In January 2022, the United States Supreme Court announced that it would hear two cases, one against Harvard University and one against the University of North Carolina, seeking to ban affirmative action in university admissions. The potential end of affirmative action would dramatically transform the framework of college admissions. < Back The End of Affirmative Action? By Magdelena Offenbeck March 30, 2022 In January 2022, the United States Supreme Court announced that it would hear two cases, one against Harvard University and one against the University of North Carolina, seeking to ban affirmative action in university admissions. The conservative Supreme Court majority is likely to overturn a legacy of race consideration in college admissions. The history of race as a factor in college admissions begins in the 1960s when Harvard University announced concrete measures to increase the percentage of African American students in its cohorts. Harvard’s plan of action was then adopted by many of the major institutions for higher education in the United States. Aiming to counter the inequality caused by the history of racial segregation, the policies have effectively promoted upward social mobility and diversified cohorts at US universities. Since its implementation, affirmative action has faced criticism by those who favor admission procedures that are entirely based on academic merit. In the landmark 2003 Supreme Court case Grutter v. Bollinger , the constitutionality of affirmative action was confirmed in scenarios when race is one of many factors considered in the admission process. However, in the same year, the court declared points-based admission systems that grant extra points to minority applicants unconstitutional and contrary to the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourth Amendment. Both Harvard University and the University of North Carolina are now accused of discrimination by giving race overwhelming importance in admission procedures. The difference between the cases is that Harvard is charged with discrimination against Asians while the University of North Carolina is accused of favoring Black and Hispanic applicants. The plaintiff, Students for Fair Admissions,' argued that Harvard’s disproportional consideration of race violates the Equal Protection Clause and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. The case was tried in 2018 in the state of Massachusetts but, after a 15-day bench trial in 2018, a lower court in Massachusetts found Harvard not guilty of “race balancing,” otherwise known as admission quotas for racial groups at the university. Many consider it unlikely that the Supreme Court has taken on the case to reaffirm the ruling of the state court. What would the end of affirmative action mean for university communities in the United States? Deans of Yale, Columbia, and Harvard University have spoken out against the lawsuit. In a statement released on the Columbia University website, President Lee Bollinger Broad asserted that “public awareness of the unrelenting impact of racism demands a recommitment to affirmative action, not its abandonment,” deeming affirmative action essential considering the nation’s history. He further described a ban on affirmative action as “calamitous for universities and for the ideals embodied in the Constitution.” The end of affirmative action could significantly decrease the number of Black students admitted to elite universities in the country as Black and Hispanic students have lower average standardized test scores and are subjected to structural obstacles that are not encountered by their white counterparts. However, the plaintiff argues that affirmative action comes at the expense of Asian students, who have lower chances of admission with equal or higher test scores and are consistently ranked lower on the personality scores of the admissions process. Public opinion seems to confirm the plaintiff’s view. A 2019 survey by the Pew Research Center concluded that 73% of Americans think that race should not be considered in college admissions. However, there is stratification between racial groups, with 78% of Caucasians opposed to affirmative action compared to 65% of Hispanics and 62% of Blacks. This gap persists with political leanings. While 88% of Caucasian Republicans are against the consideration of race, this number falls to 66% among Caucasian Democrats. The consideration of other factors such as legacy status, gender, or athletic ability is equally deemed inappropriate by the majority of survey participants. Therefore, the case puts into question a number of controversial admission practices, especially the elitist concept of legacy admissions. If affirmative action is found to be unconstitutional, the question of feasible alternatives arises. The benefits of diverse student cohorts in university environments and the positive effect of upward social mobility in the larger society have continually been emphasized by university administrations and the Supreme Court. Especially the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a major proponent of the policy. Yet, a similar degree of diversity could be achieved by taking into account the socio-economic background of applicants. Black and Hispanic communities are generally more socio-economically disadvantaged. According to a US government census, the median income of Black households in the United States is $28,000 and $41,000 below that of White and Asian households, respectively. The gap is slightly smaller for Hispanics. Considering household income and access to education resources would hence have similar effects on student diversity to affirmative action. This is not to deny the intersectional experience of members of the Black or Hispanic communities that face disadvantages compared to whites with a similar socioeconomic background. Rather, it acknowledges that the individuals who experience similar levels of poverty equally merit a chance in the higher education system. It further takes into consideration the racism and systemic discrimination that Asian communities are victim to, and counters stereotyping in admissions where the achievements of Asian students are not valued equally because of their ethnic background. While the official judgment will only be released in 2023, the end of affirmative action will bring changes to the framework of college admissions. However, it may not be necessary to equate this to the end of student diversity in higher education. A range of alternative tools could continue to protect the interests of socially disadvantaged students.

La construction du "peuple" à travers le spectre d'un ennemi anachronique, en s'appuyant sur la menace de la dictature pour instiller la peur, a démontré son efficacité. < Back Argentina 1985 By Amalia Heide January 31, 2024 Le film Argentina 1985 apparaît comme le dernier ajout à une vaste série cinématographique abordant le thème complexe de la dictature civico-militaire en Argentine de 1976 à 1983. La réception massive de ces films par le public et l'absence de critiques révisionnistes entourant ces productions laissent présager un consensus général concernant les violations des droits humains par les militaires pendant cette sombre période de l'histoire argentine. Cependant, ce consensus social apparent n'est pas nécessairement synonyme d'absence de conflit concernant la mémoire de la dernière dictature argentine. En effet, il existe une reconnaissance largement partagée des disparitions et des tortures envers d’activistes de gauche effectuée par les militaires argentins, leur rôle dans l'enlèvement de bébés issus de familles de gauche et confiés à des familles soutenant les actions militaires, ainsi qu'une reconnaissance collective de l'impératif de localiser et de rétablir l'identité véritable de ces bébés (comme le font l'organisation des Madres y Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo ). Cependant, cette acceptation des faits n'implique pas un consensus sur leurs interprétations. Une tension sous-jacente entre des interprétations historiques peut être instrumentalisée, voire exacerbée, par les politiciens. C'est cette instrumentalisation que nous cherchons à analyser. Nous adopterons une structure chronologique et thématique. Pour ce numéro, nous examinerons comment le régime kirchnériste (2003-2015 / 2019-2023) a marqué un tournant dans l'instrumentalisation de la mémoire de la dictature. Dans le prochain numéro, nous examinerons comment le parti politique de centre-droit "Juntos por el cambio" (au pouvoir entre 2015 et 2019) et à présent Javier Milei l’ont instrumentalisé à leur tour de manière assez originale. Après la crise économique significative en Argentine en 2001, la société civile a complètement perdu confiance en la politique et les politiciens du pays. Cependant, le candidat présidentiel Nestor Kirchner a compris que pour regagner légitimité et confiance, il pouvait aspirer à jouer le rôle d'avocat pour la reconnaissance des victimes de la dernière dictature. Cela impliquait de répondre à des demandes de longue date que les gouvernements précédents avaient échoué à satisfaire. En assumant ce rôle, le mouvement politique kirchnériste en Argentine a utilisé stratégiquement la mémoire de la dictature pour construire son identité politique unique. Alors que l'activisme en faveur des droits humains contre la dictature avait des racines depuis le début de la démocratie en 1983, le discours kirchnériste a embrassé, coopté et monopolisé ce récit au sein de son militantisme. Néstor Kirchner, à son arrivée à la présidence en 2003, s'est identifié comme faisant partie d'une "génération diezmada (génération décimée) punie par des absences douloureuses" . Il a déclaré : "J'ai rejoint les luttes politiques en croyant à des valeurs et à des convictions que je n'ai pas l'intention de laisser à la porte de la Casa Rosada (siège du gouvernement)". Néstor Kirchner a renforcé cette approche sur la scène internationale en se présentant comme le "fils des mères et des grands-mères de la Plaza de Mayo" dans un discours prononcé la même année devant l'Assemblée générale des Nations unies. Ce discours politique a été suivi par des actes symboliques officiels de reconnaissance et de commémoration des victimes du terrorisme d'État. Le 24 mars 2004, à l'occasion du 28e anniversaire du coup d'État militaire, la présidente Kirchner a demandé au chef de l'armée du collège militaire de la nation d'enlever les portraits des anciens dictateurs Jorge Rafael Videla et Reynaldo Bignone, qui étaient toujours accrochés dans l'établissement. Plus tard dans la journée, Mme Kirchner a présidé une cérémonie publique annonçant la transformation de l'École de mécanique navale (ESMA), le plus grand centre de détention clandestin du pays, en "site de la mémoire et des droits humains" . Aujourd'hui, ce site est devenu un site du patrimoine de l'UNESCO. Ces mesures officielles marquent un tournant dans les relations entre l'État et une partie importante du mouvement des droits humains. Cette dernière a rejoint les rangs du kirchnerisme, reconnaissant Néstor et Cristina Kirchner comme les principaux porteurs politiques légitimes de la mémoire de la dictature. Ainsi, Hebe de Bonafini, cofondatrice et principale dirigeante des Mères de la Place de Mai, a intégré l'appareil du parti kirchneriste dans les années 2000 et l'a revendiqué à de multiples reprises : "Notre ennemi n'est plus à la Casa Rosada" . En conséquence, la relation entre le mouvement des droits humains et l'État est passée de la confrontation à l'intégration, différents segments de ces secteurs devenant partie intégrante de l'appareil d'État. Le cas d'Horacio César Pietragalla Corti illustre ce processus d'intégration. Enlevé à sa mère dans un centre de détention pendant la dictature, il a été réuni avec sa famille biologique en 2003 par les Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo. Embrassant le kirchnerisme, il a ensuite été président des archives de la mémoire nationale, puis député, et occupe actuellement le poste de secrétaire aux droits humains de la nation argentine. Ainsi, une fusion entre les sphères politique, publique et militante s'est progressivement opérée. En mars 2018, dans une interview au journal La Nación, Estela de Carlotto, une autre dirigeante historique des Grands-mères de la Place de Mai, résume ce processus politique. Le journaliste lui a demandé si les gouvernements kirchneristes s'étaient "approprié la cause des droits humains" . Elle a répondu : "Non, nous nous sommes approprié des Kirchner" . De ce fait, comme nous le constatons, ces organisations et défenseurs individuels de la reconnaissance des victimes du terrorisme d'État n'ont pas été de simples récepteurs passifs de l'identité kirchneriste, mais ont contribué à la construction et à la consolidation d'une mémoire officielle par le biais de l'appareil du parti et de l'État de la mémoire de la dictature. Ce récit officiel kirchneriste a non seulement incorporé la mémoire de la répression politique sous la dernière dictature, mais l'a également remodelée dans le contexte politique contemporain. En créant un sentiment de continuité entre les luttes passées et présentes, ce récit a encouragé la dichotomie entre "nous" et "eux" pour gagner des partisans à leur cause politique. L'exposition "Le néolibéralisme, plus jamais ça" , présentée en avril 2022 par le déjà mentionné Horacio César Pietragalla Corti , illustre l'instrumentalisation de la mémoire de la dernière dictature militaire (1978-1983). Elle est utilisée pour définir "l'autre", en associant tous les opposants politiques à "l'ennemi" de cette période sombre de l'histoire argentine. L'exposition a été installée dans l'ex-ESMA, le centre commémoratif en souvenir des victimes du terrorisme d'État pendant la dictature. Ce lieu n'est pas une simple coïncidence. Elle démontre une tentative explicite de lier les politiques de la dictature à celles des gouvernements ultérieurs, notamment en critiquant les mesures de libéralisation économique mises en œuvre sous la présidence de Mauricio Macri (2015-2019). Cette exposition présente le "néolibéralisme" comme une continuation du modèle économique de la dictature, créant une antithèse entre cette idéologie économique et la démocratie. Pour rendre cette allusion très claire, le titre de l'exposition emprunte le slogan "Nunca más" (plus jamais ça), une expression très connue en Argentine. Elle a d'abord été employée par les mères et les grands-mères des membres disparus de leur famille sous la dernière dictature et s'est profondément ancrée dans la conscience collective. L'utilisation de cette expression vise à délégitimer le principal adversaire politique de Kirchner à l'époque, qualifié d' "antidémocratique" . L'exposition publique a intégré des discours politiques, comme celui prononcé par Cristina Fernández de Kirchner le 17 octobre 2019, dix jours avant les élections présidentielles qui allaient la couronner vice-présidente du pays jusqu'en 2023 : "Le néolibéralisme plus jamais dans notre pays. C'est la troisième expérience néolibérale subie par le peuple argentin. La première, lointaine, avec le coup d'État du 24 mars 1976, où un projet néolibéral a été installé dans le pays pour la première fois (...) Puis est venue la deuxième expérience, celle des années 1990 (...) Et maintenant cette dernière et troisième expérience néolibérale, nous devons le dire, et je pense que tous les Argentins doivent repenser et se demander pourquoi ces choses nous arrivent (...)". Ce discours adopte une approche clairement populiste. Cristina simplifie un passé traumatisant pour la population argentine, en le formulant en termes économiques, et se positionne comme la défenseuse du "peuple" contre les élites capitalistes et antidémocratiques. La construction du "peuple" à travers le spectre d'un ennemi anachronique, en s'appuyant sur la menace de la dictature pour instiller la peur, a démontré son efficacité.

Promoting finance to tackle climate change in developing countries is one of the pillars of the Paris Agreement. Yet the investment world, which seemingly has a never-ending stream of scandals and mis-selling driven by greed and lack of ethics, is yet again undermining the existentially important issue of climate change. < Back Regulating ESG Investments Becomes More Pressing Amidst Greenwashing Trends By Noor Ahmad November 30, 2022 The 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, or COP27, is convening in the Egyptian coastal city of Sharm el-Sheikh between the 6th and 18th of November 2022. The conference seeks to tackle global climate emergency issues: how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, adapt to the effects of climate change and finance climate action in developing countries. The conference seeks to build on the Paris Agreement in 2015, which set out goals to guide nations on how to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions and limit global temperature increase to two degrees Celsius. The agreement is a legally binding international treaty with 194 signatory Parties. The issue of climate change and financing the fight against it are nothing new. Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investing has been rising for the last decade. ESG incorporates a broad set of principles that socially responsible investments should follow and are sometimes commingled with “green” investments, which focus primarily on environmental impact. While there is no clear taxonomy for ESG, it broadly aims to curtail the effects of climate change, carbon emissions, environmental pollution, deforestation and water scarcity. The non-environmental categories of ESG encompass a wider scope, including community impact, human rights, diversity in company boards, bribery, and corruption. A report by the consulting firm Deloitte published earlier this year estimated $39 trillion of assets in 2020 were ESG-focused versus $19 trillion in 2014. This represents 36 percent of total global investments in 2020. The magnitude and proportion of ESG investments are expected to rise dramatically in the coming years, reaching $96 trillion by 2025 and representing 58 percent of worldwide investments. Other measures put the projected amount invested in ESG funds at a few trillion dollars. What is indisputable is that this sector is proliferating. As interest in the environment and sustainability has increased, so has regulatory focus. In 2021, the European Union introduced its Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation, which requires asset managers to provide information regarding their adherence to ESG investment standards. Three categories were introduced in classifying investment funds: article six funds, which do not take sustainability into account; article eight funds, which promote ESG practices; and article nine funds, which is the highest ESG category, with sustainability at the heart of its investment policies. Moreover, since August 2022, the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II, a regulation seeking to protect investors and standardize practices across the European Union, now requires financial advisors to evaluate not only the client’s risk tolerance but also their preferences for environmentally sustainable investments. The regulatory changes by the union are timely and possibly the beginning of a worldwide regulatory convergence in how to classify environmentally responsible investments. The changes have come against a background of mis-selling and misrepresentation by some of the world’s largest asset managers. DWS, Deutsche Bank’s asset management arm, recently saw its CEO step down after evidence emerged that the firm failed to classify investments labelled ESG against the necessary criteria correctly. The term “greenwashing,” which aptly describes DWS’s behavior, is one where a company tries to portray itself as more socially responsible and environmentally friendly than it is. The company may not meet the necessary standards and continue investing in environmentally harmful businesses. A German consumer group recently filed a lawsuit against DWS alleging that its ESG Climate Tech fund was marketed as having zero percent investments in polluting sectors such as coal. Yet, the fund’s investment policy allowed for investments in companies where up to 15 percent of their revenues could be generated from these harmful industries. The problems faced by DWS are not a one-off event, and the prevalence of misrepresentation of what investment funds are doing versus what they are advertising is an issue concerning regulators beyond the European Union, with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority reviewing both conduct and current regulation. Promoting finance to tackle climate change in developing countries is one of the pillars of the Paris Agreement. Yet the investment world, which seemingly has a never-ending stream of scandals and mis-selling driven by greed and a lack of ethics, is yet again undermining an existentially important focus. As the awareness of climate change has begun to alter the behavior of both individual and institutional investors and centered them on environmentally positive goals, the investment world must step up and learn to police itself. Regulators will eventually catch up and create guidelines, but the intermediaries have a significant role as time passes and environmental catastrophe descends on humanity. Let us hope that the outcome of COP27 is a clear message to the investment industry that it needs to address these shortcomings and take substantial steps to finance positive change.

Was the G20 meeting once again superfluous? No. The alternative would be a policy of speechlessness and confrontation. < Back The G20 Summit in Rome: Timid and Vague, but Necessary. By Florian Heydecker November 29, 2021 On October 30 through 31, 2021, the 16th meeting of the Group of 20 was held in Rome, Italy. With an agreement on a global minimum tax, the G20 countries have found a common position. There was no consensus on climate protection, but determination in the fight against tax evasion. In their first in-person meeting since the outbreak of COVID-19, the heads of state and government of the leading industrialized and emerging countries voiced concerns and raised hopes at the G20 summit in Rome. Climate change and Environmental protection The G20 countries want to implement robust actions to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees. The new stipulation is that governments will target climate neutrality as early as the middle of the century. However, countries such as Russia, China, and Saudi Arabia were unwilling to accept 2050 as a confirmed target date for carbon neutrality. There was also no agreement on phasing out coal-fired power generation. However, they followed the announcement of China to withdraw from international financing of new coal-fired power plants. As for environmental protection, the G20 countries aim to halt biodiversity loss by 2030. At least 30 percent of the land area and no less than 30 percent of the oceans and seas worldwide will be "conserved or protected" by 2030. In addition, there are new measures to end overfishing of the oceans. There will also be an intensification of the fight against illegal deforestation and illicit mining. Coronavirus pandemic and Migration The joint fight against future pandemics will be strengthened and financially secured by establishing a working group of G20 finance and health ministers. At the same time, the G20 countries backed the World Health Organization's (WHO) goal of vaccinating 40 percent of the population worldwide by the end of this year and 70 percent by the middle of next year. There were calls for a general transfer of technology and vaccine production in developing countries. Furthermore, the heads of state and government want to prevent “irregular migration flows and the smuggling of migrants.” What is needed is a comprehensive concept “for safe, orderly and regular migration.” At the same time, they are willing to address the root causes of displacement and strengthen the integration of refugees. Taxes and Trade Leaders confirmed the agreement signed by 136 states in October for a global minimum tax on international corporations. It will come into force by 2023. The main aim of the reform is to prevent the shifting of corporate profits to tax havens. Large, internationally active companies will pay at least 15 percent tax, regardless of their headquarter. If a company pays less tax with its subsidiary abroad, the home state can claim the difference. The G20 countries also committed themselves to an “open, fair, equitable, sustainable, non-discriminatory and inclusive rules-based multilateral trading system.” This action, they said, is crucial for recovery. The World Trade Organization (WTO) will become the centerpiece of this trading system. On the fringes of the summit, the EU and the US also agreed on a provisional settlement of their years-long dispute over special US tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. Energy and Nuclear weapons The G20 countries pointed out the need for a secure energy supply concerning the current high energy prices. "We stress the importance of maintaining uninterrupted energy supplies from different sources, suppliers and through different routes, exploring pathways to improved energy security and market stability, while promoting open, competitive and free international energy markets," they said. They agreed that secure supply chains are also crucial to transforming energy systems. Finally, the US, France, the UK, and Germany called on Iran during the G20 summit to return to its commitments under the Vienna nuclear agreement. The different leaders said that, without a swift return to the agreement, “a dangerous escalation” could loom. At the same time, the US declared its willingness to return to and fully comply with the accord. Hence, discussions in such a round are laborious and complicated — in the end, they produce compromises that are often highly woolly. Yet, some of the agreements reached in Rome also show that the G20 can reach a common ground and deliver concrete actions against global issues. If some perceive the summit as outdated and ineffective, they should remind themselves that the alternative would be a policy of speechlessness and pure confrontation.

British imperialism sharpens into battles of tic-tac-toe; Durkheim’s grasps at sociological greatness darken into pages stained with doodles. The ocean beside me leaves white trails of foam and my folly, churning boredom and desperation so violently I might drown. You guessed it - I’ve been in the petit amphithéâtre for about six hours too long.  < Back Foam and Folly: A Need to Restructure the Class Schedule at Sciences Po Menton By Marly Fisher November 30, 2023 British imperialism sharpens into battles of tic-tac-toe; Durkheim’s grasps at sociological greatness darken into pages stained with doodles. The ocean beside me leaves white trails of foam and my folly, churning boredom and desperation so violently I might drown. You guessed it - I’ve been in the petit amphithéâtre for about six hours too long. I often leave Sciences Po lectures unsure of the time and anything I’ve just been taught. For weeks, I’ve been worried that the fault is my own, but can we really be expected to be attentive for upwards of three hours at a time? Is Sciences Po’s course schedule structured effectively? In pursuit of an answer, I began by asking other university students around the United States about their course-load. What I found was disappointing but not surprising. Their class hours amounted to an average of fifteen per week, with most first years having twelve credits - or four classes each semester. Instead of midterms, finals, and presentations, they have regular assignments and essays on top of summative assessments. All were appalled that my class hours were in the twenties — “How do you have time to study?” they asked. “Do you have a life?” The standard course load for a first-year at a U.S. university is between 12 and 15 hours, with a maximum of 18 credit hours allowed. At many universities in the UK, contact time is even less; for an English BA at King's College London, there are only four hours of seminars and four hours of lectures each week. At Cambridge, lectures typically last only around 50 minutes. Comparatively, the standard class load at Sciences Po hovers around 22 hours per week (many have even more if they are taking multiple language courses,) and the shortest class time is two hours long. I examined more scholarly sources next, only to reaffirm my sneaking suspicion that more class time is not always more effective. In 1996, in a journal called the National Teaching & Learning Forum, two professors from Indiana University, Joan Middendorf and Alan Kalish ,found that long lectures can result in detrimental effects on human attention and retention. They cited a 1976 study that detailed the ebbs and flows of students’ focus during a typical class period. They found that, first, students need a three-to-five minute period of settling down (which, I suppose, is naturally provided to us students that operate on Menton time.) This time was followed by just 10 to 18 minutes of optimal focus. Then, no matter how thrilling the lecture or how powerful the rhetoric, their attention lapsed. The students would “lose it.” While attention would eventually return, it would be in ever-briefer three to four minute spurts. Furthermore, Middendorf and Kalish cited a 1985 study that tested students on their fact recall from a 20-minute presentation. In fact, students remembered far more of what they’d heard at the very beginning of the lecture - by the 15-minute mark, they’d mostly zoned out. A few swift clicks on the calculator reveals that there are 16 fifteen-minute increments inside a four hour lecture. Most lecturers here offer us just one to two breaks within that time. If students are unable to remember facts from more than fifteen minutes ago, how can we be expected to retain complex ideas from hours ago? Most, if not all, students concur. “No fraction of this education system is effective,” lamented a Sciences Po Menton student on the way out of her last class of the day. “As fascinating as I can find the subjects presented in the lectures, it is undeniable that in every case, my attention span dwindles almost immediately an hour into it,” said another. Many agree that information retention is even more difficult with a lack of accountability in the form of more frequent assessments. For a group of students yearning to achieve political greatness, it seems that most are only achieving new records of the fastest Mini Crossword solving time. If we aim to revolutionize the world, we must revolutionize our way of learning first. Maybe it’s in the form of shorter, more frequent classes. Perhaps we should abandon the lecture style altogether. But one thing is for certain: someone in the class of 2026 will go on to be a marvelous NYT game creator.

When I first announced to my family that I would be doing my parcours civique with Care4Calais, a British organization that provides non-food items to refugees, most of my relatives acted as if I was about to become a war photographer in Sudan. Despite them, I managed to not have any image of Calais in mind before actually arriving. So what was Calais really like? < Back Calais: Between Migration and Solidarity Ema Nevřelová September 25, 2025 As I wrapped up my first year in Menton and embarked on a 16-hour train ride to the very north point of France, Calais, I had an intuition that the experience would be life-changing. If the first year of Sciences Po had taught me anything, it was definitely how to find ways to leave Menton, and France in general. So, the prospect of having to spend an extra month in France for my parcours civique was probably as thrilling as sitting through four hours of Jean-Pierre Filiu’s Question of Palestine . Painful, but somehow worth it in the end. War zone or just a regular town? When I first announced to my family that I would be doing my parcours civique with Care4Calais , a British organization that provides non-food items to refugees, most of my relatives acted as if I was about to become a war photographer in Sudan. Despite them, I managed to not have any image of Calais in mind before actually arriving. So what was Calais really like? Maybe it was the breeze of fresh air when I left the crowded, non-air-conditioned carriage of my train, or perhaps it was the image of finally having a bed to sleep in that made me instantly fall in love with my new short-term home. When I got out of the train station, I mostly could see young male migrants sitting on nearby benches.. Some of them I later recognized as I started volunteering. Contrary to the well-intentioned warnings from my family members, they were unfettered by my presence and were more interested in conversations with their friends. Give North of France a chance While dragging my suitcase around town, one of the first things that caught my eye, was Hotel de Ville de Calais. This breathtaking building towers over the rest of the city highlighting the striking contrast of once a wealthy region with today’s reality, because the rest of the city centre essentially resembles a ghost-town. For context, the North of France has historically profited from coal and textile production. During the economic recession in the 1970s the region took a hit. The main source of wealth was coal and textile but both of the industries started diminishing as the coal ran out. Not to mention, that the region was, and still remains, underfunded by the government. In 2015, for example, around 18.1 % of the city’s population lived below the poverty line. The average for France at the time was 14.2 %. Its portrayal in the media as a city struggling with migrants did not help its image, especially as the town mostly profited from tourists from the UK. Despite the dismal situation some of the citizens find themselves in, they still feel empathetic towards refugees. For example, the owner of the restaurant Mirador said : “I don't blame the migrants, they aren't aggressive and I do feel sorry for them, but I want to retire. My restaurant has been on the market for two years, but not one person has expressed any interest. I am 70 years old and penniless. Here in Calais, we are all on our knees.” Coming to Calais, Mirador was one of the first places I saw and thought of having lunch at. But as I learned on Google maps it was closed as well as most of the other restaurants in Calais. As someone who experienced France, mainly in Menton, where shops are open even on Sunday due to the number of tourists, this was a shock. The only place I could eat my lunch at on Monday was a fast-food place, the chain called O’Tacos. One of the first discoveries I made during this “life-changing” journey was that the French have their own tacos. Ema Nevřelová 2025 The House of Horror I chose to stay in a house that accommodates some of the volunteers for Care4Calais. That being said, I did not expect the place to be luxurious—I have stayed in my fair share of hostels to know better. However, the fact that the place did not have walls or more specifically plaster-covered the insulation was a little concerning. Not to mention the occasional mold. Yet, there is no better bonding topic than paying 20 euros per night for a housing that was almost, quite literally, falling apart. Still, as someone privileged enough to be able to afford it, it was really the least I could do to contribute to the economy of the city. Elitist friendships To make up for all the things the house did not provide, I got to live under one roof with people so like-minded and funny as were my housemates. Most of them volunteered with me, making it feel like a coincidental summer camp. Somehow, this experience managed to cure my absolute dread of summer camps. Collective dinners, ice creams on the beach, hour-long walks home, beers in La Betterave (the best bar in Calais) not only made us closer but allowed us to share tough days at work, our personal life or the stupidest little things you can imagine. In a true non-elitist nature, the people I became the closest with were mostly students from other Sciences Po campuses. Whether it was the proximity of our beds or internalised elitism, having people of roughly the same age to share Calais with, turned out to be a necessity. Because hardly anyone can grasp the magical dimension of playing football in heavy rain with the refugees. Ema Nevřelová 2025 Even your brother could be staying in the ‘Orange squat’ One thing that immediately caught the attention of many volunteers in Calais is how many young boys were living there. The idea of sending my 16-years-old brother across several countries without knowing if he survives the journey makes me nauseous. Not to mention that behind each of these boys is usually a family that made a lot of sacrifices to send him on the way. Yet, these people are still often treated as less than an annoying mosquito you are desperately trying to get out of your house. The “real” house these young men live in is called the ‘Orange squat.’ Hearing from people who have, it is inhabited by about 500 people living in tents. The toilets inside are not in the best condition. When I was leaving Calais an unofficial source claimed that Orange squat will likely be evicted some time in September. It belongs to a private owner, who decided— apparently with the light push from the city council— to take the place back. In reality, this means that the boys will go through brutal police eviction. The police will take all their possessions and they will be boarded on buses and driven outside of Calais towards government-run facilities. For NGOs operating in Calais, it means that they have to stock up as many tents, sleeping bags, and other necessities as possible. Working for Care4Calais definitely made me understand how Sisyphian their work is. Waiting as a lifestyle What I realized during my parcours civique is that the life of migrants is full of waiting. Whether it is waiting to save enough money to make the journey to Europe, or waiting for the asylum claim to be processed, to mundane things like waiting in line for food, clothes, showers, or whatever else they need. Every time I now find myself grumpily waiting at the post office in Menton to send my letter, I remember that having to wait occasionally is a privilege. In this fast-paced era waiting often feels like a punishment but seeing people having to wait for everything that I can buy in under 10 minutes truly made me understand the real-life consequences of all the privileges I have. Despite the waiting, most of the men and women I met remain positive. Whether they were filming Tik Toks, dancing or playing football, they seemed to enjoy every moment to the fullest. I often come back to many of the interactions I had. Once I was distributing clothes and shoes to women and children, and I encountered a young pregnant woman with her son who could not have been more than one-years-old. When we found shoes that were her size, she was overjoyed. “I can run fast again from the police,” she said laughing. The ability to joke in spite of the horrors she must have been through amazed me and horrified me at the same time. Ema Nevřelová 2025 But what about migration? The reason I did not start my article by focusing on the situation of the refugees is because Calais is so much more than just a politicized space exploited in the anti-immigration discourse. It would be easy to say that its citizens are radicalized nationalists. Especially as in the 2024 parliamentary elections, the region of Pas-de-Calais elected a candidate from the Rassemblement national—a nationalist party that was led by far-right Marine Le Pen until 2021. As always, reality is much more complicated. In 2015 France24 interviewed inhabitants of Calais and it turned out despite their preference for far-right parties they feel solidarity with the refugees. In fact, some of the Calais population provides housing , food, clothes and whatever else is needed despite dealing with poverty themselves. Between the UK and France On a political level one of the issues that refugees face is a lack of safe routes. Asylum seekers coming to the UK have no other possibility of applying for a visa than physically arriving in the country on a small boat or by lorry but even this is persecuted and extremely dangerous. On the other hand, the Ukrainian asylum seekers have had the opportunity to apply for asylum from outside of the country under the ‘Homes for Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme.’ This shows how much the system in place is rooted in racism. Being white and European changes the dynamics of migration completely. Yet, the UK and France refuse to take accountability for essentially trapping people in Calais because of their policies. Their newest policy is called the ‘one in, one out’ scheme agreed between Sir Keir Starmer, the UK Prime Minister and Emanuelle Macron, the French President. Essentially, it means that for each person the UK deports back to France, it will accept another person who has not yet attempted to cross the channel. As of September 19th, the first person of Indian nationality has already been deported under the scheme. What will be the fate of Calais in the future remains unclear. But whether you are looking to cleanse yourself of Menton, learn more about refugees and their lives, or just desperately need a parcours civique, Care4Calais offers all of that and more. I believe that with every volunteer that comes to Calais the city becomes less of a politicized crossing point and more of a place of solidarity and community that I experienced.

Whether it’s a $300 white noise machine that is advertised to put you to sleep within 10 minutes, or a $500 ring that will track all your bodily functions, which will most likely not be accurate, all the problems you can’t even imagine having have been solved for you. You are no longer only overwhelmed but you now also live in an overcrowded space. As if being exposed to advertisements of these isn’t enough, you also have the opportunity to buy them and test them out. Because investing in yourself can’t be a bad thing, can it? < Back FOMO (Face Yoga, Overwhelming, Maintenance and Overconsumption) Melissa Cevikel April 30, 2025 Missed Retro night or MEDMUN party? Tried writing your midterm paper on your train back from a weekend trip with friends and it didn’t go well? Stuck in a 14.05 km² town in your 20s where you feel like you’re missing out on classic college experiences? The early 20s are often advertised to be the most carefree and, according to clinical psychologist Meg Jay, the most defining years of one's life. But what exactly are these years defining if most youth navigating through them are battling with FOMO and are chronically overwhelmed? And how is this being used against us? In her book The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter and How to Make the Most of Them Now, Jay argues that the biggest factor shaping young adults is entering the workforce. Citing this, she mentions that she refuses to work with 20-something-year-olds who are not under stress while at work. “ If my 20-something clients aren’t on a steep learning curve at work, I would rather they get another job because it’s really about skill building,” she told UVA Today . “If you’re not feeling stressed and anxious at work as a 20-something, you’re probably not learning enough.” But who is this mindset serving? A 2023 American Psychological Association study on stress levels in young adults in America, defined as 18-34 year olds, revealed that 24% rated their stress level between 8 and 10 out of 10. An increase of 8% in overall stress levels was also observed compared to 2019—a change the APA linked to COVID-19. It should be noted that these findings most likely do not correlate with those in the Global South, for which statistics aren’t widely available. Looking at the data, it’s clear that people in their 20s are stressed and overwhelmed. So, where does the general stigma of Gen Z being careless, yet overly sensitive, come from? A 2023 Dazed article titled “Everyone needs to grow up” explains this phenomenon, noting: “Most complaints about the infantilism of young people have typically come from the right, which has pointed to safe spaces and trigger warnings as evidence that Gen Z and millennials have been coddled to the point of softness. The right-wing critique of infantilism usually contends that, due to a vague decline in moral fibre, young people aren’t willing to embrace the mantles of adulthood, like moving out of the family home, entering into a stable career, getting married and starting a family.” This right-wing idea of “softness” has not come alone—it has also brought justifications and cures to overwhelming stress with it. For some, the reason why people under 25 engage in behaviors that aren’t ideal can be explained by putting the blame on the frontal lobe. A popular belief—that has especially flourished on TikTok—claims that the age of 25 is the milestone at which life choices become clear, and henceforth, the feeling of overwhelmedness induced by decision making is no longer present. But how true is this? In an interview with Dazed, the head of the University of Edinburgh's Psychology Department, Dr. Sarah MacPherson, highlighted the wide misconceptions surrounding frontal lobe development. She stated that although it is true that frontal lobe development ends at 25, this doesn’t determine a clear and strict distinction between choices made before that age. Up until the early 2010s, the age of 16 was seen as the milestone age. Movies such as Sixteen Candles showcased characters hitting all their teenage milestones at 16. The idea of “sweet sixteen” being the perfect dating age during the 60s also signified the importance of the age in relation to transition into adulthood, especially for young girls. This age of “self fulfillment” kept being pushed further and further as many of today's young adults spent their critical ages of 16,18 and 21 in quarantine, without any chance of experiencing young adult milestones. Whatever was missed out on during the three years when COVID-19 was declared a health emergency is, in turn, being made up for right now. As we all know, we can’t make up for all the teenage and young adult experiences missed: attending high school house parties, carelessly drinking on a weekday or declaring “Euro summer” the minute we’re done with midterms. Responsibilities persist, but so does FOMO. This FOMO gradually grows as we see people who are, in fact, able to do all these things and balance it out with their academic life, and this subsequently turns into the feeling of chronic overwhelmedness. Feeling overwhelmed can be caused by many different factors, and frontal lobe development can’t always be blamed for it. Common symptoms of overwhelm include irritability, hopelessness, lack of motivation, panic and anxiety, low appetite and even problems with the immune system. And while the best way of solving this would be to take some time off and take everything one day at a time, social media’s obsession with self-care would beg to differ. As our problems became more complex, the market economy has presented us with more niche solutions. You can buy hormone balancing supplements (with no medical oversight), a new body lotion with 10% niacinamide and 1% zinc, a new workout set and a pilates subscription and sip on your green juice all at once! If you instead prefer to focus on your education and lock-in, you can purchase ten different highlighters, a laptop stand to help your posture and a subscription to an app that manages your screen time. A lymphatic drainage massage might help with muscle relief (because muscles “hold trauma”) and a foot mask just might be the purchase standing between you and solving your actual problem of procrastination. Whether it’s a $300 white noise machine that is advertised to put you to sleep within 10 minutes, or a $500 ring that will track all your bodily functions, which will most likely not be accurate, all the problems you can’t even imagine having have been solved for you. You are no longer only overwhelmed but you now also live in an overcrowded space. As if being exposed to advertisements of these isn’t enough, you also have the opportunity to buy them and test them out. Because investing in yourself can’t be a bad thing, can it? Our chr onic overwhelmedness has reached new heights. We are no longer overwhelmed by our tasks, relationships and responsibilities. We have entered a new era where we are overwhelmed by our purchases and the possibilities of them. AI is thinking—and most recently creating—in our place, so that we have fewer things to worry about. Yet the feelings of FOMO persist, no matter how much time we save not doing a reading for class or not editing an application. We still get bummed out when our friends post stories from a night out we had to sit out on, and are haunted by the regret of leaving our assignments to the last minute. Our overwhelmedness seems to connect us to our irreducible humanity more than any emotion can. We stress about jobs, money, friendships and grades—because we’re human enough to understand that there is no definite solution to any of it. We continue to go out the night before the exam, knowing that we will regret it, and we do things knowing they will overcomplicate our relationships. We make mistakes, partly because some of us have the privilege to do so and partly because there is no other way around being human. We get overwhelmed and feel like the end of the world is around the corner, yet we wake up the next morning and at least try to be better. Being chronically overwhelmed shouldn’t be normalized, but there isn’t any way not to feel overwhelmed once in a while. And though a pillow spray might seem like just the thing to help let go of everything, there is a very high chance it won't. Not buying into marketing tactics that claim to help with feeling overwhelmed might be one of the most important steps towards breaking free from the “chronic” aspect of feeling so. So can recognizing that our biological development most likely isn’t the reason for all our recklessness. People over 30 get overwhelmed, and so do people over 50. We will hopefully be surviving at least 50 more years of feeling overwhelmed and missing out on things, so no need to waste all our emotions on it now. Photo source: Toni Blay on Flickr

It is a sequence of events Europe has seen before. A firebrand — either of humble, apolitical origins or from a generations-long political dynasty to uphold — rallies their formerly left-voting, working-class base who feel alienated by the establishment. < Back Rise of far right in Europe By Colin Lim October 31, 2022 It is a sequence of events Europe has seen before. A firebrand, — either of humble, apolitical origins or from a generations-long political dynasty to uphold — rallies their formerly left-voting, working-class base who feel alienated by the establishment. On a continent that aspires to be — and is widely lauded for being — tolerant and open to the rest of the world, the far right has attained an incongruously high standing in recent years. In addition to the more established Fidesz Party in Hungary, the UK Independence Party, and the Law and Justice Party in Poland, the recent electoral success of the Sweden Democrats and Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy have added momentum to the populist machine. Fueled by the increased flow of refugees and migrants from the Middle East and North Africa region and the broader Global South since 2015, such political actors have relied heavily on the othering of those whom they perceive as dangerous to and incompatible with European society. The European Union is also presented as a faceless, bureaucratic and undemocratic institution whose sole goal is to over-regulate citizens’ lives and to tear asunder their individual national identities. The omnipresent menace of the “globalists,” chief among them Hungarian-American philanthropist George Soros, is also a common feature in extremist rhetoric. Many of these parties have roots in neo-fascism or neo-Nazism, which remain persistent political entities despite their often highly public rebranding efforts. For instance, the recently elected Brothers of Italy, headed by Giorgia Meloni, has often been described as neo-fascist, and despite the party’s attempts to soften its positions to appease more moderate voters, its stances on the EU, the Russia-Ukraine war, reproductive rights and LGBTQ equality, among others, have alarmed people across Italy and the world. The line between ostensibly moderate right-wing parties and more extreme ones has been severely blurred. As radical parties occupy a non-negligible number of seats in legislatures, it becomes increasingly difficult for center-right parties to govern without cooperating with extremists, or at least strategically adopting some of their stances. Emmanuel Macron, as the head of his self-created centrist Renaissance party, has adopted stricter stances on border control, migration and secularism, all in an attempt to lure would-be Reconquest or National Rally voters and avert a complete usurpation of power. Bulgarian second year, Sara Kovacheva asserts that the renewal of her country’s right-wing in October 2022 parliamentary elections makes her “terrified” that the political right has gained too much power in recent years. “I really wouldn’t want to live in a far-right Europe,” she passionately declared. The recent trends across Europe make it “feel like we are only going backwards,” she continues. The vision of a united Europe is threatened by the rise of the right, but it is not a uniquely European phenomenon. The factors behind this emboldened far-right ideology — migration, Euroscepticism, wars in Europe’s neighborhood — are uniquely European, but the rightward and nativist shift is a global phenomenon that will hopefully be resolved before extremism has a chance to cement itself in the mainstream.

Although more than a hundred years have passed since its publication, the recycling of this tale, the tale of “The American Dream” but also the tale of a life without love—the tale of a life full of yearning—continues to this day, even after the pages of Fitzgerald’s novel have been turned to their very end. < Back A Hundred Years of Gatsby Viktorie Voriskova April 30, 2025 Disclaimer: Spoilers ahead! It is not just a single thing that makes a novel “timeless.” The majority of novels which have the honour of having been described as such usually resemble each other in one way or another—their themes are often seen as universal, the writing style is provocative, and the main characters are usually relatable and multi-dimensional. However, a few books have been as popular for as long as The Great Gatsby by Francis Scott Fitzgerald. This book was initially published on April 10, 1925, when Fitzgerald was just 28 years old. He was already an established author, having published two popular novels just a few years earlier. Despite the popularity of his two previous books, The Great Gatsby was a much smaller success, with only 20,000 copies being sold in the first edition. The novel chronicles the life of Jay Gatsby, written by his neighbour, Nick Carraway, a Yale graduate, with inclinations to romanticize his own life as well as the lives of others. Nick Carraway moves to New York in 1922 to learn about the bond business and rents a house in West Egg, which is right next to the grand villa of the mysterious and wealthy Gatsby, whose real name is James Gatz. Unlike his flashy neighbours, Nick has connections to East Egg, where his cousin Daisy lives with her unfaithful husband, Tom, who is a philanthropist with notable violent tendencies and is the embodiment of “old money gone bad.” Nick discovers Gatsby’s deep love for Daisy, whom he had known before the First World War. Gatsby throws lavish parties in hopes of rekindling their romance. Nick helps reunite them and they begin an affair. Tensions rise and Tom exposes Gatsby’s criminal past. Daisy ultimately chooses Tom. After Daisy accidentally kills Tom’s mistress, Myrtle, Gatsby takes the blame. Myrtle’s husband kills Gatsby, then himself. The novel ends when Nick, disillusioned, returns to the Midwest, where he ponders Gatsby’s dream and the moral decay beneath the glittering surface of the American upper class, and quintessentially, the “American Dream.” Although more than a hundred years have passed since its publication, the recycling of this tale, the tale of “The American Dream” but also the tale of a life without love—the tale of a life full of yearning—continues to this day, even after the pages of Fitzgerald’s novel have been turned to their very end. Playwrights, filmmakers, cartoonists, rappers and numerous novelists have taken their shots at turning Fitzgerald’s text into something new, all while paying tribute to its unparalleled influence. At least four feature films, countless television episodes, an opera, two musicals, and—especially since it entered the public domain four years ago—a whirlwind of fan-fiction sequels, prequels and retellings have emerged. One of the key reasons for the eternal success of The Great Gatsby has been its raw approach to money, love, power and reputation. How we imagine him has much to do with how we see ourselves. Gatsby and his interpretation have gone through numerous transformations. Various generations have interpreted the text according to their perception of Gatsby—his glamour, his melancholy, or his parties being analyzed and celebrated for what they are, as well as for what they are not. Despite its initial lack of success, after Fitzgerald died in 1940 and especially after the end of the Second World War, The Great Gatsby became the most published book in North America, a sign of its major success. We can't be sure why this happened, although many would agree that it was probably due to post-World War II sentiment: nostalgia for the 20th century, because it symbolized a time of optimism. This period saw Gatsby as the “Jazz Age Man,” based on the novel that became a symbol of this optimism. His story was repeated on TV and in the movies and the character became an archetype. Meanwhile, knee-length pants and cowboy hats, art-deco and dissipation paraded across screens, in “Singin' in the Rain” and “Some Like It Hot,” as well as movies like Funny Girl and Chicago, and in the fashion pages. This was the era of The Great Gatsby . In the 1950s, Gatsby started to be seen from a more existentialist perspective, commencing the phase of Gatsby as “The First Existentialist.” After the Second World War, thanks to the growing readership of The Great Gatsby , the readership of the novel widened. Paperback editions proliferated, and the novel was cited by young authors including J.D. Salinger. Hollywood, which first brought the book to the screen in 1926, made further adaptations. It came to be seen less as a satire of the '20s than as a commentary on the predicament of modern man, a precursor to popular contemporary novels such as Albert Camus's The Stranger , Saul Bellow's The Dangling Man and Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye . In the 1950s, people started to recognize that the book was not only about glamour, money and parties; Gatsby's life was marked by alienation and nostalgia. His death, an act of senseless violence, is a textbook case of the absurd. The character of “Snoopy” is another example of the shift in the perception of this novel. Snoopy, who represents Gatsby's quintessential existentialism, is world-weary, constantly tired and quiet. This bow-tie-clad alter ego of Gatsby appeared for the first time in 1998, as part of a series of Gatsby-themed Peanuts strips, embodying Gatsby’s existentialism, which had risen to acclamation at this time. “Hip-Hop Gatsby” is yet another example of the timelessness of The Great Gatsby . How can the epitome of glamour become the embodiment of existentialism and then Hip Hop? This version of Gatsby owes its popularity to the 2013 film “The Great Gatsby” by Baz Luhrmann, as well as the memes created by Leonardo DiCaprio as Gatsby. Besides memes, music is another quintessential part of the formation of “Hip-Hop Gatsby.”The soundtrack is a collage of contemporary pop and rap, from Lana Del Rey, Florence and the Machine, and Beyoncé, among many others, and was produced by Jay-Z. Like jazz in the 1920s, hip-hop is a black American musical idiom that has become the soundtrack of the age, a complex, fast-evolving art form loaded with aesthetic possibilities, perfectly reflective of The Great Gatsby in its own, innovative, modern way. The Great Gatsby owes much of its success to luck, as many literary pieces do, in the world of publishing and advertising. However, it is inevitably Francis Scott Fitzgerald's genius, which lies in his ability to describe a dynamic world and characters that are unique and specific, but also ordinary enough to be realistic. Generating feelings of grandiosity but also sadness and melancholy, this work is timeless and relevant across centuries, from the Jazz Age to the era of Hip Hop. The Great Gatsby is open for everyone to interpret as they wish. As Fitzgerald, through the personification of Gatsby, says at the end of the book: “ And so we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past." Photo source: Urban Romantics on Flickr

Seeing the different branches of the Balkan tree blossom leads to the conundrum of what fruits they may bear at the end of spring. The last couple of months have shown that young people are now fed up with government negligence, illiberal practices and economic uncertainty. The ever-present young spirit of the protests, coinciding with the literal progress of the season of change and blossom, Spring, allows us to talk of a Balkan Spring. Mass injustices or tragedies act as catalysts for social unrest. < Back Pumping and Jumping Through the Balkan Spring Stanimir Stoyanov April 30, 2025 You are waiting at a train station, and all of a sudden, your life flashes before your eyes. You see the canopy of the recently renovated station suddenly collapse. Chaos erupts and people start panicking. Fourteen people lose their lives at the scene. This is the final straw. You stop going to university, you devote your entirety to bringing justice to your country. Others join you, hundreds, thousands, hundreds of thousands. Your country is in an unprecedented crisis. But you are not alone, neighboring countries are seeing a similar fate. A fate that might lead to the phenomenon of the Balkan Spring. Pumping Begins In November 2024, Serbia saw a wave of student-led protests around the country. Appalled by the tragic event, they blamed government negligence and corruption as its fundamental causes. University students around the country announced a boycott of their studies, demanding accountability and transparency. The slogan “Pumpaj,” literally meaning “to pump,” became a symbol of the protests. Originating as a pop-cultural reference from a famous song, the word has now gained a deep social meaning of putting pressure on the state and calling for progress. Five months later, popular unrest persists . Despite the government’s resignation, the movement continues to gather strength. In the months after the collapse, two other people passed away from sustained injuries. March 15 saw an estimated 300,000 people gather in Belgrade for the largest demonstration since the beginning of the unrest. Reports started circulating of the Serbian police using a Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD), colloquially called “sound cannon,” to disperse the crowd. The Serbian government initially denied possessing such a system, but in the days following, they admitted to owning it, but stated it was kept far from the protests. Images circulated , alleging that such a device was parked near the National Assembly in Belgrade at the time of the protests. Serbian authorities denied its use, with President Aleskander Vučić stating that he will resign if it is proven that sound cannons were used. Balkan Spring in Blossom Countries in the Balkan region have a lot of cultural and political similarities, which makes it a fertile ground for the spread of social movements, due to related languages, media influence and common grievances. The Balkans have faced enduring political tensions and repeated crises in recent years. On March 16, 2025, a tragedy occurred at a nightclub in the North Macedonian town of Kočani, where the roof collapsed, killing 61 people and leaving 153 injured. The nightclub did not have a license and was operating outside the law, which sparked public outrage, with protests all over the country starting as both a form of remembrance and in opposition to rampant corrupt practices and lawlessness. In Bulgaria, ever since March 12, weekly protests against corruption and injustice have filled the streets of Sofia. Crowds, made up predominantly of young people, have been gathering in front of government offices every week, voicing their dissatisfaction against the current coalition, which has been covered in scandals surrounding its ties with alleged corruption. On March 31, a 12-year-old girl passed away in a traffic accident on a road in a dangerous physical state. Reports about the dangerous road had been made to the agency for road infrastructure, but no action had been taken prior to the accident. As of April 13, mass protests have been happening throughout the country, asking for the resignation of the director of the road agency and for a country-wide wake-up call in regards to government neglect. In Croatia, a nationwide boycott against rising food prices has been going on since Jan. 24. In response to heightening inflation, Croatians began organizing boycotts of food retailers, which have now spread to banks and other market sectors. The government has introduced anti-inflation measures such as price caps in order to tackle public dissatisfaction. Following the boycott, reports have suggested a fall of almost 50 percent in the number of issued sales invoices. Drawing inspiration from Croatia, other Balkan countries followed in organizing calls for national boycotts. March 2025 also saw demonstrations being a common occurrence in Greece, with tensions now at a height, due to a 24-hour national strike that happened on April 9, 2025. The strike was organized due to wage dissatisfaction and cost-of-living increases. Coinciding with the strike, protests erupted on the streets of Athens, with young people also filling the crowds. North of the Danube, tensions have been high in Romania, surrounding the recent election drama. The candidacy barring of Călin Georgescu led to widespread protests across the country, with citizens expressing support for the right-wing candidate and showing concerns over electoral integrity and democratic processes. Turkey, although contentedly classified as “Balkan”, has also become a witness to large anti-government demonstrations, beginning on March 19, 2025, following the detention and arrest of Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu. The protests, happening in the context of an economic downturn and wider concerns of democratic backsliding in the country, are characterised by brutal clashes between demonstrators and police. More on this topic can be found in the article on the protests in this issue of The Menton Times. Why are we jumping? Protests are an integral part of any democratic state, so what exactly makes these recent demonstrations in the Balkans unique? Their underlying characteristic is their youth identity. We are bearing witness to the birth of a new form of protest culture. Street demonstrations are vibrant and rhythmic, driven by a youthful, unifying call for freedom and justice that transcends politics. Social media culture has played a crucial role in the process, with protests being shaped primarily through social media channels, with endless public outreach. An unusual characteristic of the protests, seen throughout the different case studies, is the phenomenon of jumping. The jumping is accompanied by slogans that say something in the lines of “who is not jumping is with them.” The slogan has long been used in political demonstrations in Slavic crowds, originating from sports chanting in the Czech Republic. The phrase “Kdo neskáče, není Čech,” translated as “who isn't jumping isn’t Czech," spread to other Slavic countries and later was appropriated for political protests. It’s a way to energize crowds and create a visible and physical act of solidarity. Recently, it has been used at protests in Serbia , Bulgaria , and even Turkey . The prevalence of the phenomenon is not unusual throughout various Balkan countries, seeing how the slogan sounds very similar in different Slavic languages. Its use in Turkey breaks the language barrier, showcasing the birth of a new universal language of protest surrounding the Balkans. Other innovative symbols of protest are also present, exemplifying the unique youthful character of the Balkan spring. In Turkey, for example, a character from Pokémon became a sign of protest after a protester wearing a hat with it got arrested. The mostly young crowds, filled with university students, have created their own protest subculture by making it hip to protest, especially through the use of various symbols. What fruits will Spring bear? Seeing the different branches of the Balkan tree blossom leads to the conundrum of what fruits they may bear at the end of spring. The last couple of months have shown that young people are now fed up with government negligence, illiberal practices and economic uncertainty. The ever-present young spirit of the protests, coinciding with the literal progress of the season of change and blossom, Spring, allows us to talk of a Balkan Spring. Mass injustices or tragedies act as catalysts for social unrest. I personally had the fortune to visit Serbia in March and bear witness to the unique atmosphere there. My visit was the week before the enormous demonstration of March 15, and during my time in Belgrade, there weren’t any mass events organised. What I saw was an atmosphere that was filled with youthful exuberance. Young people were walking on the streets, as if during a vacation period. The streets were filled with a sense of freedom, but at the same time, there was a pressing sense of tension in the air. Seeing and talking with people who have decided to interrupt their education for five consecutive months has now made me reflect on the strength of the human spirit. They are willing to jeopardize their future for the cause of standing up for their beliefs. Whether the wave of protests will bear any long-term political consequences remains in the air, quite like cherry blossoms blown by the wind. Governments have responded through various means, including appeasement, ignorance and even alleged violence. Yet, unrest continues to grip many of the aforementioned countries. With the fast-approaching end of spring, it remains to be seen if the Balkan Spring will go down in the history books as a small seasonal wave of unrest or as something to be studied in university courses for decades to come. Photo source: Dejan Krsmanovic on Flickr

Western commitment to freedom of expression, an internationally-recognized human right, is embedded deep in its political culture. Nonetheless, for many of us coming from countries with questionable guarantees for freedom of speech, disillusionment upon arriving in the West – the supposed haven of political activism – is not an uncommon experience. < Back Free Speech in the Western World: Campus Activism, Hypocrisy and Tolerance By Lara Harmankaya November 30, 2023 In the West, the most important rights are those of the individual. However, in light of recent global developments, the paradoxical nature of Western free speech has been exposed yet again. Western commitment to freedom of expression, an internationally-recognized human right, is embedded deep in its political culture. Nonetheless, for many of us coming from countries with questionable guarantees for freedom of speech, disillusionment upon arriving in the West – the supposed haven of political activism – is not an uncommon experience. Fear of backlash and permanent repercussions caused by speaking out are likely to silence many of us, even right here in Menton. Outside of our campus, commentators have argued that the Western world is experiencing a creeping phenomenon of censorship that is reminiscent of the McCarthy era during the early Cold War. Yet, this is not to say that the free speech absolutist view espoused by many liberals is morally sound either; free speech has been used as a cloak of justification in many instances to defend offensive and bigoted remarks. As contention and disagreements aggregate in the emotionally and politically charged atmosphere of our time, the importance of noting the thin line between free speech and hate speech is becoming all the more clear. But is silencing university students through fear and intimidation the right way to do so? At what point do we begin condemning free speech? It appears that the West is not always the safeguard of rights it proclaims itself to be. Freedom of speech breaches in the West take on a different form – they are not expressed in the form of imprisonment and overt government censorship – but have a more clandestine outlook. Recently, Harvard students who published a controversial pro-Palestinian statement following the October 7 attacks have been met with doxxing, in the form of a billboard truck displaying their faces and labeling them as “Harvard’s Leading Antisemites,” online intimidation and publication of their personal information. As a result of the doxxing, a group of CEOs asked for a list of their names to not “ inadvertently ” hire them, in the words of billionaire Bill Ackman, in the future. Columbia University has also made public its decision to suspend the activities of two of its student associations, Jewish Voice for Peace and Students for Justice in Palestine, following their violation of “university policies related to holding campus events” by holding unauthorized campus protests. David Polk, a top law firm in the US, has rescinded job offers to three students at Harvard and Columbia for their alleged involvement in the open letters criticizing Israel. At the University of California, Berkeley and other campuses across the U.S., students have begun wearing masks during protests to avoid being identified and harassed. However, one does not need to look beyond the Atlantic Ocean to see the extent of this contention. In France, pro-Palestine protests have been banned (not outright but on a case-by-case basis) due to their potential to “generate disturbances to public order,” according to the French Minister of Interior Gerald Darmanin. Closer yet, at Sciences Po Menton, student association Palestine: Understanding the Struggle (formerly Sciences Palestine) has been forced to cease most of its activities following contestations from politicians in the French Riviera. Similarly, a group of Science Pistes from our campus have been subject to harsh words and harassment by political personalities for a video expressing solidarity with the Palestinian cause that was taken out of context on social media. One student has communicated her feelings through the following words: “When joining Sciences Po, I truly thought that I would be able to express my ideas freely. Nevertheless, in light of recent events, I faced pressure from the administration and felt real censorship regarding my pro-Palestinian stance.” Without taking a stance on whether these actions are justified or not, one must acknowledge that such restrictions by parties in the Western world have blurred what is entailed by freedom of expression and opinion. Even before the Israel-Hamas conflict, certain measures that contradict freedom of speech have been setting a gloomy precedent for the future of such rights. In the U.S., the passage of Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bills, along with 175 bills in 40 state legislatures that have been introduced over these past two years, promise to dictate and restrict what teachers and students can discuss in schools. This issue is compounded by a number of books being banned in educational institutions; gag laws that target race theory, gender studies and history have also been put into effect. It appears that the public sphere of discussion is today’s target. In times like these, it is often pertinent to revisit the contributions of philosophers. John Stuart Mill and his harm principle prove to be more relevant than ever when trying to distinguish between the demarcations of hate speech and free speech. His utilitarian argument asserted that freedom should be granted unless or until its actions cause harm to another individual: “The only freedom which deserves the name is that of pursuing our own good in our own way, so long as we do not attempt to deprive others of theirs, or impede their efforts to obtain it.” The distinction between speech that appeals to reason and empathy against speech that vilifies and fuels hateful sentiments is self-evident in most cases. When it is not, measures such as the United Nations Rabat threshold test, are helpful in clarifying the fine line between the two. Moreover, in the United Kingdom, Canada and in France, acts are penalized and prohibitions are made to preempt hateful, discriminatory or blasphemous speech. Decisions to restrict pro-Palestinian voices, based on the conviction that it perpetrates antisemitism, can be judged through this lens. Do pro-Palestinian supporters that demand ceasefires for the people of Gaza violate the principles above? With the exception of hate crimes committed from both sides, in most cases, it can be argued otherwise. The undeniable fact is that all populations, including the Jewish, the Palestinian and those who convey support for either, should be protected. Countering hate speech without compromising free speech is possible. Silencing student activists goes against the spirit of free inquiry that is crucial to educational institutions. When the fine line of empathy is transgressed, punishment is justifiable. However, at the same time, support of a cause should not be misconstrued as hate speech. The aforementioned cases of online harassment for both Harvard and Sciences Po students unfolding recently evince the need for regulation and limits when it comes to free speech in the digital world. Clearly, there must be limits to free speech, now more than ever. Extremism and populism are gaining momentum and leaving behind sentiments of hate in their tracks. However, the problem lies in the indeterminate selection of what is labeled as impermissible in the West. What is considered ‘outrageous’ and ‘appalling’ appears to be an evolving matter always up-for-debate. Some struggles are accentuated, while others are overlooked. One fellow student argued: “Western free speech is only upheld if the speech doesn’t affect the status quo.” Thus, political motivations and cultural wars that shape rhetoric surrounding free speech must always be scrutinized. We must move beyond binary conceptions and be conscious of the role played by the media, governments and other actors. It is never in our favor to partake in polarizing discourse if the long-term goal we strive for is to create a better society for all of us. From anti-apartheid protests to strikes against the Vietnam War and numbers of sit-ins over a range of socio-political issues, university campuses have long been platforms for activist movements. They have impelled momentum, and inspired solidarity for many causes that we now look back on with admiration. They are ideal locations in which the Socratic method of seeking truth can take place. Through constant debate and questioning of conventional mainstream ideas, philosopher Karl Popper argues that students can eliminate errors and falsehoods. Freedoms of expression and opinion are therefore inextricably connected to university life — they advance intellectual pluralism and affirm the significance of democratic processes by enabling students to engage with ideas that they are not fully aware of, or in agreement with. As George Orwell himself highlighted, “If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.” If all ideas outside dominant hegemonic thought were condemned to the margins of public discourse, the course of history would have remained stagnant. Isn’t debate and the divergence of opinion at the very core of progress? University campuses, historically famous for their political activism, should continue to nurture a spirit of debate. As institutions of education, it is fundamental that they resist the erosion of free speech and promote student’s intellectual enrichment. The Western world should upgrade its efforts to adhere to their very own ideals of democracy, freedom and open-mindedness that are imbued in its liberal constitutions and institutions. Human rights, respect and humanitarianism should remain as the priority, and expressing solidarity and partaking in intellectual debates should not result in students facing punishment with potentially permanent consequences. As university students, we are capable of discerning where the line of freedom of speech ends and where hate speech begins. We must not cross it. Yet, at the same time, we should not be intimidated and silenced for voicing our opinion. The only way towards depolarization is through constructive dialogue. And as history shows, obstructing the path towards it is invariably more detrimental than restorative.

En ayant tout ce passé pour nous prévenir, comment n'avons nous pas vu Musk venir? Certains disaient encore en 2022 que son rachat de Twitter n'était ni grave ni dangereux! Comment laissons-nous faire ses rachats progressifs et la transformation de de chaînes d'information en usines d’opinions essentiellement d'extrême droite? Est-ce que les magnats des médias d’aujourd’hui sont destinés à choisir—ou du moins influencer—les dirigeants de demain? < Back Les Milliardaires, La Politique et Les Médias Anonymous January 31, 2025 En suivant l’actualité, beaucoup d’entre nous observons la montée en puissance d’Elon Musk avec effroi, entrevoyant déjà un monde où sa plateforme X et son pouvoir du haut de ses centaines de milliards de dollars influencent les élections—non seulement aux Etats Unis, avec son soutien affiché à Donald Trump, mais à travers le monde. En effet, en Allemagne il clame haut et fort son appui à l'AfD; aux Royaume Uni il soutient le parti d'extrême droite Reform UK; à travers l'Europe il affiche une sympathie claire pour les partis populistes. Dans ce contexte, il semble donc important de nous remémorer la réalité historique des magnats des médias sous la forme notamment de deux exemples très différents: Randolph Hearst et Alfred Hugenberg. Dans un deuxième temps, il est aussi important de constater les risques que représentent des monopoles médiatiques privés ici en France, spécifiquement ceux qui tournent le dos à la liberté de la presse dès qu’il s'agit de respecter sa pluralité. Je ne vous apprendrais rien en vous parlant de Musk ou de Murdoch, car leurs noms sont omniprésents, mais connaissez-vous William Randolph Hearst? Ce Millionnaire qui a inspiré le personnage de Citizen Kane est en effet l’un des premiers magnats de la presse, ayant assis son emprise sur la fin du 19e et le début du 20e siècle américain. Cet homme a fini par posséder une trentaine de journaux à travers les Etats Unis dont certains des plus importants de l'époque, notamment The Examiner en Californie et The Journal à New York. Il a largement utilisé ces journaux pour promouvoir des idées xénophobes, et est tenu en partie responsable de l'intervention américaine à Cuba par ses efforts en ce sens dans ses publications. Je voudrais ici faire un parallèle avec l’implication d’Elon Musk dans la guerre en Ukraine que ce soit par le rôle critique que joue Starlink , tel qu’on a pu le constater quand il a retiré son soutien à une opération ukrainienne en 2022, ou par sa communication avec les dirigeants Russe et Ukrainien. Hearst a aussi grandement soutenu la candidature de Roosevelt et s’est lui-même investi en politique en tant que représentant puis en tant que candidat à l'investiture démocrate. On remarque ici de clairs parallèles avec les pires prévisions des risques du pouvoir des géants des médias aujourd’hui. En effet, Hearst est reconnu comme l’un des pionniers de la presse à scandale, et surtout du fake news, qu’il a manipulé au long de sa vie pour promouvoir un point de vu xénophobe et interventionniste. Les risques que comportent de telles techniques aujourd’hui sont décuplés à travers des réseaux comme X et ceux de Meta qui peuvent atteindre le monde entier. C'est pourquoi la fin du fact checking de Meta est si grave dans un contexte où nombreux sont les pays « très vulnérables à la désinformation, qui engendre de l’instabilité politique, des ingérences dans les élections, de la violence de masse et même des génocides » selon l’International Fact-Checking Network . Développons donc cette idée de l’impact du soutien médiatique à des candidats extrêmes. Ce qui est peut être le plus effrayant pour bon nombre d’entre nous au sujet de Musk, c’est son ambition de pousser des idées et des candidats d'extrême droite et, au risque de vous sembler pessimiste, il semble important de souligner un parallèle historique qui résonne avec ces peurs. Alfred Hugenberg, grand homme d'affaires Allemand propriétaire de journaux et chef du Parti populaire national allemand a pour un temps prêté main forte à Hitler, au point d'être dans son premier cabinet. Bien que n'étant en rien le seul responsable de la réussite du parti NSDAP, le soutien de l’empire économique et médiatique de Hugenberg a certainement joué un rôle. Il était non seulement un grand propriétaire de média, mais il avait aussi un studio de cinéma et une agence de presse. Son soutien à Hitler n'était pas désintéressé, ayant espéré jusqu'au dernier moment pouvoir se servir d’Hitler. Mais en fin de compte, ce que l’histoire doit retenir de lui c’est qu’il a mis sa fortune et sa notoriété au service d’un politicien d'extrême droite qui est devenu l’un des pires dictateurs. Nous pouvons malheureusement aujourd’hui tracer un fort parallèle avec les 260 millions de dollars et la puissance médiatique que Musk a mis au profit de la campagne de Donald Trump, mais aussi à son ambition politique en tant qu'allié de Trump et membre de son nouveau gouvernement. Ces magnats ne sont pas que des stars internationales de la propagande politique. E n effet, nous avons nos magnats home grown . Les médias français sont largement détenus par quelques milliardaires , notamment Rodolphe Saadé, Bernard Arnault, Xavier Niel et Vincent Bolloré. Ce dernier va nous intéresser tout particulièrement, car son empire médiatique, qui comprend notamment Canal+, CNews, Europe 1 et le JDD a une tendance très notoire à imposer une ligne éditoriale très à droite. Les critiques de son empire médiatique sont multiples. Il s'agit d’une part d’une fragilisation de l'indépendance des médias dans lesquels il investit, faisant ce que certains appellent un ‘nettoyage’ au moment du rachat pour ne garder que ceux qui soutiennent sa vision. En effet, dans le plus récent de ces rachats, celui du JDD en 2023, un agenda politique transparaît à travers le choix de Geoffroy Lejeune en tant que nouveau rédacteur en chef, juste après que le magazine très à droite Valeurs Actuelles le licencie car trop extrême. D’autre part, Bolloré est reconnu comme le plus redoutable magnat français car il s’attaque aussi aux individus et aux organisations qui s’opposent à lui, les traînant en justice et les menaçant selon un reportage mené par RSF System B , qui explore largement les méfaits de l’empire Bolloré. En 2019, ses tentatives pour empêcher la sortie du livre « Vincent tout-puissant » lui ont même valu une condamnatio n pour « procédure abusive ». Il apparaît donc raisonnable de s'alarmer de la situation en France quand nous voyons tous ces fâcheux parallèles plus ou moins lointains. Je voudrais donc finir sur une note non pas conclusive mais plutôt interrogative. En ayant tout ce passé pour nous prévenir, comment n'avons nous pas vu Musk venir? Certains disaient encore en 2022 que son rachat de Twitter n'était ni grave ni dangereux! Comment laissons-nous faire ses rachats progressifs et la transformation de de chaînes d'information en usines d’opinions essentiellement d'extrême droite? Est-ce que les magnats des médias d’aujourd’hui sont destinés à choisir—ou du moins influencer—les dirigeants de demain? Photo credits: DonkeyHotey on Flickr

Despite their multiculturalism and being accustomed to living far from home, several third-culture kids expressed that moving to Menton provoked a closer connection to their culture of origin. < Back Third-Culture Kids Navigate Identity in Menton By Sarina Soleymani “In Sciences Po, your nationality becomes your entire personality.” This is a phrase I have heard ceaselessly throughout my first year in Menton; it is one I relate to as I started to embody the title “Iranian girl.” I became e ager to share our culture, whether by constantly discussing Iranian cinema or by sharing our food on rare occasions where I have the energy to spend four hours in the kitchen making our khoresht stews but, more realistically, just bringing Shirazi salad to potlucks. Holding onto my heritage began to have the utmost importance, manifesting in small ways. For instance, I noticed myself listening to Persian music alone for the first time as I performed mundane tasks. The specific moment I realized the growth of my ties to Iranian culture was during Nowruz, or Persian new year. All my life, Nowruz was just another holiday that I would celebrate with my parents and the Persian community of the country we lived in. Despite moving to different places, we were grounded by tradition; we would still set up the haft sîn (the seven objects starting with an “s,” each with their own signification) and call our extended family for hours. Yet, I never put much thought into the holiday. This year, however , I began counting the days, nervous about how I would spend it and carefully discussing how to make it special. As time passed in Menton, I began speaking up more about my hometown, our double lives, the small resistance, the restrictions, the role of religion and more. I would try to share insights on my country's political situation or its history while depicting my experiences or observations within my homeland. I started informing myself more and more about our history and politics, and, ironically, as I frequented more sources, the reality that I had lived abroad for most of my life began to unnerve me. I questioned this strong link that I adapted towards my Iranian heritage and whether or not my insights — based on the summers and winters spent in Tehran and the stories ingrained in our family — were enough to realistically embody the “Iranian girl” I felt I had to be. In reality, my upbringing was not strictly Persian but had influences from the Chinese and French cultures that were present in my youth. This shift in my perception of my cultural identity led me to ponder the experiences of other students on campus — whether those living in the diaspora for the first time or other third-culture kids. To better understand the factors leading to my cultural identity crisis, I started having various entrancing conversations and interviews with the student body, which I would love to share. It is no secret that Menton is a multicultural hub, with students coming from across the globe. This makes each of us stand out; we each have our specificities which we are excited to share. Simultaneously, we are curious about the various lifestyles, art, language, food and traditions across the differing seas. In such an atmosphere where everyone has something to offer, we bow to the fate of distinguishing ourselves as the Iranians, the French, the Lebanese, the Moroccans, the Italians… Indeed, despite the amazing opportunities created through the diversity of this campus, one can also recognize that — as expressed by an anonymous 2A, “It's a lot of weight to represent a whole country, especially if you're the only one or one of the only ones from there.” As pointed out by an English track 1A, our field of studies — such as political science or sociology — brings a hyper-awareness regarding national and cultural identity questions. This sense of awareness extends the boundaries of the classroom, as she brilliantly pointed out, and lingers within the student body, whether through discussions, parties and cultural events. As she expressed, “You’ll always see a flag somewhere in Menton.” The authentic experiences of the student body give a glimpse into the effects of our Mentonnais culture on an individual level. For many, moving to France was the first time they lived abroad, leaving the place from which they were part of the predominant culture and entering Menton, where they hold a unique identity within this mix. As beautifully expressed by a Moroccan student, “As many international students, I’ve felt more connected with my culture than ever since I came to Menton. I think it’s partly due to the fact that in your home country, you’re just a regular kid (...), and this homogeneity kind of makes your culture’s presence or effect imperceptible.” Moving away makes the particularities of your culture stand out, leading many students to feel an increased attachment to their culture of origin. Several students expressed that they missed aspects that reminded them of their home: noise, hospitality, food, music, language, etc. This nostalgia inspires efforts to reconnect with our origins, whether by cooking or listening to music — two of the most cited activities by students. Indeed, sometimes it is also reflected in participating in traditions of your culture which you may have only done during childhood. This idea was highlighted by a Spanish student who expressed that he re-started participating in the practice of Lent — a Catholic tradition where, within the 40 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter, you do not eat meat on Fridays — since moving here. Others talked about culture shocks; one instance was an Egyptian student speaking about how she was surprised to see the difference in attitudes surrounding Ramadan in Egypt compared to here. She explained how in Egypt, Ramadan is a central tradition that transforms the entire city, how every night for iftar the entire family gathers around and how she feels nostalgic once the month ends. This made her eager to share her Egyptian culture with others celebrating Ramadan, whether by cooking complicated meals (which she claims have been a success according to everyone who had the chance to try them) using ingredients she brought from home or bringing a fanoos and khayameya from Egypt to ensure that she stays connected with her culture. The latter two objects are a chandelier and a traditional fabric with long histories associated with Ramadan. An American student, expressed, “I enjoy the slow life in Europe, but sometimes I miss the fastness of the US.” This dichotomy of the yearning to maintain your culture while living elsewhere leads to the growth of the attachment that international students feel to their motherland. What about the students who always witnessed their culture through an outsider’s perspective and seldom lived on their own soil — the third culture kids? These students lived abroad for extensive periods, yet moving to this lemon town has still affected their relationship with the culture they most identify with. In terms of prior experiences, several third-culture students I had spoken with agreed on a homogenous culture specific to international schools abroad. They observed the emergence of a new culture confined to the walls of these international schools, often involving a vast majority of third-culture kids. This creates an atmosphere where many are less attached to their culture of origin but rather adapt it to their domain. Others expressed that their school was centered around a culture different from their own or even the country they lived in; as one Turkish student told me, “I attended a French school in Bosnia which made it so that I knew more about, for instance, the geography of France as opposed to either Bosnia or Turkey.” All those interviewed expressed how they grew up in a melange of cultures, whether by having parents from different countries or due to their experiences abroad and efforts to integrate into those cultures and/or schooling. One student stated, “I learned so much about other cultures that I don’t feel fixed to one,” “Being a third culture kid, or being from four different places, you’re always a part of them, but you never blend into any country. People can exclude you: I’m not Chinese enough for my Chinese heritage or American enough for my American heritage….” Another student also expressed that he feels like a tourist when visiting his home after moving abroad, creating a situation where nowhere is really “home” He explained that he feels a larger connection to students who grew up in the Arab diaspora due to their mutual understanding of each other's experiences. In another interview, we discussed whether one could even qualify another person as Turkish, Iranian, or Chinese enough. In this sense, does the fact that I lived abroad for most of my life diminish my Iranian identity and devalue my memories of my country, thoughts and contributions? Despite their multiculturalism and being accustomed to living far from home, several third-culture kids expressed that moving to Menton provoked a closer connection to their culture of origin. One student shared that she felt more Spanish since coming here, whereas in Thailand, where she used to live, “(she) didn’t feel Spanish at all.” She explained that she had never met other students who were Spanish before moving here, and creating these new bonds with other Spanish students allowed her to reconnect with this side of her identity. The importance of a community in allowing third-culture students to reconnect with their origins was also highlighted by another student who emphasized the influence of the large Turkish community on campus in enabling her to discover more about her culture. She reminisced about their coffees, where they discussed Turkish politics, their references that only Turkish people understand and the food they shared, which increased her fondness for her culture. The regional focus of the campus is another factor for students of the MENA region, highlighted by a student who believes this atmosphere incited her to explore her Tunisian identity and another Jordanian student who underlined the role of learning Arabic in strengthening his ties with his culture. The Jordanian student also spoke of Babel — an association aiming to understand the diverse cultures of the MENA region through conducting first-hand research in a selected country every year, this year being Jordan. “I was very scared for the Babel trip. It felt like if people didn’t like it, it was a reflection of me,” he explained. Yet, fortunately, the trip was a complete success! All of these students expressed that despite the difficulties of being far from home or not feeling as though they belong entirely to any particular culture, globally, the experience of third-culture kids is a special and positive one. As an encouraging note, they told fellow third-culture kids to remember the privilege of having these eye-opening experiences immersed in various cultures. We are given the chance to choose aspects that we especially appreciate in differing cultures to bring together in a way mirroring the best of various worlds. In this kaleidoscope of backgrounds, with some moving away for the first time and others re-discovering their origin, one finds superfluous similarities. In these exchanges, most students conveyed that connecting or preserving your culture is highly accessible in Menton, allowing it to play an integral role in our identities. They revealed that they listen significantly more to their ethnic music and devote heightened effort to cherish their exquisite cuisine. Language was deemed crucial, referred to as a code created over centuries to reflect their culture. The appreciation for our campus’ diversity in allowing us to learn about other cultures was noted by each of these individuals. Within this domain, a takeaway message is to find a balance between maintaining the link to our own culture and integrating into the one that we have the chance to live in.

Dans toutes les sociétés, des règles existent pour faire tenir les individus ensemble. La question centrale est celle de leur respect : comment faire pour que ces normes soient effectivement suivies ? Historiquement, la réponse a souvent été la punition. Le système pénal moderne, à travers ses institutions – police, justice, prison – incarne cette logique : dissuader, sanctionner, réprimer les comportements jugés déviants. La prison, en particulier, s’est imposée depuis le XIXe siècle comme la peine de référence, au point de sembler aujourd’hui indissociable de l’idée même de justice. < Back L’abolitionnisme pénal : repenser le contrôle social au-delà de la punition Eloise Franzmann June 10, 2026 Dans toutes les sociétés, des règles existent pour faire tenir les individus ensemble. La question centrale est celle de leur respect : comment faire pour que ces normes soient effectivement suivies ? Historiquement, la réponse a souvent été la punition. Le système pénal moderne, à travers ses institutions – police, justice, prison – incarne cette logique : dissuader, sanctionner, réprimer les comportements jugés déviants. La prison, en particulier, s’est imposée depuis le XIXe siècle comme la peine de référence, au point de sembler aujourd’hui indissociable de l’idée même de justice. Pourtant, ce modèle est vivement contesté par un courant radical, celui de l’abolitionnisme pénal. Né dans les années 1970 sous l’impulsion de juristes et criminologues européens (Thomas Mathiesen, Louk Hulsman), ce mouvement défend l’idée que le système pénal n’est pas seulement inefficace – puisqu’il n’empêche ni la récidive ni les injustices – mais aussi profondément violent et porteur d’inégalités structurelles. Il propose donc d’en finir avec la prison, voire avec la justice pénale elle-même. Comme le rappelle Gwenola Ricordeau, « la cible de l’abolitionnisme est le système pénal, et non la seule prison. » Or, une telle proposition heurte de plein fouet notre imaginaire collectif. Elle soulève une question fondamentale en sciences sociales : comment maintenir l’ordre social sans punition ? Le contrôle social – c’est-à-dire l’ensemble des moyens par lesquels une société fait respecter ses normes – repose largement, dans sa forme formelle, sur le droit et la répression. Dès lors, l’abolitionnisme pénal ne remet-il pas en cause un fondement essentiel de la vie collective ? Pourquoi ses idées sont-elles si souvent jugées « naïves », « utopiques » ou « inconcevables » ? Pour comprendre la radicalité de la critique abolitionniste, il faut d'abord rappeler comment le système pénal s’est historiquement constitué en rouage central du contrôle social. La peinede détention s’est rapidement imposée comme la clé de voûte des systèmes répressifs occidentaux. Michel Foucault explique que sous l’Ancien Régime, le châtiment corporel visait à manifester la force et la toute-puissance du souverain. Avec la naissance de l’État moderne et centralisé, cette logique change radicalement: la peine n’est plus publique ni physique, elle devient institutionnalisée, invisible, régulière. Elle ne vise plus à détruire le corps du supplicié mais à corriger, discipliner, surveiller l’âme du délinquant. À mesure que l’État prétend réguler la vie de ses citoyens, la prison incarne la menace silencieuse qui rend cette régulation efficace. Le droit pénal a donc pour vocation de définir les comportements déviants, et les institutions (police, justice, prison) d’assurer l’ordre social. On retrouve cette conception classique chez Émile Durkheim, pour qui, le crime n’existe pas en soi : c’est la société qui l’étiquette comme tel. La fonction du crime et de la peine n’est pas tant de punir le coupable que de rappeler les normes collectives et de ressouder la collectivité derrière les valeurs qu’elle se donne. Condamner la déviance, c’est tenter de faire vivre l’idéal commun – ou, du moins, de faire croire qu’il existe. Car la société ainsi décrite se veut homogène : tolérer la déviance mettrait à mal l’unité du groupe. On met donc à l’ombre ou ‘sous terre’ ce qui menace la cohésion sociale. Le système pénal repose en outre sur l’usage raisonné de la punition comme levier pour faire respecter les normes. Selon Jeremy Bentham, l’être humain agit en fonction de l'équilibre entre plaisir et douleur ; la punition vise précisément à rendre la transgression coûteuse, agissant ainsi comme une dissuasion. La menace de la peine fait donc de la justice pénale un outil central du contrôle social, et c’est son utilité sociale supposée qui la rend légitime. L’abolitionnisme pénal apparaît dès lors comme une contestation radicale de cette légitimité. Pour ses tenants, la promesse d’utilité du système pénal est un leurre. Trois arguments principaux sont avancés ; le premier est celui de l’inefficacité dissuasive. Si punir réduisait le taux de criminalité, alors les pays où les systèmes carcéraux sont les plus durs connaîtraient une criminalité moindre ; or, on n’observe aucune corrélation de ce type. Avec près de deux millions de détenus, les États-Unis affichent l’un des taux d’incarcération les plus élevés au monde, sans que cela réduise durablement la criminalité. La récidive reste massive, y compris dans les pays les plus répressifs. Le sociologue et philosophe Geoffroy de Lagasnerie tire de ce constat une conclusion radicale : la prison n’ayant aucune efficacité réelle, elle devrait être remplacée. Il caractérise les systèmes pénaux occidentaux comme des systèmes fondés sur le « punitivisme » – une logique qui se concentre sur le passé (expier la faute) sans jamais réparer le futur. Le second argument est la violence intrinsèque du système pénal. Loin de se limiter à la prison, l’abolitionnisme dénonce l’ensemble du dispositif pénal comme un appareil de domination. Comme le rappelle Nils Christie, le système pénal « vole les conflits » : il dépossède les victimes, les auteurs et le corps social de la possibilité de résoudre ensemble ce qui les oppose. La procédure pénale transforme une dispute vivante en une mécanique froide, au bénéfice exclusif des professionnels du droit. Enfin, le troisième argument est celui de l’injustice sociale. La prison n’est pas aveugle : aux États-Unis, les minorités raciales sont massivement surreprésentées dans les prisons. De facto, si les personnes racisées représentent 37% de la population américaine, elles représentent également 67% des personnes incarcérées. Angela Davis montre que la prison fonctionne idéologiquement comme « un lieu abstrait où sont déposés les êtres indésirables afin de nous soulager de la responsabilité de penser aux vrais problèmes qui affectent les communautés » (pauvreté, racisme, santé mentale, éducation). Si l’argumentaire abolitionniste est solide, pourquoi ses propositions sont-elles si souvent jugées « naïves » ou « irréalistes » ? Plusieurs explications, que développe Gwenola Ricordeau, permettent de comprendre cette inconcevabilité. D’abord, il y a une méconnaissance structurelle du système pénal et carcéral. En France, l’abolitionnisme pénal reste marginal et mal compris, Ricordeau souligne que le faible imaginaire abolitionniste tient en grande partie au peu de ressources théoriques disponibles en français. Les textes fondateurs (de Mathiesen, Hulsman, Christie, Davis) sont tardivement ou partiellement traduits, ce qui entretient un cercle vicieux : moins on peut lire l’abolitionnisme, moins on peut le discuter sérieusement, et plus il apparaît comme une position étrange, importée, hors-sol. Ensuite, il y a un malentendu radical : omme le rappelle Ricordeau, l’abolitionnisme ne vise pas à « améliorer » la prison (plus de douches, de meilleurs repas, une baisse de la population carcérale). Il remet en cause la centralité même du système pénal – l’idée que la réponse légitime à une infraction doit passer par une institution d’État spécialisée, avec ses juges, ses procureurs, ses geôliers et ses sanctions. Dans un cadre politique dominé par la punition, la position abolitionniste devient proprement impensable. On se dit ainsi spontanément : si l’on supprime l’outil central de répression, que reste-t-il pour faire respecter les normes ? Enfin, une angoisse de l’anomie nous empêche de considérer sérieusement l’abolitionnisme pénal. C’est Durkheim qui a popularisé la notion d’anomie : c’est une situation dans laquelle les règles sociales perdent leur capacité à guider les conduites, laissant place à des comportements déviants incontrôlés. La société tend alors à se dissoudre, ne laissant subsister que des individus sans lien collectif. L’abolitionnisme active cette peur ancestrale : sans punition, c’est la fin de la société elle-même. Pourtant, comme le note le philosophe J. L. Mackie à travers son « paradoxe de la rétribution », il est aussi difficile de justifier moralement la punition que de l’éliminer de nos manières de penser. Nous savons que punir pour punir est intellectuellement problématique, mais nous ne pouvons nous en passer. C’est ce paradoxe qui rend l’abolitionnisme inconcevable : il se heurte non à une impossibilité logique, mais à une impossibilité psychologique et culturelle. L’abolitionnisme n’appelle pas à une société sans normes. Il propose d’autres formes de régulation : l’éducation, la socialisation, la prévention, la justice réparatrice. Des expériences concrètes (prisons scandinaves notamment) montrent que ces alternatives peuvent fonctionner, réduisant la récidive et restaurant les liens sociaux. Cependant, ces alternatives soulèvent à leur tour des questions fondamentales. Jusqu’où peut aller un contrôle diffus, invisible, potentiellement intrusif ? Comment garantir qu’un contrôle social par l’éducation ne devienne pas un endoctrinement ? Ces quelques interrogations sous-tendent la problématique de garantir un contrôle social juste, démocratique, transparent, sans tomber dans les abus d’un pouvoir sans visage. Cette réflexion dépasse largement le champ pénal et touche à l’école, aux médias, à l’espace public, à l’État lui-même. L’abolitionnisme a le mérite de nous forcer à poser cette question, là où la prison nous dispensait d’y réfléchir. Photo source: flickr/Steve Rhodes

Qui sont ces étudiants, et comment leurs actes du 17 novembre 1973 ont-ils acquis une portée profondément démocratique et déterminante pour l’avenir du pays? En quoi ces réponses nous illuminent-elles quant au rapport contemporain de la société et de l’univers politique grecs vis-à-vis des valeurs démocratiques et des mouvements étudiants? < Back « Pain, Éducation, Liberté! » Un Regard Sur Le Soulèvement De Novembre 1973 En Grèce Margarita Kopsia January 31, 2025 Qu’est-ce que, vraiment, résister ? Et quelle signification ce mot acquiert-il en fonction du contexte socio-politique d’où on se place? Si les réponses qu’il est possible d’apporter à cette question sont nombreuses, la position de la Grèce en la matière mérite d’être étudiée. Sujet d’abord sanglant et délicat, le soulèvement de l’université polytechnique d’Athènes du 14 au 17 novembre 1973 est progressivement devenu une commémoration nationale, célébrée chaque 17 novembre. Moment violent, il fut aussi—et demeure—un événement profondément symbolique et porteur d'espoirs; à présent honoré, il est impossible d’en parler sans l’associer à la fin de la dictature militaire qui était au pouvoir depuis le coup d’État du 21 avril 1967. Mais plus qu’emblème de résistance face à cette parenthèse dure et autoritaire pour le pays, agissant en tant que catalyseur du démantèlement de la dictature des colonels, le soulèvement du 17 novembre est aussi celui d’un profond renouveau . Car luttant pour « le pain, » « l’éducation » et « la liberté, » le combat acharné des étudiants a aussi signé l’entrée dans une nouvelle ère démocratique, marquée par une meilleure ouverture politique, ainsi que par un développement plus conforme au respect des droits et libertés de la population grecque. Qui sont ces étudiants, et comment leurs actes du 17 novembre 1973 ont-ils acquis une portée profondément démocratique et déterminante pour l’avenir du pays? En quoi ces réponses nous illuminent-elles quant au rapport contemporain de la société et de l’univers politique grecs vis-à-vis des valeurs démocratiques et des mouvements étudiants? La démocratie, confisquée et asphyxiée En plein cœur de la guerre froide, le contexte politique de la Grèce est extrêmement agité; suite à la victoire des forces royalistes lors de la guerre civile grecque de 1946 à 1949, opposant les dirigeants soutenus par le Royaume-Uni et les États-Unis aux grecs communistes, plusieurs gouvernements instables se succèdent. Les « élections législatives anticipées » qui étaient censées avoir lieu en 1967 sont la conséquence directe de la dissolution parlementaire qui était entraînée par le manque de soutien à M. Canellopoulos, nommé par le roi suite à l’échec des accords législatifs et gouvernementaux passés entre celui-ci et les autres partis majoritaires. L’avenir politique du pays se voit particulièrement menacé par le putsch du 21 avril 1967. Réalisé par trois militaires—les colonels Georges Papadopoulos , Nicolaos Makarezos et le général Stylianos Pattakos—l’épisode est intimement lié à l’appartenance de la Grèce au « bloc de l’Ouest » dans le contexte des alignements géopolitiques de l’époque. Le coup d’État est ainsi réalisé sous prétexte de protéger le pays de la « menace communiste » et afin de préserver l’alliance du pays avec les États-Unis, sachant que la Grèce avait rejoint l’OTAN en 1951. Il faut noter cependant, que la présence de cette « menace » est largement injustifiée, ce que n’ont manqué de préciser de nombreux médias de l’époque, y compris a l’international. Ainsi, Le Monde déclare dans ses publications datant de l’année 1967 que « l’intervention [...] allait au-delà du but invoqué au début, » cherchant notamment à assurer la victoire de la droite malgré l’ascension de l’Union du centre. Pour le journal L’Humanité , il s’agit même d’une « dictature absurde et criminelle qui s’est imposée par peur des élections. » Car sur la période 1967-1973, la vie sociale et politique du pays est « paralysée . » « Rythmée » par l’« enfermement » et la « torture » dont les opposants politiques sont systématiquement victimes, la dimension autoritaire du régime écarte la perspective d’un espace de dialogue ouvert, pluriel et engagé. Parallèlement, l’emploi généralisé de la censure constitue une autre sombre réalité, entravant les libertés d’expression et d’opinion des citoyens. Avec l’arrivée au pouvoir des colonels, « les garanties constitutionnelles des droits de l'Homme sont suspendues, » obstruant toute tentative de critique du régime et interdisant même les « grèves . » Mais si la majorité de la population grecque est poussée à la « passivité » par le régime des colonels, les voix des opposants exilés continuent de retentir et alimentent fortement les animosités populaires envers la junte, ainsi que l’opposition de divers gouvernements de l’étranger. Pour certains exilés, il est même question de « militer contre la junte sur le territoire français » à travers leur implication dans des « réseaux de la résistance, » à l’instar de Melina Mercouri —ancienne ministre de la Culture grecque—et Mikis Théodorakis, célèbre compositeur et futur ministre d’État grec de 1990 à 1992. Étudiants: voix ou moteurs légitimes de la construction démocratique ? Pendant la junte, les étudiants souffrent tout particulièrement. Leur sévère manque de représentation se matérialise tout d’abord à travers « l’ impossibilité » pour les étudiants « d'élire des représentants au sein des institutions universitaires. » Sont mis également en place des « tribunaux de discipline, pouvant expulser tout étudiant ayant des activités jugées non convenables, » tandis que la loi 1347 oblige « au service militaire immédiat » tous ceux qui s’organisent et s’engagent au sein de syndicats. La forte présence syndicale dans l’enseignement supérieur grec fait par ailleurs que, selon un point de vue sociologique, les universités grecques deviennent des « institution[s] sociale[s] » à « caractéristiques politiques. » Bénéficiant d’un « statut symbolique comme espaces de défense des valeurs démocratiques, » cela explique en grande partie par les dynamiques de rassemblement et de politisation des étudiants qui se sont progressivement construites et exacerbées depuis 1973. La vague de manifestations s’opposant à la junte militaire est entamée par les étudiants de la Faculté de Droit d’Athènes le 21 février 1973 , date à laquelle ceux-ci se barricadent à l’intérieur de leur établissement pour appeler à la fin de la dictature. L’insurrection des étudiants de l’école Polytechnique qui survient quelques mois plus tard s’étend jusqu’à d’autres universités telles que celles de Patras ou de Thessalonique, entraînant également de nombreux autres civils désireux de décrier les modalités d’exercice du pouvoir du régime en place. La création d’une station de radio étudiante, adressant « un appel [...] à la population » participe également à la propagation de leur message, tout en cultivant un profond sentiment de solidarité parmi tous ces manifestants. L’occupation de l’université polytechnique elle-même fut aussitôt sévèrement réprimée par l’armée, dont l’intervention consista notamment en l’envoi de chars militaires. Le bilan est celui d’au moins 27 morts et de dizaines de blessés, faisant de cet épisode une véritable « plaie » de l’histoire contemporaine grecque. Son sillage, celui de la ‘ Metapolítefsi ’—soit la transition démocratique grecque qui s’en suivit—rappelle néanmoins les mérites du fervent maintien et de la défense des idéaux démocratiques, notamment au vu des difficultés que ces derniers ont eu à s’imposer et à véritablement former part de la réalité politique et constitutionnelle grecque. Cela ferait-il des étudiants les « garants » de la démocratie en Grèce à l’époque contemporaine, régime ayant su s’extraire de sa trajectoire fragile, tumultueuse et menacée? Les étudiants sont-ils capables de changer le cours de l’histoire? Jour partiellement férié, durant lequel les établissements scolaires restent fermés, le 17 novembre constitue aujourd’hui un moment de « fierté nationale. » Les étudiants ayant participé aux soulèvements de novembre 1973 s’étaient auto-proclamés ‘ Eleftheroi Poliorkimenoi, ’ soit une référence directe à la lutte pour l’indépendance grecque et à l’œuvre de Dionysios Solomos—poète dont émane l’hymne national grec. Sous la plume de nombre de poètes et d’écrivains tels que Pour Yánnis Rítsos—poète et militant du Parti communiste grec, emprisonné pendant la dictature des colonels—les étudiants du 17 novembre deviennent des figures héroïques et inspirantes, portant en elles les fruits et les symboles de la bravoure et de la détermination. À eux seuls, les soulèvements du 17 novembre n’auraient pas entièrement rétabli le sort démocratique du pays, mais il demeure que les efforts des étudiants y ayant pris part aient été des mécanismes déclencheurs de la ‘ Metapolítefsi. ’ Portant avec ardeur et conviction l’ espoir et la promesse démocratiques, le pouvoir qu’a eu la jeunesse à influencer le cours de l’histoire en 1973 reste incontestable.

Il semble important de se rendre compte que donner une presence mediatique aux organisations telles que Women Wage Peace est un premier pas crucial pour faire evoluer les termes de la discussion et rapeller qu’aucun conflit n’est purement noir et blanc. Soutenir ces associations est le seul moyen de soutenir un drapeau blanc et un futur ou les deux peuples on l’opportunite de faire le deuil ensemble. < Back Women Wage Peace: Donner une Voix à L’Espoir Anna Halpern October 31, 2024 W omen Wage Peace est le plus grand mouvement populaire pacifiste israélien. Fondée à la suite de la deuxième guerre à Gaza en 2014, l’organisation est maintenant forte de plus 44 000 membres, en majorité des mères de famille qui s’opposent à voir leurs enfants mourir dans une guerre sans fin. En 2022 il s’associe au mouvement palestinien Women of The Sun, crée en 2021. Depuis, bien qu’on ne leur donne pas le quart de l’attention médiatique qu’elles méritent, ces femmes commencent à être reconnues pour leur immense travail. En effet, Dr. Yael Admi and Reem Hajajreh, représentantes de ces deux mouvements, ont été nominées dans la liste des 100 Femmes de l'année 2024 du Times Magazine. De plus, ces deux organisations ont été nominées pour le prix Nobel de la paix de 2024, le prix Sakharov (présentées par les groupes parlementaires européens S&D et Renew Europe ) et ont reçu le Albie Award. Dans le conflit brutal qui secoue la région, avec une prolifération de haine et de violence qui peut sembler omniprésente, ces femmes représentent une lueur d’espoir que l’on se doit de mettre en avant. En effet, ces femmes ne se sont pas perdues dans des discours de vengeance et de haine après la mort de Viviane Silver—activiste israélo-canadienne et co-fondatrice de Women Wage Peace —assassinée durant les attaques du 7 Octobre 2023. Elles n’ont pas non plus cessé leur combat au long cette longue année pendant laquelle les partis extrêmes de tous côtés n’ont eu cesse de promouvoir une idéologie de haine qui semble avoir touché le monde entier. Elles n’ont jamais cessé de se battre pour un meilleur futur pour leurs deux peuples. Elles représentent une opposition bien réelle à la politique du gouvernement d'extrême droite du Premier Ministre Benjamin Netanyahu qui, depuis le 7 Octobre, est souvent tenu pour responsable de cette guerre désastreuse qui a causé tant de morts et n’a toujours pas atteint son objectif affiché de ramener les derniers otages et « détruire le hamas. » Ces femmes offrent une alternative, une vision pacifiste d’un futur où ces guerres n’auraient plus lieu d'être. Women Wage Peace agit concrètement, rencontrant des dirigeants internationaux, mobilisant des foules en Israël et à l'international et sensibilisant à la réalité du conflit. Elles ont soumis une proposition de loi au Knesset qui, si adoptée, obligerait le gouvernement à considérer toutes les options politiques avant l’utilisation de moyens armés. Elles organisent toujours des marches, des rencontres avec des experts, des veillées, et des discussions avec des personnalités politiques israéliennes. Chacun d’entre nous peut activement participer en signant l’« appel des mères » lancé en association avec Women of The Sun , mais il est encore plus important que, chacun à notre échelle, nous gardions en tête que personne ne gagne jamais vraiment dans une guerre: les deux sociétés qui en souffrent se retrouvent chaque fois plus fractures et plus endeuillée. C’est une idée simple et universelle que ces organisations s’efforcent de soutenir malgré la difficulté de se faire entendre à travers le bruit des divisions partisanes qui s’empressent d'ajouter de l’huile sur le feu. Les personnes et gouvernements à qui ce conflit tient à cœur ont donc un devoir de partager et de promulguer cette vision plutôt que de répéter des slogans et discours divisifs proférés par les membres les plus extrêmes de chaque camp. En ce qui concerne l’attention, et l’« instrumentalisation » internationale du conflit, le fils de Viviane Silver le met extrêmement bien en mots, il ne sert a rien d’« importer notre problème au lieu d’exporter des solutions. » En effet, chaque vie compte, chaque personne mérite de vivre une vie longue et heureuse, et ceci ne devrait pas être une question partisane. Chaque dirigeant, chaque activiste et chaque individu devrait pouvoir s’en rendre compte et réussir à comprendre que « la vengeance n’est pas une stratégie , » et peut choisir d’apporter son soutien et son attention aux associations telles que Women Wage Peace . Chacun peut soutenir leur « appel des mères, » demandant aux dirigeants israéliens et internationaux de soutenir une solution pacifique au conflit et de promouvoir un futur viable pour les deux peuples. Malgré tout ceci, cette organisation, et les multiples autres organisations pacifistes, anti-gouvernement et pro-dialogue restent aujourd’hui largement noyés dans un raz de marée de violence et de discours brutalement insensibles proférés par les dirigeants de tous les partis. Il n’y a pas une seule raison à ce manque d’attention médiatique et cet abandon du public international de la cause pacifiste. Néanmoins, nous pouvons souligner quelques choses que nous avons souvent pu voir au niveau personnel en tant qu'étudiants en sciences politiques, mais aussi comme toute personnes subissant les spams des réseaux sociaux et de la politique du clic. Notre besoin de simplifier tout en ‘bien’ et ‘mal’ et de se placer dans une case bien définie pour se rassurer parmi un groupe établi de ‘partisans’ sans nuance nous pousse à des positions extrêmes qui justifient de perdre de vue l'humanité de ceux en face. Il est beaucoup plus difficile et courageux de savoir prendre ses distances et se positionner dans un juste milieu ou l’on accepte d'entendre des opinions divergentes et de sacrifier un peu de sa sacro-sainte doctrine pour une vision de paix. Il semble important de se rendre compte que donner une presence mediatique aux organisations telles que Women Wage Peace est un premier pas crucial pour faire evoluer les termes de la discussion et rapeller qu’aucun conflit n’est purement noir et blanc. Soutenir ces associations est le seul moyen de soutenir un drapeau blanc et un futur ou les deux peuples on l’opportunite de faire le deuil ensemble. En effet, « la mort est impartiale et la guerre est aveugle » comme l’a dit Yonatan Zeigen dans son hommage a sa mère Viviane Silver. Ces deux peuples ont le droit de se reconstruire sans la manipulation politique et internationale dont ce conflit a souffert depuis des décennies. Pour ceux que cela intéresse, je vous redonne le lien vers la pétition en vous encourageant à la signer: L'appel des mères - Women Wage Peace .

Zohran Kwame Mamdani is now the mayor-elect of the wealthiest city in one of the richest countries on Earth. His victory represents a political trajectory that is both atypical and deeply revealing of contemporary America. Born in an Ugandan-Indian family, raised between continents and immersed in environments rich in academic and artistic capital due to his parents’ careers: he occupies a complex place in the American social landscape. This matters, not as a critique but as context. His political language is formed by a democratic political economy and urban class analysis as much as by lived experience. You could hear it during the several live debates he participated in, in his cadence, see it in his references and definitely feel it in his policy design: it’s disciplined, detailed and unapologetically people-centered. < Back M-A-M-D-A-N-I Ibtissem Remdane February 11, 2026 “People thought that Mamdani did not have a chance because for a while…no one knew who he even was,” – Joveria Hasnat, a student in New York. Zohran Kwame Mamdani is now the mayor-elect of the wealthiest city in one of the richest countries on Earth. His victory represents a political trajectory that is both atypical and deeply revealing of contemporary America. Born in an Ugandan-Indian family, raised between continents and immersed in environments rich in academic and artistic capital due to his parents’ careers: he occupies a complex place in the American social landscape. This matters, not as a critique but as context. His political language is formed by a democratic political economy and urban class analysis as much as by lived experience. You could hear it during the several live debates he participated in, in his cadence, see it in his references and definitely feel it in his policy design: it’s disciplined, detailed and unapologetically people-centered. Unlike most politicians, Mamdani does not tiptoe around ideology. He calls himself a democratic socialist without stuttering, blinking or hiding behind the usual euphemisms such as “progressive but pragmatic” or “left-leaning centrist.” No, he just says it. It’s alarming to some. It’s refreshing for many. I had the chance to talk to a young woman, Joveria Hasnat, who calls New York City (NYC) home. She told me about her vision for the city and her hopes for its future: “It’s been a while since people believed a politician could actually transform city policies instead of making empty promises.” As Joveria expresses, Mamdani’s key word is affordability, a concern that deeply resonated with NYC residents: “Politics have never been kind to my family or me. In America, the rich always win.” She isn’t exaggerating and housing is too often treated as a luxury rather than a right. In August 2025, about 350,000 people in New York City were homeless, including roughly 103,000 staying in shelters. Workers are expected to give up weekends and vacations just to make ends meet, compounded by mismanaged public resources that drive up the cost of basic necessities, NYC becomes a difficult place to live comfortably. According to some media sources, Mamdani is a so-called “jihadist communist radical”. Nice word salad, right? I guess trying to work on social issues makes him a radical and a threat to national security in Donald Trump’s America. In reality, this soon-to-be new NYC government seems to simply want to be doing what it should have been doing all along: aiming to be clear about policies, purposeful in their actions and accepting accountability. Most of what Mamdani is calling for, such as stronger social safety nets or affordable rent, is not as groundbreaking in other countries. But in the US, where hyper-capitalism and individualism dominate, even these measures are treated as enough to be polarizing. And yes, he is also the scary “M-word”–Muslim. His faith didn’t define his campaign, yet the hostility surrounding it certainly shaped the path he had to navigate. Cuomo and Sliwa, two other mayoral candidates, heavily leaned into a rhetoric that critics called out as Islamophobic, as they warned New Yorkers of “security concerns” and tossed around words like “jihad” and “anti-semitism.” Surely nothing says “in touch with urban policy” like implying a socialist candidate is secretly plotting to implement Shariah law between community board meetings. Opponents tried to weaponize his immigrant background, his openness about religion and his optimistic vision for a better New York City. But those same traits were exactly what made him magnetic to supporters. His rise from a relatively unknown candidate, polling at 1% to New York City mayor did not happen by accident. “If he did not gain his social media presence, it’s safe to say that Andrew Cuomo could have been back in office by now.” As Joveria noted, the campaign wasn’t just political; it became a cultural phenomenon and a shift in spirit that forced people to pay attention. His candidacy felt like a breath of fresh air in American politics, a leftist rupture in a city long dominated by incrementalism and cautious compromise. He made inclusion a priority, reaching communities seemingly not out of strategy but out of conviction. His videos explaining his vision in Spanish and Arabic might seem like minor details, but it is these gestures that defined his campaign. It makes people feel seen, affirming that he is advocating for all New Yorkers, not just the ones politics usually cater to. People feel represented by him on all sorts of fronts. Whether strictly on the political aspect or like Joveria, on more than that: “There is a major diaspora of South Asians and Muslims in New York, and the last time we saw representation in U.S. politics was never. It’s one of the most significant symbols for us that Mamdani was elected mayor. People like my family and people of similar backgrounds feel a little more empowered, a bit more safe in these foreign lands.” His focus on the working class, the people that actually keep the city going, further grounded his message in lived reality. They staff the transit system, schools, construction sites and hospitals that make daily life in NYC possible. Mamdani noticed it. He knew his audience, met them where they were and used the same transportation they did, which made his campaign “that much more authentic.” That very sense of proximity showed up in his participation in the ordinary rituals of city life, the small, shared experiences that quietly define who a city is actually for. And among those, food becomes central in understanding Mamdani’s New York. He’ll recommend an egg and cheese on a roll with jalapeños from a corner bodega on your way to the subway. He hypes the places that keep the city fed: the Yemeni-run delis, the Dominican lunch counters, the Pakistani spots, the Mexican taquerias where a $4 taco can change your whole life. Food isn’t just food, it’s community. It’s the fact that you can walk three blocks and get the best ramen outside of Japan and then turn the corner for a shawarma wrap that tastes like it came straight out of Beirut. And the way he champions them, the way he centers small food businesses instead of corporate chains, tells you everything about his politics. Again, community is the heart of his campaign and in New York, community tastes like something. "Trillionaires for Trump"/"Billionaires Against Mamdani" at the No Kings protest Joe Mabel, Wikimedia Commons He positions himself in open opposition to the oligarchic tendencies that have come to define both national and city politics. Governance is shaped less by public need and more by donor interests and insider networks. So when connections substitute for competence, and when calling $2,000 a month “poor-person rent” somehow passes as normal political discourse, his message sticks and rings. Moreover, Mamdani’s willingness to confront the president only amplified his appeal. Threats from Trump to withhold federal services or cut funding didn’t intimidate him but clarified his resolve. Even the classic critique of “inexperience” fell flat. As Mamdani himself put it , “What I don’t have in experience I make up for in integrity. And what Andrew Cuomo lacks in integrity, he could never make up for in experience.” This sentence alone is probably one of the things that most rallied people behind him, from New York to around the world. I asked Joveria what the city actually felt like during the campaign. I wondered if the excitement I kept seeing on my feed was real, or just another case of social-media-inflated enthusiasm? She didn’t hesitate: “People actually felt hopeful. There were volunteers passionately speaking in neighborhoods, which brought about the community-feel again. The vibe felt progressive and people were actively fighting to make Mamdani more seen for the city’s population. It was for everyone’s good.” Joveria commutes every day since she lives in Nassau County on Long Island, the next closest county. Since she is not technically a New York City resident, she couldn’t cast a ballot. Yet she describes being deeply involved in spreading the campaign anyway: “There was constant conversation regarding the mayor of NYC even on social media platforms. His outreach worked and us New Yorkers helped”. Yes, his victory was in many ways a collective one: claimed not just by under-represented groups, but by an entire political ecosystem that had long been told to lower its expectations. His rise is often framed as a personal triumph. It is, of course. But it is also the clearest proof that America’s political machinery can still be disrupted from below. Zohran K. Mamdani’s campaign logo Aneesh Bhoopathy for Forge, Wikimedia Commons A huge part of Mamdani’s political identity is visual. The iconic posters, the bold color palettes, the slightly unruly graphics that felt more like protest art than campaign branding: you can trace that DNA mainly to Aneesh Bhoopathy, an artist who got inspired by the city itself. It might sound anecdotal, but it matters. When your political opponents are calling you an extremist, having your campaign look like a community art project rather than a corporate brochure is not just a stylistic choice; it’s a statement about who you think deserves to be seen. And it worked, people felt seen. He won on a night when Democrats nationwide were stacking significant victories. But the morning after the celebration, the actual work of preparation must commence. New York is not an easy city to govern. Joveria beautifully described it: “I love New York’s art and expression culture, but most of all, its diversity. New York is not known for its classical art nor the super elegant music culture but it’s not meant to be. If you walk through the streets [...] the first thing you’ll notice is all the noise. But if you keep a keen ear out as you stroll through, you’ll start to notice that you hear English less than other languages from all over the world. [....] New York’s much more than Times Square.” Precisely, this place is a mosaic of overlapping identities, interests and languages, a place where diversity is woven in everything the city does. Managing that city requires skill: representing it requires something closer to moral coherence. Mamdani arrived with the latter. The rest is now his homework. Hence the following question: is he who New Yorkers need him to be? Probably. That’s the honest answer. He feels like an espresso shot to political fatigue, which is one of the main reason he gained so much traction. Joveria put it best: “Regardless of if he actually achieves freezing rent, creating city-governed grocery stores, or eliminating bus fares, his policies are incredibly progressive. I haven’t felt genuine relief in the political field ever since Trump’s first presidential term ended. The only way is up for NYC with Mamdani as mayor.” It’s hard not to feel something when you see a Muslim democratic socialist with an all-women transition team stepping into the leadership of one of the most influential cities in the world. Representation alone doesn’t fix housing or transit, but it certainly redefines what the political imagination considers possible. And the weeks after his election only confirm it. His administration has already begun the unglamorous but essential work of reorganizing departments, reopening budget discussions and setting priorities that reflect his campaign promises. His transition team — yes, entirely made up of women — with impressively qualified people such as Lina Khan, a chair of the Federal Trade Commission, or Grace Bonilla, a leading urban policy expert, makes it easier for people to try and entrust Mamdani’s office with what is next. His administration is also opening thousands of new public-sector jobs, positions built with a “by the people, for the people” logic in mind. More than 70,000 applicants have already rushed in, about 400 people hired to 17 transition committees and 33 amongst them are now members of a transition committee on transportation, climate and infrastructure. Is he everything his supporters dream of? According to Joveria, very close. A politician who knows what it wants, can explain why and doesn’t panic when challenged. He now needs to be held accountable and continue to prove he is the politician New Yorkers voted for. And this is, in itself, a form of trust: not starry-eyed, but strategic. Not naive, but necessary. When asking her if she thinks what he proposes is actually feasible, Joveria responded: “Some of his policies are a little ambitious, even a bit risky. Realistically, eliminating bus fares would take hundreds of million dollars.” I agree, but maybe unrealistic is what people need and therefore should strive for. It takes courage to try, and the greatest gift this new mayor provided might just be hope. So let’s hope. Let’s set standards that seem unachievable, let’s politicize everything because everything is, and let’s continue to expect rather than accept. The name is Mamdani, and I think people might want to remember that. So turn the volume up. At the risk of sounding too confident, this one may be worth listening to. Photo Source: Joe Mabel, Wikimedia Commons

In March 2025, the Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, revealed to the world that American national-security officers discussed highly classified information in a group chat in which he was accidentally included. While American media focused on whether the leak risked American lives, European leaders got the chance to see how America’s most powerful talked about Europe behind closed doors. < Back Eulogy to Joy Kerem Demir Karahan April 12, 2026 In March 2025, the Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, revealed to the world that American national-security officers discussed highly classified information in a group chat in which he was accidentally included. While American media focused on whether the leak risked American lives, European leaders got the chance to see how America’s most powerful talked about Europe behind closed doors. Vice-president JD Vance, texted on the group chat “I just hate bailing Europe out again.” when discussing the potential strike on Houthi forces. Pete Hegseth, the secretary of defense, for his part called “European free-loading” “PATHETIC”. Across the Atlantic, it was not news that Trump held Europe in low regard. It was however news how gleefully the Administration talked about the continent behind closed doors. In an interview with Politico in September 2025, Trump called the European countries a “decaying” group of nations with “weak” leaders. He bluntly declared that Europe is clueless in the face of global turmoil, saying that “Europe doesn’t know what to do.” The White House’s new National Security Strategy (NSS), published in November 2025, went further, saying that Europe is in a “civilizational erasure” because of uncontrolled migration, limits on free speech and its regulations undermining creativity. Luuk van Middelaar, writing for Le Monde, said that America has started “ideological assault” against Europe with the NSS. For their part, European leaders refuted this characterization of a dormant Europe. Emmanuel Macron wrapped himself in Gaullism, championing French independence from American influence. On March 2nd the French président jupitérien declared at Ile Longue, home of the French naval nuclear arsenal, that he wants “Europeans to regain control of their own destiny,” acknowledging the fact that Europe has grown too dependent on the United States. Earlier in 2025, Macron had said that Trump was the “electroshock” Europe needed to awake from its 30-year-long self-induced sleep of “strategic dependence.” While Macron took Trump’s comments as a wake-up call, other leaders across Europe went on to deny Trump’s claims. Kaja Kallas, the European High Representative for Foreign Affairs, said that “ ‘Woke Europe’ [is] not facing civilisational erasure”; Ursula von der Leyen and Friedrich Merz joined her in highlighting Europe’s importance for the United States. Donald Trump’s view on Europe is not completely wrong. Europe perhaps is not facing “civilizational decline” or is “PATHETIC,” but its role in the global order is fading and its economies are facing an incredible test in the coming years. Europe, accustomed to its long dinners paired with specialty wine, is too focused on the plate to see what lies ahead. The European economic system for too long relied on three simple postulates: cheap exports to China, cheap energy from Russia and cheap security from the United States. First, China became competitive both internally and internationally with European companies. German automakers, the engine that turned Germany into Europe’s largest economy, benefitted from exports to countries such as China, Japan and Russia. However, China’s rapid rise in the automobile industry starting from the early 2010s put German automakers who could not compete with the low prices in a hard position. Companies like BMW, symbols of German economic success, began to scale back local production, contributing to higher rates of unemployment in the country. Germany’s trade surplus began to erode and the German automobile industry began to rely on high tariffs on Chinese imports to stay competitive within the European market. Across Europe, the fate of the German automobile is too common; the European trade deficit with China, between 2015 and 2024, quadrupled in volume. Second, the Russian pipelines that carried the cheap energy fueling European growth closed with the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Angela Merkel, the German chancellor between 2005 and 2021, spent the better part of her career ensuring the flow of cheap Russian gas into Germany and Europe. She championed the building of the Nord Stream pipeline even during the invasion of Crimea while critics warned that she would make Germany, and Europe, dependent on Russian gas. In the end, Merkel was successful, she schafft das and cheap Russian gas resulted in more than ten years of consecutive growth for Europe’s largest economy. However, since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, her decision to pursue closer ties with Russia has proven that Europe indeed grew too reliant on Russian gas. Now that the cheap gas that supplied Europe’s manufacturing sector is gone, Europe finds it even harder to develop and harder still to compete. The final blow to the European model came from Donald Trump, who, in his second term, decided to hold Europe more accountable for its own security. After his repeated demands for European NATO members to meet the alliance target of 2 percent GDP spent on defense, not only did European countries finally meet it, they also increased the alliance target to 5 percent by 2035. Previously European countries enjoyed spending less on defense to fund their extensive social nets, but now their social welfare systems are under more pressure than ever. However, America’s decoupling with Europe does not end with economic ramifications. Arguments over Greenland, Trump’s dealing with Putin without consulting the EU and support for Eurosceptics across the continent all signal that the relationship Europe enjoyed with the United States is coming to an end. JD Vance declared at the Munich Security Conference in 2025, as far as America is concerned: Europe’s largest threat is the “threat from within.” The European dependency on these three pillars is the most visible symptom of a far deeper problem with the continent’s model of growth: There never was a Plan B. The AI boom made this apparent. China and the United States innovated as Europe grew complacent. Companies like America’s Anthropic and China’s DeepSeek promise to transform work and increase worker productivity to levels previously thought impossible. European leaders, too, recognize the strength of the AI boom in inspiring economic growth. Macron, in the Paris AI Summit, declared that now is the “time for innovation” to avoid getting left behind. However, despite speeches and promises of innovation, Europe still is woefully behind not only the United States, but also China in the AI race. American start-ups and Chinese tech giants are racing to innovate, whereas the European economy is still carried largely by legacy brands such as LVMH and Novo Nordisk. Isabel Schnabel, who is on the executive board of the European Central Bank (ECB), noted that the problem is not that Europe is incapable of innovation, but that there simply are too many regulatory measures limiting productivity growth within the bloc. Mario Draghi, in his well-known Draghi Report, highlighted this exact problem. There is a patchwork of regulatory systems, sometimes contradictory , within the EU, limiting the ability of businesses to compete with American or Chinese companies. As the EU hesitated to act on the Draghi Report, ECB President Christine Lagarde went on to state that Europe is in an “existential crisis” where “internal barriers are stifling innovation, productivity, and investment across the bloc”. Europe’s lack of advancement in productivity put it on a path of economic stagnation at levels hardly seen in any other part of the developed world. Between 2008 and 2023, notes the Wall Street Journal, Europeans saw their real wages drop or stagnate, whereas Americans saw theirs increase. A common European refutation, one to which Paul Krugman too subscribes , is that Europeans simply live better lives than their counterparts across the Atlantic. Indeed, Europeans live for longer and are happier on average than Americans. Furthermore, they have more free time and social security. In this view, American higher wages and GDP mean little, because they hardly translate to economic welfare for American citizens. Krugman is not wrong. The European system did not have a fatal flaw. It simply was for a different world with a different economic order. The collapse of the European system is further accelerated by demographic crisis. Europe's social welfare and early retirement rest on the existence of many young people who can pay taxes and participate in economic life. Concurrently, the European Union’s old-age dependency ratio hit 37 percent in 2024, a record high, meaning that there are fewer than three working-age adults for each retired person. Meanwhile, the EU's low birth-rates mean that it has to rely on immigration in order to keep its economies working. However, increased immigration has led the far-right to take hold in various European states, limiting immigration when the continent is in dire need of a working population. The OECD’s Tax Policy Reforms 2025 report found that some countries in Europe are instead resorting to increasing taxes on young professionals. Increased tax burden, combined with Europe’s already complicated regulatory scheme, is driving young entrepreneurs away from Europe to places like the United States where business-friendly economic policies encourage innovation. The Trump Administration’s rhetoric on Europe may be crude, and the European way of life may be more sophisticated. Still, the fact remains that the old European economic system which helped the continent create its welfare states is no longer there. To those of us who enjoy real bread and good wine: We need to ask whether those are valuable enough to sacrifice the security of Europe. Photo source: Onno P., Flickr

September 16, 2026 “Je parle donc je suis”: la langue, vecteur d’identité ? « C'est dans et par le langage que l’homme se constitue comme sujet » affirme Emile Benveniste, linguiste français d’origine syrienne. Le langage est ainsi ce qui nous permet de nous poser comme sujet parlant. On peut prolonger cette idée: si le langage nous permet de dire « je », il nous permet de nous raconter et de construire notre identité. Dans cette optique, le langage marque l’acte fondateur de notre naissance au monde. Read More June 10, 2026 L’abolitionnisme pénal : repenser le contrôle social au-delà de la punition Dans toutes les sociétés, des règles existent pour faire tenir les individus ensemble. La question centrale est celle de leur respect : comment faire pour que ces normes soient effectivement suivies ? Historiquement, la réponse a souvent été la punition. Le système pénal moderne, à travers ses institutions – police, justice, prison – incarne cette logique : dissuader, sanctionner, réprimer les comportements jugés déviants. La prison, en particulier, s’est imposée depuis le XIXe siècle comme la peine de référence, au point de sembler aujourd’hui indissociable de l’idée même de justice. Read More June 3, 2026 We Watch, We Feel, We Scroll: Susan Sontag’s ‘Regarding the Pain of Others’ and the War in Iran Images emerge from Iran with unsettling regularity: mothers mourning their children, bodies of Iranian martyrs killed by the IRGC during the crackdown in black bags, and quasi-apocalyptic scenes of explosions in Tehran. And then, just as quickly, they disappear from collective attention. Not because the suffering ends, but because the audience moves on. Read More May 15, 2026 The Celebration of Oppression To be Algerian-French means learning about your history through the voice of the colonizer. And it is more often than not immensely glorified. Read More April 12, 2026 Eulogy to Joy In March 2025, the Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, revealed to the world that American national-security officers discussed highly classified information in a group chat in which he was accidentally included. While American media focused on whether the leak risked American lives, European leaders got the chance to see how America’s most powerful talked about Europe behind closed doors. Read More April 8, 2026 Le culte de la performance: le toujours plus à quel prix ? Se réveiller plus tôt, travailler plus longtemps, raccourcir le temps accordé aux loisirs : La performance est devenue un élément central dans nos vies. Que se passe-t-il quand la recherche du toujours plus nous pénalise ? Read More April 1, 2026 Les Palestiniens l’ont-ils bien cherché ? La nécessaire chasse aux mensonges sur le conflit israélo-palestinien par Sandrine Mansour-Mérien Tout le monde connaît les phrases toutes faites. On les répète comme si elles allaient de soi : « Civilisation contre barbarie », « Les Kurdes sont les pions des Occidentaux », « Les Arabes n’ont jamais accepté la modernité »… À force d’être répétées, ces formules finissent par s’imposer comme des évidences. On ne les vérifie plus, on les suppose. La question israélo-palestinienne n’échappe pas à ce mécanisme. Read More April 1, 2026 American Patriotism at the Milan Olympics in the Age of Trump Every Olympic Games opens with a patriotic parade featuring all the athletes, each team entering the stadium waving their national flag. At the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics, the United States of America athlete delegation was greeted with cheers and applause. However, when the cameras cut to Vice President JD Vance in the stands, the audience’s sounds of support quickly morphed into prolonged boos and jeers. Read More March 13, 2026 JO d’hiver de Milan-Cortina : le prestige olympique face à la crise écologique Face au défi climatique, les Jeux d'hiver italiens transforment les sommets alpins en un territoire où le prestige sportif tente de s'affranchir des limites biologiques du massif. Read More February 11, 2026 M-A-M-D-A-N-I Zohran Kwame Mamdani is now the mayor-elect of the wealthiest city in one of the richest countries on Earth. His victory represents a political trajectory that is both atypical and deeply revealing of contemporary America. Born in an Ugandan-Indian family, raised between continents and immersed in environments rich in academic and artistic capital due to his parents’ careers: he occupies a complex place in the American social landscape. This matters, not as a critique but as context. His political language is formed by a democratic political economy and urban class analysis as much as by lived experience. You could hear it during the several live debates he participated in, in his cadence, see it in his references and definitely feel it in his policy design: it’s disciplined, detailed and unapologetically people-centered. Read More February 11, 2026 The Invisible Wars: Yemen, Sudan, and the Selective Outrage of the World War is war. No matter when it starts, where it is or who ends up carrying its weight. I’m usually the first to argue that suffering should never be compared, but in the cases of Sudan and Yemen, comparison becomes almost unavoidable. Not to decide who suffers more nor to rank tragedies, but to confront the world’s selective outrage and the chilling apathetic silence that allows some wars to disappear from collective memory. Read More December 19, 2025 Les périls de la culture compétitive dans l’éducation L’algorithme de Parcoursup, en faisant varier la valeur des élèves selon leurs résultats scolaires mais aussi en faisant respecter de critères spécifiques pour certaines filières, incarne parfaitement le paradigme compétitif qui structure le système éducatif français. Ce système éducatif repose sur une survalorisation de la compétition entre les élèves : les évaluations et classements sont constants, l’apprentissage coopératif absent. Read More December 19, 2025 De l’autre côté du mur : voix arabes face à la mission civilisatrice Dans son discours d’investiture du 20 janvier 2025, Trump, acteur autoproclamé du renouveau civilisationnel, appelle les Américains à agir « avec le courage, la vigueur et la vitalité de la plus grande civilisation de l’histoire. » Et, comme tout bon pays prétendument civilisé, il faudrait évidemment montrer l’exemple à ceux qui seraient restés dans la barbarie, ceux qui n’auraient pas encore « évolué. » Read More November 13, 2025 Nostalgie historique et la génération Z: liaisons dangereuses ? Des salles de bals étincelantes de Bridgerton à l'aesthetic Regency Core sur les réseaux sociaux, la génération Z semble obnubilée par une période qu’elle n’a jamais vécu. Comment peut-on expliquer cette fascination pour un monde vieux de deux siècles ? Read More November 13, 2025 #GenZ 212 When Luffy’s Jolly Roger was hoisted from Nepal’s Singha Durbar palace, it instantly became a symbol of something larger. Over the past few months, a wind of protests has swept across the globe. From Nepal to Madagascar, Kenya to Peru, Indonesia, the Philippines and Morocco: the youth, unwilling to inherit a broken system, have taken to the streets to prove that their future is daring and won’t be silenced. Read More November 2, 2025 التعليم في تونس: بين المساواة المنشودة والواقع الجندري في الصفوف الدراسية Read More November 2, 2025 Vlogging Live From Kabul: The Insights and Absurdities of YouTube Conflict Tourism In the past few years, an increasing number of intrepid content creators are documenting their journeys to places of conflict. They acquire rare visas, hire local tour guides, and point iPhone cameras through the streets as they seek to capture the ‘real’ version of these countries—places whose very essence is often reduced to fearful headlines and apocalyptic imagery. This phenomenon, known as conflict tourism, ranges from visiting historically troubled areas to entering zones of active conflict, and has taken on an entirely new significance in the age of vlogging. Read More October 20, 2025 Pourquoi Trouver une Information Fiable est Devenu si Compliqué Aujourd’hui omniprésente dans nos vies, l’information s’est profondément transformée. Ses canaux aussi. Dès lors, contrôler sa qualité devient un enjeu crucial pour éclairer notre opinion. Read More September 26, 2025 Le silence de la foule : comprendre l'effet spectateur Une rue commerçante bondée, un cri de détresse surgit. Pourtant, personne ne réagit. Cette situation hypothétique avec des comportements à première vue impensables est une réalité bien plus répandue que l'on ne le croit. Read More September 25, 2025 Calais: Between Migration and Solidarity When I first announced to my family that I would be doing my parcours civique with Care4Calais, a British organization that provides non-food items to refugees, most of my relatives acted as if I was about to become a war photographer in Sudan. Despite them, I managed to not have any image of Calais in mind before actually arriving. So what was Calais really like? Read More

Une rue commerçante bondée, un cri de détresse surgit. Pourtant, personne ne réagit. Cette situation hypothétique avec des comportements à première vue impensables est une réalité bien plus répandue que l'on ne le croit. < Back Le silence de la foule : comprendre l'effet spectateur Elsa Uzan September 26, 2025 Une rue commerçante bondée, un cri de détresse surgit. Pourtant, personne ne réagit. Cette situation hypothétique avec des comportements à première vue impensables est une réalité bien plus répandue que l'on ne le croit. Cela est causé par l'effet spectateur, un effet psychologique qui pousse les spectateurs d'une situation nécessitant une aide extérieure à ne pas agir. Ce phénomène est provoqué par le nombre important de témoins, de spectateurs de la scène. L'effet est théorisé par deux psychologues sociaux américains, John Darley et Bibb Latané, à la fin des années 1960, en utilisant le cas de Kitty Genovese pour proposer leur concept. Catherine dite « Kitty » Genovese est une jeune femme de 28 ans employée dans un restaurant new-yorkais. Le 13 mars 1964 , alors qu’elle rentre à son domicile situé dans le Queens après son service, elle réalise que quelqu'un la suit. Elle se dirige alors vers une borne d’urgence pour alerter les autorités. L’inconnu la rattrape et la poignarde de deux coups de couteau. Kitty hurle de douleur, un voisin crie par la fenêtre et l'agresseur prend la fuite. La jeune femme agonise pendant d’interminables minutes, réveillant plusieurs habitants du quartier. Personne ne lui vient en aide: elle arrive tant bien que mal à se déplacer dans un hall d’immeuble. L'agresseur revient pour la liquider: de neuf coups de couteaux, il lacère sa poitrine et son estomac. Il la viole et lui dérobe tous ses effets personnels. Les secours arrivent finalement trop tard : Kitty Genovese a déjà succombé à ses blessures. Ce qui est frappant et symptomatique dans cette affaire, c'est l’indifférence totale dans laquelle Kitty Genovese est décédée. La police fait état de 38 témoins directs ou indirects, de la détresse et l’agonie de la jeune femme. Témoins qui n’ont bien évidemment à aucun moment porté secours à la jeune femme. Certains affirment à l’instar de Catherine Pelonero , journaliste que “C'est un nombre aléatoire. Des gens ont sûrement vu des choses et ont refusé de le dire. Le chiffre de trente-huit est sûrement plus élevé en réalité.” En effet, ce chiffre a été déterminé de manière entièrement arbitraire et sous-estimerait le nombre avéré de témoins. Cette affaire a permis, outre la conceptualisation de l’effet spectateur en 1968, l’accélération de la mise en place du 911 à la fin de la décennie—un numéro unique qui permet d’alerter les secours et les autorités. Les psychologues sociaux vont ainsi essayer de déterminer ce qui cause cette inaction totale des témoins dans une situation nécessitant pourtant une intervention immédiate. John Darley et Bibb Latané distinguent trois processus différents qui expliquent cette absence d’aide. Le premier est l’influence sociale : dans des situations ambiguës, le spectateur va tout d’abord observer les réactions des autres témoins afin de décider s’il a bien compris celle-ci. Cela résulte en une inaction—au moins pendant un certain temps—qui peut se poursuivre en cas de multiplication de ce comportement. Le second processus à l'œuvre est celui de l’appréhension de l’évaluation : le spectateur va, à l’échelle individuelle, prendre le risque de se tromper devant les autres témoins. Ce risque s’accompagne d’une crainte importante du jugement que les autres portent sur notre propre comportement. Cela entraîne ainsi une inaction du spectateur, l’appréhension du regard des autres prenant le pas sur la volonté de prendre un risque et donc d’aider la personne victime de la situation. Enfin Darley et Latané mettent en avant un troisième élément, celui de la diffusion de la responsabilité : dans une situation où il n’y a qu’un seul témoin, l'individu se sent en quelque sorte obligé d’agir étant donné qu’il est le seul à pouvoir le faire. Toutefois lorsque le nombre de témoins augmente, une dilution de la responsabilité se met en place: le spectateur se demande ainsi pourquoi devrait-il être le ou la seul(e) à agir ? On assiste à une forte répartition de la responsabilité dès que le spectateur est conscient de la présence d’autres témoins: l’inaction devient ainsi l’option privilégiée. L’effet spectateur est un phénomène qui a été constaté de nombreuses fois depuis sa théorisation en 1968. Le meurtre d’Iryna Zarutska fin août 2025, une jeune réfugiée ukrainienne à Charlotte, une ville de la côte Est des États Unis en est un exemple. Dans le métro la jeune femme s’installe en face d’un siège occupé par un homme. Ce dernier se lève brusquement, poignarde Iryna et sort de la rame. Elle perd connaissance et s'écroule sur elle-même. La jeune femme décède alors en l’espace de quelques minutes. Les autres passagers semblent indifférents au sort de la jeune fille: il faudra attendre plus d’une minute pour que quelqu’un aille la voir. Malgré l'identification il y a près de 50 ans du phénomène, il demeure bien présent dans nos sociétés. Une question demeure: est-il possible de lutter de quelque manière que ce soit contre cet effet ? Peut-il tout du moins être atténué ? Il existe plusieurs situations où l’effet spectateur ne rentre pas en jeu. Tout d’abord, les spectateurs peuvent agir lorsqu’ils se sentent concernés par les conséquences de la situation ou l’action elle-même. Cela a pu être mis en évidence avec l’expérience de l’escabeau: une chercheuse se blessait en tombant d’un escabeau. Une seule exception demeure avec ce test: les élèves infirmières intervenaient de manière constante, qu'elles soient seules ou en groupe. Leur formation leur permettait donc d’intervenir sans subir les processus habituellement à l'œuvre avec l’effet spectateur. Le phénomène peut également être atténué lorsque les individus sont amis, l’appréhension de l’évaluation est moins forte et permet aux témoins d’intervenir, non pas à une échelle individuelle mais en tant que groupe. L’effet spectateur est donc un problème social contre lequel il faut lutter en citoyens informés. La sensibilisation est le premier pas à faire pour atténuer les effets nocifs du phénomène. Elle passe tout d'abord par un effort personnel de documentation sur des articles de recherche (notamment celui de Bibb et de Latané). Des actions concrètes peuvent être également envisagées comme des cours de premier secours, ou des campagnes de sensibilisation. S' informer ne se réduit pas à une pratique passive mais aussi à une pratique active de la vie quotidienne. Faire le premier pas vers la victime devient dans ce sens un réflexe: cela permet non seulement d’apporter une aide immédiate, mais aussi de réduire voire d’éliminer le phénomène. Photo Source: Pedro Fait de La Photo, Flickr