunté par la Grèce à ce niveau est différent et la solution qui se présente depuis Juillet 2024 pour « stimuler l’emploi » implique contrairement une hausse du temps de travail hebdomadaire: la semaine de 48 heures pourrait devenir une réalité pour de nombreux employés. Cette nouvelle législation concerne les entreprises qui « fournissent des services [de type] 24/7 ou celles qui font face à une charge de travail extraordinaire, » qui auront la possibilité « d’imposer une semaine de travail de six jours à leurs employés. » Le secteur touristique, caractérisé par des rythmes intenses et par des journées longues pour les salariés, n’est donc généralement pas concerné par la législation selon le journal Ekathimerini . Le compromis pour ceux qui le sont? Une « hausse de leur salaire de 40% » pour ce jour supplémentaire, voire de 115% s’il s’agit d’un dimanche. Décalage par rapport à d'autres pays européens , ou plutôt outil de rattrapage privilégié ? De tels questionnements traversent la société grecque et alimentent la controverse, sachant que la Grèce figure déjà selon Eurostat parmi les pays de l’Union européenne avec la semaine de travail la plus longue, affichant une moyenne de 39,9 heures de travail hebdomadaires en 2023. L’explication qui est mise en avant par les économistes est que « le plus grand problème de l’économie grecque est la productivité des heures de travail, » le pays affichant une efficacité moins importante par rapport à la moyenne européenne. D’autres facteurs tels que la « baisse de la population » ou la « la pénurie de travailleurs qualifiés » —tous deux liés à « l'exode » de millions de jeunes qualifiés depuis la crise économique de 2009—accentuent également les enjeux qui ont abouti à cet élargissement de la semaine de travail pour les secteurs en question. Ces facteurs feraient-ils de cette nouvelle législation une mesure impopulaire mais nécessaire? Espérant soulager ces maux mais aussi affronter les problèmes liés au versement des salaires des employés et ceux de l'exercice de travail « non déclaré , » la mesure excède une dimension purement économique pour le gouvernement qui souhaite d’en faire également une mesure qui soit « worker-friendly . » Les modalités de l'exercice de ce jour de travail supplémentaire sont ainsi régies par différentes réglementations et la limite de travail journalier pour ce sixième jour est fixée à 8 heures, les employeurs étant dans l’obligation de respecter ce seuil et ne pouvant imposer à leurs salariés des tâches ou des horaires qui nécessiteraient de s’en écarter. Malgré ce souci affiché pour le respect des droits des employés concernés par ces changements, la nouvelle loi fait face à une impopularité accrue, étant même qualifiée comme « barbare » par les syndicats dans le cadre de manifestations pendant le mois de Juillet qui y dénoncent une approche contre-productive, ne faisant qu’accentuer des problèmes existants. Aussi éclaircissant que cela puisse être de continuer de s’interroger sur ce qui fait la force ou la faiblesse de ces différentes workweeks , entre semaines de quatre jours ou semaines de six jours, demandons-nous également comment en est-on arrivés là. Pourquoi la semaine de cinq jours a-t-elle fini par s’imposer comme le modèle dominant d’organisation du travail? Visions, pensées et représentations de la semaine travail à travers le temps et l’espace Mis à part toutes ces différentes controverses et mouvements opposés, le débat sur les workweeks s’opère généralement sur un même fond commun, qui est celui de la semaine de cinq jours. Cette dernière est largement partagée par la grande majorité des pays du monde et traverse les sociétés et les époques. Ainsi, le concept aurait même constitué une réalité sous une autre forme durant la dynastie Han en Chine, durant laquelle les « fonctionnaires avaient le droit de prendre un jour de repos tous les 5 jours » selon Lien-sheng Yang dans S chedules of Work and Rest in Imperial China . Il est ainsi possible de retracer plusieurs origines à la notion de la semaine de cinq jours. Parmi les moments de l’histoire qui ont participé à son façonnement, nous relevons par exemple la contribution fondamentale de Henry Ford qui aurait « dit à ses employés qu’il mettait en place une semaine de 5 jours et de 40 heures [...]. » Les « revendications syndicales » auraient également joué un rôle essentiel dans la mise en place des principes constitutifs de la semaine de 5 jours dans le cadre des « nombreuses luttes sociales dès les années 1830 »—époque où « on travaille quinze à dix-sept heures par jour » et où on s’engage déjà à réduire les journées à 12 heures par jour. Ce seuil diminue progressivement au fil du temps et c’est en 1982 que « la durée légale du travail passe à 39 heures par semaine, sans perte de salaire » en France. Aujourd’hui, « la durée légale du temps de travail est fixé à 35 heures par semaine à temps complet » en France, et le site web officiel de l’Union européen écrit qu’ « en tant qu'employeur , vous devez veiller à ce que votre personnel ne travaille pas plus de 48 heures par semaine en moyenne (heures supplémentaires comprises). » En ces temps de mutation profonde du monde du travail, la controverse portant sur la forme que doit prendre une bonne workweek anime les gouvernements et les sociétés. Décriées ou célébrées, les tentatives actuelles pour réformer la semaine de travail traditionnelle se multiplient à travers le monde et nous incitent à repenser notre rapport à la production et à l’emploi. Voir clair dans ce débat est un exercice subtil, à la lumière duquel il n’existe finalement pas de réponse unique et universelle. Mais plus important encore que de s’attarder au cas par cas et de critiquer ces différents modèles, il ne faut perdre de vue l’objectif ultime vers lequel on espère se rapprocher: celui d’un monde professionnel conciliant efficacité, équilibre et respect. Dévier du modèle traditionnel de la semaine des cinq jours ne pourrait correspondre en fin de compte que d’une nouvelle occasion pour nous à revisiter nos pratiques et les interroger pour les améliorer.

About twenty minutes into the concert, frontman Mahamadou Souleymane stopped the music. In solemn and simple words, he stated “Africa suffers. We are suffering.” This interlude was a stark reminder that what we, the crowd, had gathered to listen to was not simply music, but a political demonstration. < Back Renowned Tuareg Rock Group Mdou Moctar: Where Politics and Music Collide By Saoirse Aherne April 29, 2022 If you had walked down Avenue de Saint-Ouen this past Saturday, you might have heard a distant cacophony of noise. You would have caught the audible wail of a classic electric guitar, but layered on a rhythm that was not quite rock, not quite funk, not quite blues. The genre bending noise that flooded Paris’ 18th Arrondissement this weekend was all thanks to Mdou Moctar – a four-piece Tuareg musical act that took the stage of “Le Hasard Ludique” by storm, clad in daraa and tagelmusts, armed with electric guitars, and biting political lyrics in Tamasheq. About twenty minutes into the concert, frontman Mahamadou Souleymane stopped the music. In solemn and simple words, he stated “Africa suffers. We are suffering.” He continued, demanding an explanation for the deployment of French and American troops in numerous African nations, stating “it is not the 15th century.” Yet, according to Souleymane, colonial practices prevail. Souleymane described the extraction of resources from his home country of Niger at the hands of French mining companies, underlining how his people had seen no profit from their own nation's riches. Souelymane called on the audience to inform themselves on what the French government was doing in nations across the continent of Africa, and to condemn their leaders for the practice of imperialism. Leaving his words to settle in the humid air of the cramped concert hall, Souleymane stepped back, raised his guitar, and launched into a whining guitar lick. As the rest of the band joined, the song took the form of a typical Mdou Moctar ballad – rife with rhythm and spirit, a soul-catching groove layered with melodic vocals and lively drums. This interlude was a stark reminder that what we, the crowd, had gathered to listen to was not simply music, but a political demonstration. Such has always been the case of desert blues – a genre born in Libyan military training camps in the 1970s, an intricate fusion of rock, blues, and traditional Tuareg sounds. The Tuareg, a historically nomadic sub-group of the Amazigh residing in the Sahara-Sahel region, have long faced subjugation in the nations across which their people reside. There is a strong separatist movement within the Tuareg community, which has acted as a significant source of conflict since the Saharan-Sahel nations gained independence. In the 1980s, Gaddafi opened the Libyan borders to Tuareg refugees fleeing persecution and began recruiting them into his army. Libyan military camps flooded with young Tuareg men, fueling a number of insurrections and rebellions across the Sahara in the 1990s. However, another unexpected outcome emerged from these training camps, a different manifestation of the Tuareg desire for emancipation and autonomy: Desert Blues. It was a band by the name of Tinariwen that pioneered this genre. Front man Ibrahim Ag Alhabib met his bandmates in a guerrilla training camp in Libya. The young men began to write songs about their struggles, the horrors that had forced them to flee their homes, and the subjugation of Tuareg people. They formed a musical group, playing at weddings and parties, speaking to the longing and suffering of their fellow Tuareg exiles. Soon they came to be known as “Kel Tinariwen,” which translates to “The Desert Boys” in Tamasheq. And so began Tinariwen, the first Desert Blues group, which expertly combined traditional Tuareg sounds with bluesy guitar riffs and unfalteringly political lyrics. In 1985, Tinariwen set up a makeshift studio where they wrote and recorded songs. They offered these recordings for free to all who could provide a blank cassette tape. These tapes were exchanged and dispersed across the Sahara by rebel groups fighting for Tuareg independence throughout the 1990s. Tinariwen were the first of many bands from the Sahara-Sahel region to use music as a tool both in support of their own people’s spirit and to draw the eyes of the world to their suffering. Mdou Moctar in many ways is inspired by Tinariwen’s model. Especially with regards to their most recent album, “Afrique Victime,” Mdou Moctar’s lyrics are harshly anti-imperialist. Although distinctly Tuareg in musical style, “Afrique Victime” speaks for the continent of Africa as a whole, using music to condemn its exploitation and violation by Western powers. Mahamadou Souleymane is Tuareg, born in a small village in the mid-80s in Niger. Due to resistance from his parents, Souleymane took up guitar, first by fashioning bike wires to a piece of wood and teaching himself to play in secret on this makeshift instrument. Inspired by music emerging from the neighboring country of Nigeria, Solelymane fused traditional Tuareg sounds with drum machine tracks and autotune. His creations began to circulate, and somehow made their way to American music blogger Chris Kirkley. Awestruck by the musical innovations Souleymane was creating, Kirkley departed to Niger to attempt to find the mysterious musician behind these haunting tracks. After successfully locating Souleymane, Kirkley’s label, Sahel sounds, helped to produce a number of albums for Souleymane’s band– Mdou Moctar– which have garnered increasing international recognition. But music for Souleymane is merely an accessory to his central mission of bettering the lives of those within his community. Each time Mdou Moctar releases an album, he builds a well, a vital resource in Niger where access to water is a continual issue. Souleymane lives and works for the most part in Tahoua, as do the rest of the band. He knows the community, plays at local weddings, and rents out his car for a small fee – that is, when he’s not touring the world. In recent years, the fame achieved by Mdou Moctar has provided Souleymane with a platform to propagate his message to Western audiences. In an interview with Dazed magazine in 2021, Souleymane stated “[French] companies have extracted all the uranium and gold in Niger but help none of our problems. I’ve seen it since I was a small child. It’s modern slavery, racism, and colonialism combined.” He continued in this interview, proclaiming “I am calling the whole world to stand up and revolt against the conditions we face. We don’t have the technology here in Niger to manufacture weapons, so how are they entering the country? Why are other nations storing tools of war on our land? France, the US, NATO — they’re all complicit. Why are they here? Why?” Souleymane offered a damning final sentiment: “They’re playing with my people.” Mdou Moctar utilizes its music to dissolve the simplistic portrait of the marginalized as weak and miserable. It draws attention to the evils of imperialism through a medium which showcases the beauty of Tuareg culture. Souleymane is shockingly talented, a compelling speaker, and an internationally recognized artist, all the while remaining an integral part of his community. He advocates for his people from within. The music of Mdou Moctar is not only a stunning auditory experience, but also deeply powerful and moving. Such is the nature of political music, for it is from conflict and marginalization that the most compelling art arises. Desert blues have provided the Tuareg with a means to document their unique struggle, to draw the eyes of the world to their needs. And Mdou Moctar, in its embrace of this genre, has extended its political demands to represent all those that suffer beneath the burden of imperialism.

In this article, I will demonstrate how I used my P'tit Bio basket, but more importantly, we will explore — in tandem with Environnementon’s “Veganuary” initiative — the environmental impact of different diets < Back Ethical Eating Made Simple with Environnementon’s P’tit Bio Basket By Angela Saab Saade February 28, 2023 Butternut squash, carrots, tomatoes, potatoes, leeks, lettuce, endives, onions, avocado, kiwi, apples, pears, oranges and bananas — you may be thinking, “what a bland set of crops,” or, “what a phenomenal combination of delicious ingredients.” Once I read what I had written, I thought, “this could be a children’s song.” Unlike what the picture below may insinuate, the presented list is not just a bunch of fruits and vegetables in a basket. Each of these items may be transformed into a delicious meal rich in flavors, colors, vitamins and biotics, either combined with the right ingredients or prepared individually to yield positively surprising outcomes. This article will demonstrate how I used my P’tit Bio basket. More importantly, we will explore — in tandem with Environnementon’s “Veganuary” initiative — the environmental impact of different diets. The P’tit Bio Basket is Environnementon’s way of providing you with the necessary resources to facilitate your preparation of more ethical and eco-friendly plant-based meals. Sold at eight euros, while the original purchase is priced two euros more from P'tit Bio in Menton , the basket is extremely cost-efficient. The co-president of Environnementon, Esther Boulekouane, affirms the aim of this discount is “to offer the student body a cheap option to have this sound and plant-based alimentation.” Fifteen baskets are sold every two weeks. I certainly encourage you to try it out; my two roommates and I have bought it twice this semester and would have purchased it more often had we had the chance! Kindly note this is not an ad; I am not even part of the association, but I am fond of great deals, yummy food and noble mission. Perhaps the easiest and most convenient meal during this cold weather is vegetable soup. My roommates and I collectively chopped some onions, carrots, potatoes and leeks. It took us no more than ten minutes to chop them all up and place them in hot water with two vegetable broth cubes, olive oil and spices to taste. We also dropped in lentils as a protein source. Alternatively, you may choose to add tofu, chickpeas or beans. About thirty minutes later, we ate the soup alongside a baguette, which was the perfect way to end the long and tiring cold day. With the lettuce and endives, I made a delicious side salad for my baked potatoes, topped with balsamic dressing, olive oil and salt. I also ate the lettuce and avocado on toast with zaatar, a delicious Levantine dried-herb mix. As for the half butternut squash, I tried it for the first time this year. However, when I devoured what my roommates had cut up in cubes, baked in the oven with some olive oil and salt and tossed into our communal salad of baked vegetables and tofu, I instantly noticed my culinary world expanding. I can attest that I have disregarded a superb vegetable for the first nineteen years of my life — I hope you have not been missing out too. Lastly, the fruits of the basket were eaten as snacks, alone or with peanut butter (which, by the way, appears to be sold at a great deal at Menton's Asian Store!) There are countless ways you could choose to eat the fruits and vegetables from your P’tit Bio Basket. Regardless, they emit far fewer carbon emissions than animal-based products, especially meat. As a reference, the Carbon Food Calculator estimates that one kilogram of meat produced in the region of the European Union emits 24.13 kilograms of CO2 emissions. On the other hand, one kilogram of squash emits 4.1 kilograms of CO2, one kilogram of tomatoes emits 3.36 kilograms of CO2, and all other vegetables and fruits included in the P’tit Bio Basket emit under 1.3 kilograms of CO2 emissions per kilogram. Figures for the impact of daily versus weekly meat consumption and other protein sources have been presented in the images below as a general overview. To better understand the impact of your consumption, you may refer to the Harvard Foodprint Calculator , the BBC Calculator or others . Furthermore, on its Instagram page, Environnementon has shared various recipes that may ease your transition to a more sustainable lifestyle. Some other resources that may be of relevance are itsvegansis , veganiina , dr.vegan , _sunchef , fitgreenmind and thecheftomy . Pick and choose! While this article sheds light on the impact of each consumption on the ecosystem that we so vitally need to survive as a human species and as a planet, it is by no means claiming that these individual steps will solve the worldwide dilemma of the unethical, environmentally degrading animal-based industry. The need for greater initiatives is undeniable, but it does not mean we must remove all responsibility from ourselves. Indeed, as the saying goes, ignorance is bliss. Still, in this day and age, ignorance is no longer an excuse, especially being educated citizens of the world. We must all take the initiative if we have the means, individually, within our communities and global institutions. It is not a chronological process, where one starts small and ends big, but rather a combination of changes in individual lifestyle habits and entrenched communal norms. There is no point in beating yourself up if you enjoy eating meat or other animal-based products; we have been accustomed to such habits from a very young age. Rather than unrealistically attempting to cut off all animal-based food, you may try to reduce consumption instead. As Boulekouane expressed well, “It is really simple to tell someone to go vegan/vegetarian (and make them conscious of their environmental footprints), but it is way better to provide tools for the transition and to show people that being vegan is not dull, nor annoying.” I hope this article has done precisely that.