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Football, once dubbed the “beautiful game,” has become the epicenter of sports washing, a newly coined term that refers to ways in which countries invest in sports to promote their reputation and deflect attention from their less favorable activities. Qatar is not alone in this. < Back Qatar Bids for Manchester United By Noor Ahmad March 31, 2023 Manchester United, the globally renowned English football club with over 140 years of history, the winner of 20 Premier League titles, 12 FA Cups, three Champions’ League titles, and the home to iconic players such as David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo, has become the center of takeover speculation in the last several weeks. Bought outright by the Glazer family in 2005 at an estimated price of £790 million and with an estimated debt of £660 million, the takeover elicited wide protests by fans, as much of the club’s earnings had to be diverted away from spending on the club to servicing the debt. Even a campaign known as “Love United, Hate Glazer” was started by its fans. From 2010 onwards, there was speculation of supporters groups such as the “Red Knights” coalescing to buy out the Glazer family, but the price sought by the Glazers was considered well beyond what they were prepared to pay. Instead, the Glazers listed the club’s shares on the New York Stock Exchange, valuing the club at more than two billion dollars. Since then, their popularity with the club’s fans has remained strained. They decided in November 2022 to undertake a strategic review, which may include a partial or full sale of their remaining 70% share in the club. A soft deadline of Feb. 17, 2023, was set by the Glazer family’s merchant bank advisors. Two bids for the club have materialized. One is from Sir Jim Ratcliffe, owner of INEOS Group, a British chemical company. The other, from Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani, has elicited the most attention, as little is known about this member of the Qatari Royal Family. He is the eldest son of Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani. The Qatari politician who goes by HBJ is the former head of the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), foreign minister, and prime minister of Qatar. HBJ is reputedly worth $1.3 billion, according to Forbes Magazine. Yet, Sheikh Jassim’s bid is likely to be an all-cash offer, valuing the club at $4.5 billion. This disparity between the potential bid and the net worth of his family’s patriarch has raised concerns among many that Sheikh Jassim is not the true bidder; it is suspected that the QIA, the State of Qatar’s Sovereign Wealth Fund, may be the source of the funds and that Sheikh Jassim is merely a figurehead. In the past, Sheikh Jassim was nominated by the QIA to represent its interests at Credit Suisse, which appointed him to the Board of Directors in 2010. The separation of interests is important as the QIA already owns Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), which it acquired in 2011. UEFA rules stipulate that two clubs owned by the same owner cannot compete with one another in any of their competitions. These rules were introduced to protect competitive integrity. The risks include untoward financial benefits and distorted transfer activity among clubs with the same owners to the detriment of other clubs. Beyond this, the owners of PSG have been the target of Javier Tebas, the president of La Liga, the Spanish football league. He contends that Qatari ownership has already caused financial distortions which have allowed PSG an unfair financial advantage in bidding for and retaining players that breach UEFA’s new cost controls that place a limit on spending on player and coach wages, transfers, and agent fees to 70 percent of club revenues. These financial regulations that apply to all clubs in UEFA competitions were first introduced in 2010, with the aim of improving solvency and stability for clubs. The State of Qatar also owns Qatar Airways, its national airline, which is one of the main sponsors of PSG, providing a major source of revenue to the club in its spending. La Liga’s complaint stems from PSG’s spending, which made Kylian Mbappe reject a move to Real Madrid. Nasser Al-Khelaifi, the President of PSG, who is also a UEFA executive committee member and chairman of the European Club Association, has countered with his own criticisms of Spanish club Barcelona on raising funds and big money transfers. Football, once dubbed the “beautiful game,” has become the epicenter of sports washing, a newly coined term that refers to ways in which countries invest in sports to promote their reputation and deflect attention from their less favorable activities. Qatar is not alone in this. Abu Dhabi owns Manchester City and has also been a sponsor of Real Madrid, and countries like Russia, Saudi Arabia and China are also considered active in this field. With football as a great interest of many people, it is an efficient conduit through media that allows positive impressions to form, according to Michael Skey of the London School of Economics. The truth behind the bid for Manchester United may eventually be unveiled by new legislation, for which a discussion paper, also known as “white paper,” has been floated by the British government in the last few weeks and described as the most radical overhaul of governance since 1863. Although it is not common practice for the government to regulate football, this is a new set of regulations being discussed in light of the potential for sports washing. The white paper envisages a new regulator that will focus on stronger due diligence and the sources of wealth of club owners. However, given the opacity with which linkages between state and individuals exist in the Middle East, it is more likely that we may never know. But one thing is clear, foreign ownership of football clubs and sports sponsorship have become another frontier of political influence through sports washing.

Organized by none other than our Bureau Des Étudiants President, 2A Samy Bennouna, the Sciences Piste fall break trip to Morocco was a highly anticipated interlude to the semester. Our five days in the country solidified the spirit of the Menton Ummah. < Back Menton au Maroc: Sciences Pistes Spend Fall Break With the BDE By Peyton Dashiell November 30, 2022 After a long journey involving a late-night bus to Milan, three-a.m. airplane floor naps and a red-eye flight across the Mediterranean, 55 Sciences Pistes (and three Chilean tourists who were also part of our tour group) emerged from Marrakesh Menara Airport on Monday morning exhausted but eager for the adventure ahead. Organized by none other than our Bureau Des Élèves President, 2A Samy Bennouna, the Sciences Piste fall break trip to Morocco was a highly anticipated interlude to the semester. After hours of airport chaos — customs, currency exchange and the quest to collect the Bureau Des Élèves speaker from baggage claim unscathed, we departed the airport for a serene morning at the Jardin Majorelle. We were met with a botanical labyrinth — an endless maze of intricately tiled paths, alleys of flowers and cerulean Art Deco Buildings enclosed by cacti. While we witnessed cats, turtles and fish, some credible Sciences Piste sources also sparked rumors of a rare Moroccan panda lurking in the shadows. Following an afternoon of touring the medina, we began to explore the souq and main square of Marrakesh, Jemaa el-Fna, on our own. There we faced an overwhelming collection of vendors and entertainers, including snake charmers and well-dressed monkeys on leashes. When Bennouna promised the group a fancy restaurant experience, none of us knew what to anticipate. Yet, the experience at Chez Ali surpassed all of our wildest dreams. After a dinner of soup, couscous and tagine, we were met with a production rivaling any parade, movie or dance ensemble seen before. Featuring camels, horse racing, horseback acrobatics, sheep and belly dancing, the spectacle ended with a flaming, building-sized “maa salama” sign bidding us farewell as we returned to our riads. Our desert escapade began the following morning. Fueled by a traditional Moroccan breakfast, we escaped the urban sprawl of Marrakesh on a bus ride through the winding hills of the Dades Gorges. After several stops at scenic viewpoints overlooking valleys, we reached another riad in the evening — a collection of hotel rooms overlooking a tiled indoor garden. After dinner, the first international Bureau Des Élèves party began, proving that the transcontinental journey of the bureau’s speaker was for a good cause after all. The following day, we continued through the desert to Merzouga, stopping at a shop for souvenirs and “djellabas” — brightly colored dresses with embroidered designs typically worn on special occasions. With varying levels of coercion and enthusiasm, every Sciences Piste eventually donned a djellaba and matching scarf for one of the many group photos captured on the trip. Afterward, the souvenir shopping began in earnest, and many people experienced their first foray into bargaining — heated exchanges ensued as students battled for the best scarf prices. Our bus ride continued through the afternoon, with most of the bunch dozing off after the hectic two days of travel. However, several enthusiastic Sciences Pistes made an effort to rouse their bus-mates with music and chants. Second-year student Lisé Thorsen harnessed her creativity to create a new Menton chant, which she zealously taught to all of her sleepy travel companions: Menton in the flesh Shisha sesh in Marrakesh Wesh wesh You’re so fresh Mesh mesh Comme une pêche On Wednesday afternoon, we reached the Sahara desert frontier, close to Algeria's border. The trek through the sand dunes to our campsite began on ATVs and concluded with camel rides. After multiple mishaps on the ATV — our vehicles quickly became engulfed in the steep dunes — I can say that the camel portion of our journey may have been the more suitable leg for our group of largely-licenseless-Europeans. Balancing on the backs of camels (technically dromedaries) with the desert sunset flooding the horizon, we arrived at our camp as the sky blended into purple. The dinner menu, a familiar and comforting selection of salad, tagine and pasta with an unexpected platter of eggplant parmesan, elicited shrieks of surprise and joy from the vegetarian table. We gathered in the dunes till the wee hours of the morning for the long-awaited desert party featuring music by DJ Spencer. After the late night, a motivated group arose from bed at 7 a.m. to watch the sunrise from the dunes. Although the wait was frigid, the dawn’s light was well worth the early alarms. The morning excursion proved to be a refreshing wake-up for the day that awaited us. After nearly nine hours on buses, we reached Marrakesh late in the evening, splitting up to embark on our own adventures across the city for our last night in Morocco. Our final day started with a drive to Casablanca, Morocco’s economic capital and largest city. After the Casablanca pitstop, we embarked on a bus ride along the seaside. We reached the Hassan II Mosque, which overlooks the Atlantic Ocean and boasts a laser pointed towards Mecca atop its minaret. We hastened to stretch our legs, snap some pictures and take in the miles of marble floor in front of us before returning to Casablanca to catch our flight back home. We hurriedly used up the last of our dirhams in Morocco's final hour, shuffled our bags to the airplane's weight limit, and began to reflect on the trip as we settled into our seats. More than just a fall break trip, our five days in Morocco solidified the spirit of the Menton Ummah.

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

Society that carries out capital punishment must think very carefully about the policy’s potential consequences. Taking an innocent person’s life is a grave enough reason to put someone to death, but shouldn’t there be accountability for those who sentence innocent people to the death penalty? < Back Execution in Missouri and the Death Penalty Ema Nevřelová October 31, 2024 My mother grew up in communist Czechoslovakia. She would often tell me the story of her first official act of free will. During the first months of 1990, Amnesty International was collecting signatures to petition for the abolition of the death penalty in the former Czechoslovakia and, at the age of 18, my mother signed it. For my mother, freedom lies in the ability to act and to stand up for what you believe in. In her view, the value of a person’s life is too high to risk the possibility of executing someone innocent—she would feel partially complicit if she did not protest. Three months later, in May 1990, former Czechoslovak President Václav Havel pressured the government and the death penalty was abolished. U.S. citizens have not unilaterally pushed the abolishment of the death penalty; support for capital punishment has historically fluctuated. A recent Gallup poll demonstrated that only 53% of Americans favor the death penalty. In Gallup’s research from 2022, there is an even greater disparity between Democrat and Republican party members: 35% of Democrats and 77% of Republicans were in favor of the death penalty. Unsurprisingly, typically “red” states such as Texas, South Carolina, Alabama, Idaho and many more have the death penalty, although it is not exclusive to states supporting Republicans. Meanwhile, California, a “Blue” state, still has not abolished it. But the current Governor of California, Gavin Newsom has put a hold on executions. There is no federal mandate on the capital punishment, meaning that the employment of the death penalty in the U.S. is determined at the state level. The State Attorney General has the final say, and if a prisoner wants to appeal outside of state, their only option is the U.S. Supreme Court of Justice—which does not review many death penalty cases. The death penalty also is also influenced by the forces at the federal level; it became infamous during Donald Trump’s presidency, during which a total of 13 executions were carried out—the highest number since 1896. However, apart from Trump’s presidency the federal death penalty is rarely carried out. The Gallup research helps to step out of the narrative that the supporters of the death penalty have some inherent characteristics or evil traits. While there is a trend among different political parties, there is no consistent definition of a person favoring the death penalty. However, the indisputable fact of procedural and systematic issues make scrutiny over the death penalty all the more important, especially given the irreversibility in case of wrongful conviction. Recent news about executions of Travis Mullis, Emmanuel Littlejohn, Alan Miller, Freddie Owens and Marcellus “Khalifah” Williams in the span of a week brought such discussions to the forefront of the U.S. social media discourse. Being Czech, I was surprised that 5 executions in one week are in fact not the everyday reality of the U.S., as it last happened in 2003. The execution of Marcellus “Khalifah” Williams was publicly opposed, as some people believed him to be innocent in the murder of Felicia Gayle, for which he was convicted. His case highlights two key issues with the death penalty: the closure myth and systemic racism. The closure myth is a commonly held belief that by executing the murderer, the family of the victim will get a closure. Surely, some families do, however the process of a murderer receiving a death sentence is lengthy and there is a lack of mental health and financial support. Often, it leaves the families of the victims struggling even after the execution, delaying the process of closure. In this case, Governor of Missouri Michael L. Parson, who appealed on certainty, indirectly used the closure myth by stating : “Withdrawing the order allows the process to proceed within the judicial system, and, once the due process of law has been exhausted, everyone will receive certainty.” Given the external factors influencing the family (financial and health issues) it is not surprising that a study by Eaton and Christensen from 2014 concluded that co-victims (family members of the victim) “expressed their views on closure in various ways’’ and those “who did mention closure were evenly divided on whether they felt the execution provided closure or not.’’ This deconstructs the narrative that execution is the only way to provide closure for co-victims and while it can put their minds to rest there are more usually aspects preventing them from doing so. However, the family of Felicia Gayle, the murder victim, approved , together with the court, for Williams to enter an Alford plea , a plea where a defendant can maintain innocence while accepting a plea bargain and allowing Williams to be re-sentenced to life in prison. However, the state attorney general’s office opposed and blocked the decision by appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court. Presumably, when it comes to closure and justice for the family, it is not the family who decides, but rather the system does it for them without even taking the family’s position into account. The second issue arising during Williams’ process of appealing the death penalty was the selection of a jury. In an emergency appeal made to the U.S. Supreme Court before the execution of Williams, his attorney declared : “Of the seven Black venirepersons (out of 131 in total), the trial prosecutor [St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office] used peremptory strikes against six of them. His reasoning for excluding one of those venirepersons, Venireperson 64, was that he “reminded” him of Mr. Williams. He thought the men looked similar and that boy had ‘piercing eyes’ (App. 89a).” Later, the Supreme Court of Missouri found this reasoning to be race-neutral. A parallel can be drawn between the reasoning given by the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office of “piercing eyes”and of some white people complimenting black women’s hair while touching them without consent. On the surface it may seem innocent and “race-neutral,” but upon the addition of astriking imbalance of power, it becomes awfully clear that there are not many things in life that are race, gender or otherwise neutral . The selection process of jury pools is often based on registered voter lists or on driving licence holders, although other factors may apply. There is, however, no obligation to adapt mechanisms to achieve an equal representation of the community that the jury represents. Looking at the American justice system and racism in general, a 1990 study on Death Penalty Sentencing concluded that a “synthesis of the 28 studies shows a pattern of evidence indicating racial disparities in the charging, sentencing, and imposition of the death penalty […].” Furthermore, this study suggests that if a victim is white, the likelihood of the defendant receiving the death penalty is higher. This is disturbing on several levels including the fact that it implies the lives of Black people have lesser value when it comes to the severity of the penalty. The Innocence database is run by the Death Penalty Information Center, which records cases of people who have been sentenced to death but have been exonerated before the execution. Out of the 200 recorded cases, 108 wrongfully convicted people were Black, 21 were either Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Latinos or Asians. But these people are far away from being just numbers. This becomes evident in the case of Timothy Howard and Gary James, who spent 26 years in prison for bank robbery and murder as they were convicted in 1976 and freed only in 2003. On average, there is at least one person wrongfully convicted every year. It is true that the list of wrongful convictions ends in 2014, but it would be naïve to expect that it is because judges suddenly became infallible from then on. The Innocent database does not include people who have already been executed but could potentially be innocent. The Death Penalty Information Center provides a list of people who were executed and are now believed to be innocent, although according to the Center: “Courts do not generally entertain claims of innocence when the defendant is dead.” These statistics and the real human beings behind them tell heart-wrenching stories of a system failure that is irreparable. Even if we look at the cases of people who have been convicted because they were truly guilty, there are still aspects to the death penalty that make it morally questionable. Firstly, in the U.S., it is illegal to sentence a person with intellectual disabilities to death, yet mental illness is not included even though the American Bar Association states the following: “In short, the ABA finds that individuals with severe mental illnesses or disabilities present at the time of the crime should not be subject to capital punishment.” This is an unsurprising reflection of how U.S. society still views mental health. Mental health issues are weaponized when convenient—in the U.S. context, young school shooters are often portrayed as anomalies to a perfectly functioning system of gun control, without considering or acknowledging the dire situation of mental health struggles among young people. There is also this narrow-minded approach leading some to believe that mental illness is only used as an excuse, where in reality living with mental illness can be challenging to a level that people who have never experienced it can hardly imagine. The second problem is with the execution itself, as the preferred method of execution in the U.S. is death by lethal injection. There are recorded instances where the needle was administered incorrectly or the person executed was struggling to breath for tens of minutes to an hour before dying. Coming from the Czech Republic, a country which abolished capital punishment almost 35 years ago, the faulty procedures seem as vengeance, close to torture. Should society’s goal be to follow Hammurabi’s law “eye for an eye,” or should we let murderers sit with the horrors of their actions while not risking an execution of innocent people? Williams’s case should be a reminder that the death penalty is not a punishment standing on its own, rather there are external factors such as racism, lack of focus on mental health and the potential for false conviction. Society that carries out capital punishment must think very carefully about the policy’s potential consequences. Taking an innocent person’s life is a grave enough reason to put someone to death, but shouldn’t there be accountability for those who sentence innocent people to the death penalty? The answer is not simple and even if the U.S. were to abolish capital punishment, it does not put an end to the debate about it. Circling back to the example of the Czech Republic, although capital punishment has been abolished, we have only recently (in 2023) gotten to a point where the percentage of people opposing capital punishment is higher than that of its supporters. Yet, support for the death penalty is at 42 % and had we not had the constellation in which the capital punishment was abolished, Czech people might have had to face the same moral dilemma the Americans are facing today. And while my mother does live in a society without capital punishment and does not have to battle her conscience, the polarization on the topic has not vanished.

Sports Recap – April 2022 < Back Sports Recap: April By Hugo Lagergren April 29, 2022 Football As the season reaches its climax, the battle between Liverpool and Manchester City for domestic and European glory is showing no sign of letting up. In their second meeting of the Premier League season, the two teams played out an exhilarating 2-2 draw, in what was described by many as the game of the season. One week later, however, Liverpool overcame Pep Guardiola’s side with a dominant first half display to reach their first FA Cup final under Jurgen Klopp. This keeps its hopes of completing a historic quadruple alive. The Champions League quarter-finals saw some serious upsets, as Villareal managed to eliminate favorite Bayern Munich with a late goal from Samuel Chukwueze, setting up a semi-final against Liverpool. Karim Benzema maintained his brilliant form by eliminating the defending champions, Chelsea, with a devastating hat-trick, sending Real Madrid through. Real Madrid will play Man City, as Pep tries to win the only trophy that has eluded him during his time at City. The Europa League, UEFA’s second tier competition, also produced a number of shock results. The biggest was Eintracht Frankfurt’s defeat of Barcelona at the Camp Nou. West Ham United and Red Bull Leipzig also won their respective quarter-finals. Possibly the biggest surprise of the competition was Glasgow’s Rangers reaching the semi-finals of a European tournament. This is the first time a Scottish side has reached the last four since 2008. In the inaugural season of the Europa Conference League, Europe’s tertiary club football competition, Olympique de Marseille, has managed to reach the semi-finals, where it will play Dutch side Feyenoord. Leicester City defeated PSV to set up a semi-final against Mourinho’s struggling AS Roma. With 29 out of the 32 teams having already qualified for the 2022 Qatar World Cup, FIFA completed the draw of the group stages, classifying the 32 possible contenders into 8 groups. This decides the paths each team must take if they are to reach the World Cup final. Following a poor display of form, OGC Nice dropped out of contention for the Champions League, despite reaching the final of the French Cup. This has undoubtedly dampened the mood on the Côte D’Azur, as Nice look likely to miss out on the top-tier of European football, once again. With six games left in the season, none of which are against teams currently in the top five, Nice are looking to reverse its poor form by taking the maximum number of points possible whilst also hoping that the teams above them drop points. With only four games remaining, and just one point separating Chelsea and Arsenal, the tension is rising in the Women’s Super League, as Arsenal attempts to steal the title off Chelsea. Defending champions Chelsea, who have held the title for two years running now, will be without star striker Fran Kirby for the rest of the season. Her absence, according to Chelsea manager Emma Hayes, can be attributed to a case of “fatigue.” In the Women’s FA Cup, Chelsea beat rivals Arsenal comfortably to reach the final, where they will play Man City at Wembley. On March 22, FC Barcelona announced a four-year partnership with UNHCR. Audiences will see the UN Refugee Agency’s logo appear on the back of the Barcelona kit. Moreover, the Barcelona Foundation pledged to supply UNHCR with an annual €400,000 cash contribution and an additional annual €100,000 worth of sports equipment and technical expertise. Barcelona has a history of philanthropic partnerships with the UN – collaborating with the intergovernmental organization for unconventional kit sponsorships. Many will remember the iconic Barcelona kits with the UNICEF logo displayed on the front, which the team used from 2006 to 2010. Formula 1 Ferrari continued its dominant form by clinching a double podium at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix behind Max Verstappen (Leclerc 2nd, Sainz 3rd). They earned their second win of the season at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, where Leclerc stormed to his fourth career win. Max Verstappen retired with engine issues in Melbourne for the second time this season, exacerbating worries surrounding Red Bull’s reliability. Red Bull’s team principal, Christian Horner, labelled the issue “desperately frustrating,” as Red Bull struggles to keep up with the pace of the Ferraris. However, Red Bull managed to reestablish themselves at Imola, where they achieved their first one two finish since Malaysia 2016, with Max Verstappen taking the victory. Tennis Stephan Tsitsipas beat Davidovich Fokina to win his second Monte Carlo title in a row. The Greek tennis player took victory in straight sets, 6-3, 7-6, despite looking slightly tense during the tie breaker of the second set. The world number five described himself “very proud” as he won his first trophy of the season, a feat he hopes will kickstart his 2022 campaign. Golf On April 10, American golfer, Scottie Scheffler won his first green jacket by championing the 86th PGA Masters tournament, holding off late pushes from Cameron Smith and Rory McIlroy. Last year, Scheffler finished 18th and his highest finish at any previous major was fourth place. However, much of the golfing world’s attention was on Tiger Woods. Woods made a surprising return following a serious car crash in February 2021, during which he sustained several serious leg injuries. American Sports The NBA playoffs are now underway, with the Phoenix Suns as the favorite to win this year. Last year’s champions, the Milwaukee Bucks will be looking to defend their title. However, the Suns have put up a dominant display during the regular season by setting a franchise record for the most wins in a single season. The NHL approaches the Stanley Cup playoffs with many teams filling playoff spots, including the New York Rangers who have qualified for a place in the playoffs for the first time in five years. Last year’s finalist, the Montreal Canadians, have struggled and are currently bottom of the Atlantic Division, with qualification for the playoffs far out of reach.

Today, there is mounting evidence to demonstrate that the U.S. is trying to break down the enemy they themselves spent so much time creating. < Back Unforeseen Consequences: The U.S. Role in Iran’s Military Rise Isabella Suels for Sciences Defense December 31, 2024 In a toast for his Imperial Majesty Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson once proclaimed, “the ornament of a house is the friend who frequents it”. Throughout his reign of 38 years, the Shah became a glimmering ornament in the White House, frequently meeting with U.S. presidents from Dwight D. Eisenhower to Jimmy Carter. During the Shah’s reign, Iran was valued as one of the most dependable U.S. allies in the Middle Eastern region. This relationship became especially strong during the Johnson administration (1963-1969), during which Iran transitioned from a client state that was controlled and supported by the U.S. into an emerging partner. Prior to Johnson, the U.S. was widely concerned with Iranian political, social and economic reform. The U.S. believed that the key to long-term stability in Iran relied on economic prosperity and wanted to support them in those endeavors. Consequently, during the Cold War, Iran frequently supported U.S. policies in Vietnam and the Dominican Republic. However, there was a significant roadblock in the U.S.-Iran relationship because the Shah had an insatiable appetite for military equipment that Washington could not tame . Therefore, in order to keep the Shah’s demands at bay, the Johnson administration adopted a policy of stalling. The U.S., believing they had Iran in their pocket, had no reason to imagine that Iran would turn towards other countries to increase their weapons arsenal. However, U.S. reluctance to provide Iran with the suitable amount of weapons requested, forced the Shah to turn towards U.S. adversaries to bolster his weapons stockpile. In particular, the Soviets had offered the Shah several squadrons of advanced MiG 21 aircrafts . This incident fractured the relationship between Washington and the Shah, which ended up being a necessary step that helped Iran acquire more weapons from the U.S. despite their hesitancy to provide them. In November of 1965, the Shah decreed that he was seeking $200 million in military purchases to meet Iran’s vital security needs. The U.S., knowing that Iran could obtain weapons from its adversaries, barred the transaction between Iran and the Soviets and gave Iran the military upgrades they had been asking for. This story would repeat itself throughout the years: the Shah would argue that “the continued military weakness of Iran may make it susceptible to the evils of aggression,” and then re-utter his threat of seeking arms elsewhere. Consequently, the U.S. would hand over a couple million dollars to expand Iran’s artillery. It was a fairly reasonable deal between the two: the U.S. would supply Iran with state of the art American-made weapons whilst also supplying it with an influx of American culture. In turn, the U.S. had easy access to Iranian oil. With this agreement, not only did Iran get richer in arms, but it also got richer in American culture as the Shah’s government became increasingly pro-Western while he sought to modernize the country. However, tensions were mounting among the population as the relationship between the U.S. and Iran flourished, and eventually they boiled over during the 1979 Iranian revolution. The revolution resulted with the ousting of the Shah and the end of the powerful alliance between Iran and the United States, which put to an end the influx of arms into Iran and the outflux of oil. Nevertheless, no more arms were needed as Iran’s armed forces lay equipped with state of the art equipment after years of trade. In the present day, tensions continue to rise between Iran and the United States. Ironically, the U.S. is fighting against an army of its own making. Although American influence was banished from Iran in 1979, the American artillery left behind was not. Fleets of naval destroyers, motor torpedo boats and squadrons of F-4C fighter jets were left in the hands of a new anti-Western government. This impressive array of weaponry has not gone to waste, rather Iran has decided to “share the wealth” by sending over ships loaded with weapons to the Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen. Treaties such as the Iranian Nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Actions, have seeked to ease tensions between Iran and several world powers including the United States. The Nuclear deal was set to prevent a revival of Iran’s nuclear weapons program and thereby reduce the prospects for conflict. However, the deal has fallen into jeopardy since President Trump withdrew from it in 2018, giving rise to a more resentful and belligerent Iran. In tandem with the U.S. withdrawal from the Nuclear deal, throughout the years the U.S. has also conducted multiple rounds of seizures on Iran’s ammunition. These seizures are aimed to disrupt vessels en route to smuggle weapons to the Houthis and other Iranian backed groups. Lately, the US has transferred this seized Iranian military equipment to the Ukrainians. These efforts to weaken Iran’s military are a direct result of the long and complex history between these two countries. Today, there is mounting evidence to demonstrate that the U.S. is trying to break down the enemy they themselves spent so much time creating. Source: U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Wikimedia Commons

في اليوم العالمي للمرأة، كشعيرة من شعائر "الإنسانية،" يجب علينا، نحن ماكثي العالم الغربي، أن ننعى بؤس المرأة العربية. ولكن الحقيقة هي أن المرأة العربية، في طبعها، ثورية عنيدة. < Back خاطرة في اليوم العالمي للمرأة Joud Mustafa March 31, 2025 في اليوم العالمي للمرأة، كشعيرة من شعائر "الإنسانية،" يجب علينا، نحن ماكثي العالم الغربي، أن ننعى بؤس المرأة العربية. ولكن الحقيقة هي أن المرأة العربية، في طبعها، ثورية عنيدة. فأن تولد عربيًا أمر في غاية العناد، ولكن أن تولدي امرأة عربية يعني أن يلين أمامك صلب العناد نفسه. فأنتِ لستِ فقط في صراعٍ وجوديّ مع عالمٍ ظالمٍ يستبيح دماء شعبكِ، ويودّ لو يجعل من بلادكِ ريفييرا يستجمّ فيها فوق أضرحة أطفالكِ، ولكنكِ أيضًا في صراعٍ مع نفسكِ ومجتمعكِ؛ فأنباء اضطهادكِ تتصدر عناوين الصحف في الغرب، ناعتةً الرجل العربي بالرجعية وغير ذلك من صفاتٍ قبيحة؛ كل كي يزعزع جنودُ "الإنسانية" وجدانَ الرجل الغربي المتحضر، لعلّ وعسى أن يلبّي نداء التحضّر ويجلب لكِ الحرية المحتومة. وأنتِ، أنتِ يا أيتها المرأة العربية، مركز كلّ ذلك. ولكن الحقيقة هي أن المرأة العربية، في طبعها، ثورية عنيدة. كانت جدّتي منذ صغر سنها مناضلةً، استطاعت أن تربي جيلًا كاملًا في بيتٍ صغيرٍ لا يكاد يتسع لنفسه، لكنّها جعلت منه صرحًا عظيمًا واسعًا رحبًا بإقامتها فيه . كانت أُميّة حُرمت من التعليم، ولكن، على الرغم من ذلك، كانت تفوقنا جميعًا علمًا. فيا للعجب! أما عمّاتي، فكنّ فلاحاتٍ في قريةٍ من قرى الأردن، ومثل جدّتي، كان مقطنهنّ متواضعَ الحال، لكنهنّ كنّ إمبراطوراتٍ في عالم الفلاحة، يحرثن الأرض، ويحلبن البقر، ويرعين الدجاج، ويأكلن من عمل أيديهنّ، بل إنّ القرية بأكملها كانت تأكل من عمل أيديهنّ. ولا سيما أمي كذلك، قيادية حازمة، فكل كلمة تصدر منها في البيت أو خارجه بمثابة أمر نهائي لا محال منه. فإذا نطقت أمي، سكت القانون. وعلى الرغم من أن هذه الصفات بدت سائدةً فينا بالوراثة، إلا أنني لا زلت امرأة في مطلع شبابي، أحاول بعسر أن أستمد ثوريتي من النساء اللواتي نشأت على أيديهن؛ فلا بد بالطبع أن يعكر صفو تلك المحاولات الكلام الفارغ الذي يُتطلب مني أن أصغي إليه يوميًا في محاضراتي الزنانة. ففعلًا، إن ما تنشره الصحف في ذم الرجل العربي ورثاء المرأة العربية له روّاد في الغرب يتابعونه ويطّلعون عليه، وها أنا، التي كنت أعتقد أنني مركز هذا الحوار، أجلس في خلفية الصف، نائيةً نأي الكواكب عن الشمس عن المركز. فإيميليا (أو أدخل اسم أي فتاة أعجمية) أصبحت أكثر درايةً بمصلحة المرأة العربية، وها هي ذا منفعلة، يحتدّ صوتها وهي تستنكر فعلة الرجل العربي الشنيعة في حق امرأته. يا للهول! إنها لا تستطيع أن ترتدي ما تشاء من ماركات، ولا أن تدارك موضات لباس إيميليا ورفيقاتها! ولن نبرح من المحاضرة حتى تقنعنا إيميليا أن هذا هو كل ما في الأمر يا سيدي، ولا يوجد أي بعد آخر للوطن العربي تراه سوى ذلك. وأنا في الخلف أخاف أن أئنّ أي أنين، حتى لا تهيج إيميليا وتدعو إلى التحرك العسكري الفضائي لإنقاذي من أيدي سجّاني! لكن أيا ليت صمتي لخطابها رادعًا، فهي لا يعنيها حقًا كل ما يمسني من سوء، فيشغلها السوء طالما يطولني من على يد الرجل العربي وليس الغربي، وذلك لأن مذهبها الفكري ليس سوى امتدادا لحيلة استعمارية قديمة؛ استنادًا لتحاليل الكاتبة المصرية ليلى أحمد، فإن فكرة اضطهاد الرجال في المجتمعات المستعمَرة للنساء لا تعني المستعمر إلا بغرض توظيفها أداة في الخطاب الاستعماري تُستخدم "لإضفاء شرعية أخلاقية على مشروع تقويض ثقافات الشعوب المستعمَرة أو القضاء عليها." فهل تدري إيميليا أن جدتي وعماتي كنّ كلهنّ ضحايا حرب الإملاق نتيجة سياسات العالم الغربي الرأسمالي المحتل، قبل أن يكنّ ضحايا الرجل العربي؟ هل ذكرت الصحف المستشرفة التي تتابعها أن الرّجل العربي نفسه ضحيّة للعالم الغربي الرّأسمالي المحتل؟ وذلك كما وضّحت عالمة الأنثروبولوجيا الفلسطينية ليلة أبو لغد في كتابها هل تحتاج المرأة المسلمة إلى الإنقاذ؟ إن "اختزال المرأة المسلمة في صورة نمطية يُبعدنا عن الإشكالية الأعمق، وهي أن سياساتنا وأفعالنا في الغرب تساهم في خلق الظروف القاسية التي يعيشها آخرون في أماكن بعيدة. في النهاية، إن خطاب "إنقاذ" النساء المسلمات يتيح لنا التهرب من التعقيدات المتشابكة التي نشارك جميعًا في تشكيلها، ويكرّس استقطابًا يضع النسوية في صف الغرب وحده." لا أخاطبكم اليوم إنكارًا لما تمرّ به المرأة العربية من ظروف خطيرة وتعيسة، ولكنّي ضقت ذرعًا بالدموع المصطنعة التي يذرفها الغرب ادعاءً منه الاهتمام بتلك الظروف، وهو أول من صنعها. فبعد فصل دراسي كامل لي في جامعة غربية، أحطتُ علمًا بأنني لستُ جوهر الحوار. أصبحت على علمٍ بأنني أنا وسائر النساء العربيات لسنا سوى مضافًا إليه في نثر الكلام، وجزءًا من مسرحية الغرب المتحضر. فصفّقوا، كلٌّ كان له دور وأدّاه! ودوري أنا: أن أُجلب للصف كالصنم الذي لا يفقه شيئًا، ليطمئن زملائي أنه بوجودي استطاعوا أن يحطّموا الجدار الثالث، فأقحموني بكل سخاءٍ في نقاشهم الذي من المفترض أنني أنا "مركزه." وها هي مسرحيتهم العبثية قد أُخرجت بمباركة وجودي بينهم، ورفعت الأقلام، وجفت الصحف، وانقضى حلّ كلّ مشاكل الشرق الأوسط لا يزيد ولا ينقص عن دروس جوفاء تُردَّد عن المساواة الجندرية، كأنَّ العدلَ يولدُ من صدى كلمات الغرب، لا من صرخات أهل الأرض . بدأت أشعر أن الحرية التي أطمح لها أنا، وتطمح لها زميلاتي، ليست الحرية ذاتها. فلم تعد الحرية في عيني أن أرتدي بنطالًا أو قميصًا أو أي قطعة قماش زائفة. أدركتُ أن الحرية هي أن ترميك طائرات الغرب الوحشية بقنابل من سجّيل، تنخر عليك واحدة تلو الأخرى من السماء، لتُوئدك بعد ذلك تحت الأنقاض، ثم تعودي أنتِ وبقوة، تتوعدين بإنجاب المزيد والمزيد لتجديد العهد عليهم، حتى يجنّ جنون العدو، الذي لا يزال يحاول -عبثًا- أن يطمسكِ أنتِ ونسلكِ عن الوجود. ويبقى السؤال: هل إذا كسونا أجسادنا بلباس الغرب سيعصمنا لباسهم من جحيم قنابلهم؟ ومن ثمّ بلغوني، هل بين حريتي وحريتكم أية صلة؟ أوجه رسالتي في يوم المرأة إلى الأم، أو الأخت، أو البنت، أو الإنسانة التي فقدت حياتها، أو حياة من تحب، في غزة، في حلب، في بغداد، في بيروت، والتي تكافح في سبيل العيش الكريم في الأردن أو أي مكانٍ آخر. أضع كفي بكفكِ وأقول: تحيّة لكِ، فأنتِ الحريّة، وأنت الإنسانيّة، وأنتِ العروبة، وأنتِ الثّورة والعناد—وذلك حقّ، ولا شيء يعلو على الحقّ. Photo source: Alisdare Hickson on Flickr

In light of the recent controversy surrounding the OGC Nice vs. Maccabi Tel Aviv football game, the UEJF of SciencesPo Campus de Menton offers the following statement. < Back Menton’s Branch of Union des Étudiants Juifs de France Issues a Statement Condemning Integration Week’s Football Match Protest By Ellie Carter, Gayle Krest, Azra Ersevik September 29, 2022 Editor’s note: Objectivity is of paramount importance to The Menton Times. As such, the September 2022 issue of the publication features a variety of stances that students took amid the controversial Integration Week boycott. In light of the recent controversy surrounding the OGC Nice vs. Maccabi Tel Aviv football game, the UEJF of SciencesPo Campus de Menton offers the following statement: It is crucial to differentiate between a person who is Jewish, a person who is Israeli, and the Israeli State itself. A person who is Jewish may live anywhere on earth. A person who is Israeli has Israeli citizenship and may or may not be Jewish. These two identities are not synonymous. The Israeli State acts as an independent entity and does not represent the global Jewish community nor the wishes of every Israeli citizen. Maccabi Tel Aviv is a football team that was founded in 1906, predating the modern state of Israel. It is a Jewish team – its logo featuring the Jewish Star of David – and players hail from a variety of countries . Their owner is Mitchell Goldhar, a Canadian businessman and the son of a Polish Holocaust survivor. The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance cites blaming Jews as a group for the responsibility of individuals, holding Jews collectively responsible for the actions of the State of Israel, and denying the right of Jewish self determination as three elements of their definition of antisemitism. The individuals at this match are not representatives of nor accountable for the State of Israel and as such, should not be held responsible for the actions of the Israeli government. We condemn protesting the State of Israel at the match due to the ethnicity, religion, or nationality of the players. We would like to emphasize the right of Jews and Israelis to live, travel, and play football in peace without being asked to bear responsibility for the actions of the State of Israel. Moreover, the UEFA Europa Conference League is an international football competition organized by the Union of European Football Associations. Both OGC Nice and Maccabi Tel Aviv are competing in the qualifying rounds for the UECL this year. Neither OGC Nice nor any other team in the league has control over who they are assigned to play, as participants in each qualifying round are determined by each team’s placement in their domestic leagues. As such, protests and demands directed at OGC Nice are incorrectly placed, as they have no control over who they play. We encourage thoughtful protest and support freedom of speech. However, we call for care, mindfulness, clarity, and cohesiveness of thoughts and goals from students who exercise their right to protest, with the ultimate telos of peace. Finally, we have seen an abundance of inflammatory and hateful comments on Sciences Palestine’s posts related to the planned (and now canceled) protest. These are comments which we do not condone, nor are they written on our behalf . On behalf of the UEJF, CARTER Ellie, President KREST Gayle, Secretary General ERSEVIK Azra, Treasurer Français: À la lumière de la récente polémique autour du match de football OGC Nice vs Maccabi Tel Aviv, l'UEJF de SciencesPo Campus de Menton propose le communiqué suivant : Avant tout, il est crucial de faire la différence entre une personne qui est juive, une personne qui est israélienne et l'État israélien lui-même. Une personne qui est juive peut vivre n'importe où dans le monde. Une personne qui est israélienne à la citoyenneté israélienne et peut ou non être juive. Ces deux identités ne sont pas synonymes. L'État israélien agit comme une entité indépendante et ne représente pas la communauté juive mondiale ni les souhaits de chaque citoyen israélien. Le Maccabi Tel Aviv est une équipe de football fondée en 1906, antérieure à l'État moderne d'Israël. C'est une équipe juive – son logo représente l'étoile de David – et les joueurs viennent de divers pays . Leur propriétaire est Mitchell Goldhar, un homme d'affaires Canadien et le fils d'un survivant polonais de l'Holocauste. L' Alliance internationale pour la mémoire de l'Holocauste cite le fait de blâmer les Juifs en tant que groupe pour la responsabilité des individus, de tenir les Juifs collectivement responsables des actions de l'État d'Israël et de nier le droit à l'autodétermination des Juifs comme trois éléments de leur définition de l'antisémitisme. Les personnes présentes à ce match ne sont ni des représentants ni responsables de l'État d'Israël et, en tant que telles, ne devraient pas être tenues responsables des actions du gouvernement israélien. Nous condamnons les protestations contre l'État d'Israël lors du match en raison de l'ethnie, de la religion ou de la nationalité des joueurs. Nous voudrions souligner le droit des Juifs et des Israéliens à vivre, voyager et jouer au football en paix sans qu'on leur demande d'assumer la responsabilité des actions de l'État d'Israël. De plus, l'UEFA Europa Conference League est une compétition internationale de football organisée par l'Union des associations européennes de football. L'OGC Nice et le Maccabi Tel Aviv participent tous deux aux tours de qualification de l'UECL cette année. Ni l'OGC Nice ni aucune autre équipe de la ligue ne choisissent contre qui elles vont jouer. En effet, les participants à chaque tour de qualification sont déterminés par le placement de chaque équipe dans leurs ligues nationales. En tant que telles, les protestations et les demandes adressées à l'OGC Nice sont placées de manière incorrecte, car les équipes n'ont aucun contrôle sur qui elles jouent. Nous encourageons les manifestations réfléchies et soutenons la liberté d'expression. Cependant, nous appelons à la prudence, à la pleine conscience, à la clarté et à la cohérence des pensées et des objectifs des étudiants qui exercent leur droit de manifester, avec le telos ultime de la paix. Enfin, nous avons vu une abondance de commentaires incendiaires et haineux sur les messages de Sciences Palestine liés à la manifestation prévue (et maintenant annulée). Ce sont des commentaires que nous ne tolérons pas , et ils ne sont pas écrits en notre nom. Au Nom de l’UEJF CARTER Ellie, Présidente KREST Gayle, Secrétaire Générale ERSEVIK Azra, Trésorière

This summer acutely felt the effects of an ever changing climate. From the French Riviera to Somalia, the lives of millions are being transformed. < Back Biting Fish & More: A Summer Marked by Climate Change By Peyton Dashiell October 31, 2022 Rising Sea Temperatures on the French Riviera Over the last summer, tourists and locals enjoyed the beaches in the South of France. Yet, lovers of sun and sand dealt with an unprecedented concern while spending the day at the beach: fish bites. Triggerfish, a thirty to forty-five-centimeter-long fish, are searching for food in the shallow waters. The French Mediterranean coast is usually between twenty-one and twenty-two degrees, but it is now twenty-eight degrees. Triggerfish are now daring to bite humans swimming close to the shore as they search for food closer to shore with the warming temperatures. Unfortunately, this is just one minor danger of climate change in our world today. Flooding in Pakistan In Pakistan, people are facing crises because of constant flooding , another consequence of climate change. In April, Pakistan reached its record-breaking temperature: 49 degrees Celsius. Higher temperatures cause glaciers to melt, making it harder for flood water to be absorbed. The monsoon rain season will continue for twice as long this year. Extreme floods have killed 1,600 people and 800,000 livestock. Roads and bridges are also collapsing, and infrastructure and livelihoods are being destroyed. Drought in Somalia Somalia is experiencing a severe drought. Because of it, many households suffer from food insecurity; one-third of families have at least one member they cannot afford to feed. Due to the death of livestock, over 700,000 camels, goats, sheep and cattle, many people have lost their farming capabilities. Somalia has always had droughts, but now, they are lasting longer. Families with children are fleeing their homes, hoping to find water, food and land with livestock. Rising Temperatures and Heat Waves Threaten Livelihoods In certain parts of Iraq, temperatures are currently 125 degrees Fahrenheit. Skyrocketing temperatures are being felt globally. The United Kingdom and America experienced unprecedented heat waves last summer, causing health issues for people worldwide. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres believes that the extreme temperatures will continue to rise due to climate change, and humans are “firmly on track towards an unlivable world.” Recent studies have shown that dire temperatures are in the near future, and the human body will not be able to survive through the usual mechanisms such as sweating. Humans will not suddenly die tomorrow, but soon, we will have to base our routines on the climate. For instance, going for runs outside will not be bearable in afternoon heat. Therefore, any exercise must be done in the morning or late at night. Crops that require manual labor will be nearly impossible to tend to, as the workers would not endure the heat. Therefore, rising temperatures will affect the most vulnerable first. This will be an equally challenging issue for workers in the United States and farmers in less prosperous countries. Takeaways From rising temperatures in the sea and land to droughts and floods, climate change is affecting the globe. There are simple ways that SciencesPo students and their families can contribute to the disasters that come with climate change. For example, using solar or wind-powered energy in our houses, using mass transit or an electric vehicle, and replacing old electrical appliances with more energy-efficient models. Little changes make a significant impact. Climate change is not an issue for 2050; it is a lethal issue today.

< Back Central Mediterranean Sea Rescue Sparks Heated Debate in European Union By Sophia Rottman January 31, 2023 Although various member countries tried to strengthen their borders, the number of migrants to the European Union increased by 68 percent in 2022 — the largest yearly increase since 2016. The major migration paths to Europe are through the Eastern Land Border, the Western Balkans, the Eastern Mediterranean, the Central Mediterranean, the Western Mediterranean and the Western African route. While the Western Balkans route records the highest number of entries to the European Union, the Central Mediterranean passage continues to take the most lives. The journey was fatal for 2,000 people in 2022, not including any unrecorded deaths. At the beginning of November 2022, France and Italy were at odds over an NGO-operated rescue ship, the Ocean Viking. Closest to the Italian shoreline, the Ocean Viking originally asked for a safe port in Italy. The Italian government would not relent, and the vessel, NGO staff and 234 migrants spent weeks at sea in the Mediterranean. The French government argued that Italy was responsible for offering a safe port according to international maritime law. Realizing Italy was unlikely to help, France allowed the boat to dock in Toulon. French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin called Italy’s behavior “incomprehensible” and that it “lacked humanity.” For Italy, the Ocean Viking was just one part of what the government sees as a much larger problem: increasing migration at a rate disproportionate to other Central Mediterranean countries. From January to mid-December 2022, Italy received 102,000 migrants through the Central Mediterranean, a drastic increase from 67,000 in 2021. Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said the country wants “an agreement to establish on the basis of population, how migrants with a right to asylum are relocated to various countries.” However, Italy is not the only European Mediterranean country turning away migrants rescued at sea. In September 2022, Malta’s Rescue Coordination Centre (RCC) sent a merchant vessel that had rescued 23 migrants in the country’s search and rescue zone to Egypt. The Shimanami Queen was 159 nautical miles from Malta and 146 from Italy. Egypt was 760 nautical miles away. The RCC of Malta ordered merchant vessels near the endangered migrants at sea to stick to their planned route or await further instruction — a practice that Sea-Watch, Alarm Phone, Mediterranea Saving Humans and Doctors Without Borders argue the country frequently uses to prevent migrant arrivals. On June 22, 2022, eighteen European Union countries and three others announced their agreement upon the Voluntary Solidarity Mechanism, a provisional response to migration in the Mediterranean member states. Based on GDP and population, the mechanism would reallocate asylum seekers to a new member state after registration in the country of initial arrival. Countries that would not accept reallocation would provide financial or border control support. France and Italy signed while non-signatories include Poland, Denmark and Sweden. Within five months, the new agreement would be threatened. Following the diplomatic stand-off over the Ocean Viking, in mid-November, France increased its border control with Italy. The country announced it would send 500 more officers to ten Franco-Italian border crossing points and was withdrawing from the solidarity mechanism, reneging on its offer to take in 3,000 migrants from Italy. Around the same time, a joint statement from Greece, Malta, Cyprus and Italy called for the solidarity mechanism to transition from voluntary to mandatory status. On Nov. 21, 2022, the European Commission published an Action Plan on the Central Mediterranean, proposing 20 reforms to mediate the troublesome Central Mediterranean migration route. Various NGOs have criticized the plan for merely repeating past mistakes. Catherine Woollard, the director of the European Council on Refugees and Exiles, said that the plan “focus[es] on the responsibilities of the non-European states on the other side of the Med[iterranean]” and that the “first priority for Europe should be agreements within Europe.” At the end of 2022, the Italian government issued a new decree addressing civil sea rescue. Under the decree, if rescue ships do not immediately leave the search and rescue zone after their first rescue and move to their assigned safe port without delay, they will suffer harsh consequences, including fines of up to 50,000 Euros and vessel confiscation. Additionally, the Italian government had already begun assigning farther locations as safe ports to decrease rescue ships’ time in the rescue zone. Sea-Watch argues that if a captain does not try to rescue other people in danger, they are violating their duty to rescue in international law. The Union border agency Frontex informs Libya’s coast guard of migrant boats using GPS data, enabling their return of 23,000 migrants to Libya in 2022. Human Rights Watch warns that Europe is “complicit in the abuse” of people in Libyan camps and Doctors Without Borders asserts that Libya does not meet the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’ guidelines of a safe port. Doctors Without Borders has publicly requested a European state Mediterranean search and rescue system and a better migrant distribution mechanism in the European Union. Largescale migration to Europe through the Central Mediterranean is unlikely to stop anytime soon. Without reform to Mediterranean rescue systems and a united stance in the European Union on how to alleviate member states unequally pressured by increasing migrant arrivals, prolonged and unnecessary suffering at sea is likely to continue.

Cryptocurrency has been the most recent craze among today’s youth. However, its recent collapse calls into question how lucrative crypto is after all. < Back Is Crypto the Future of Currency Afterall? By Noor Ahmad December 31, 2022 Cryptocurrency is the most recent craze among today’s youth. However, the recent collapse of the cryptocurrency trading platform, Futures Exchange (FTX Trading Ltd.), once valued at $32 billion, and other recent crypto failures like BlockFI, Voyager Digital and Three Arrows Capital, makes it seem as though cryptocurrencies and their underlying blockchain technology were mainly a gimmick. This is only corroborated by the fall in the market capitalization of the crypto sector from a peak of almost $3 trillion to less than one trillion dollars today. Many attribute the speculative excesses seen in the crypto space as caused by loose monetary policy, and further exacerbated by government handouts during the COVID-19 pandemic; this was a case of too much money chasing a supposedly scarce amount of digital assets. For example, Bitcoin, the benchmark standard in cryptocurrencies, has a limit of 21 million units that can be “mined,” against the current existing supply of about 19.2 million; this limit was put in place to keep Bitcoin scarce in order to maintain its value, much like real gold. For the last several years, many proponents have made the case that Bitcoin was the new gold, which would hold its value in an inflationary environment; and these supporters have advocated allocating a certain percentage of investment portfolios to cryptocurrencies. Furthermore, the valuations of cryptocurrencies have been promoted further by celebrities like Kim Kardashian, who recently agreed to pay a $1.26 million penalty to the Securities and Exchange Commission for promoting a cryptocurrency for which she was paid a promotion fee without disclosing it publicly. Each cryptocurrency is associated with a particular blockchain. The blockchain is a decentralized ledger system created to keep track of transactions using an ecosystem which has many unrelated validators (“miners”) who are paid for this work in the native currency of the blockchain, like cryptocurrency. Each time a validator competes and wins in validating a transaction, a certain number of Bitcoins are created (“mined”) and paid to the validator. Cryptocurrencies are not difficult to create, and many new ones have been started by merely copying the code of a pre-existing one. New cryptocurrencies are usually launched using a method known as an Initial Coin Offering (ICO) whereby founders of the unique blockchain seek to raise funds to build a new blockchain platform. The ease with which cryptocurrencies can be created and launched in an ICO has attracted both entrepreneurs seeking to build on this technology, but as with any unregulated system where raising money is easy, it has also attracted a legion of bad actors seeking to turn a quick profit. By some estimates there are over 10,000 different cryptocurrencies in existence. The recent scandal with FTX, seems to be, at best, a case of poor risk management, and, at worst, outright fraud. Only an in-depth investigation into the actions and accounts of those involved will clarify this. Its founder Sam Bankman-Fried claims there was no fraud. The collapse of FTX is important to the discussion of the future of crypto given its high-profile nature, and because of some of the notable investors who were involved. Sequoia Capital, the legendary venture capital firm, and Temasek, the Singaporean Government-owned investment company, both invested substantial amounts in FTX. Many are asking how such respected investors were duped and whether the whole ecosystem that surrounds the cryptocurrency world is built on a house of cards. Blockchains and their cryptocurrencies are a solution in search of a problem. So far, the best-known application to cryptocurrencies has been in money transfer. Many have derided the current state of traditional banking for its slow and time-consuming methods of moving money both within countries and internationally; beyond this, banks charge large fees for international transactions. However, the technology available even with one of the fastest and best known blockchains, Solana, is still less than 4,000 transactions a second. This compares unfavorably with a traditional processor like Visa, a credit card company, which claims to be able to process 24,000 transactions per second. And while newer blockchains will no doubt emerge with faster processing speeds, having 10,000 different cryptocurrencies, without wider usage, suggests that many of them will fail. The creation of cryptocurrencies and blockchains is reminiscent of the early years of the technology boom of the late 1990s and early 2000s. Then, as now, many new start-ups (“Dotcoms”) were able to raise funds despite having poor business plans; in addition, technology for the internet was still in its infancy, with connectivity defined in kilobits per second versus the speeds available today which are measured in megabits per second – a magnitude of several thousand times faster today than 20 years ago. And while many of the early companies failed, a handful dominate our daily lives today like Alphabet (Google) and Amazon. Today, entrepreneurs are building Web3.0 and the Metaverse; and while both concepts are vaguely defined and, in some ways, differentiated, they are interlinked. Web3.0 is the third generation of the internet; the first was the building of the infrastructure and companies which hosted content; the second was the social media revolution and user led content; and the third, or Web3.0, is likely to be built off the blockchain and will involve decentralized hosting of applications and content as opposed to the ring-fenced version we see today with the likes of Meta (Facebook), Twitter, and other social media companies. In Web3.0 each of us will own our own profiles and content, and will be able to control these, rather than having them held disparately by various technology companies. The Metaverse is the immersive and virtual world of the internet, which can be accessed by using headsets like the Meta Quest Pro or through applications produced by gaming companies like Roblox. While these two concepts seem to be developing in parallel, some see that the two will become interdependent. For example, companies like Decentraland and The Sandbox offer a Metaverse experience but are built on blockchain technology. The world of blockchains and cryptocurrencies is going through a difficult birth, and it seems like an unregulated and new field has been overtaken by speculation, greed and fraud. But the underlying technology is continuing to be developed, and new applications will eventually be realized. The Metaverse and finance offer two avenues for development. Beyond this, many major financial institutions and technology companies are investing on blockchain networks and the ecosystems that surround them. Twenty years from now it is likely a handful will become established as the bases for new applications, and no doubt many of the existing cryptocurrencies will fade into history like many of the Dotcom start-ups of the early internet age. For young and inexperienced investors, recent events are no doubt a warning to tread with caution in this new field; it will take insight to find the winners out of the 10,000 cryptocurrencies, and to avoid the majority which are likely to fail. So one should think twice before opening an account with brokerage companies.

“If you want to eliminate values from past societies, you have to eliminate the artists.”, reflects Prince Norodom Sirivudh of Cambodia, in the 2014 documentary “Don’t Think I’ve Forgotten: Cambodia’s Lost Rock and Roll”, recounting the systematic erasure of music from Cambodian society under the brutal regime of the Khmer Rouge in the 1970s. < Back “When They Tell You to Sing, You Just Sing.”: The Khmer Rouge’s Musical Manipulation of Cambodian Society Loowit Morrison November 10, 2025 “If you want to eliminate values from past societies, you have to eliminate the artists.”, reflects Prince Norodom Sirivudh of Cambodia, in the 2014 documentary “Don’t Think I’ve Forgotten: Cambodia’s Lost Rock and Roll”, recounting the systematic erasure of music from Cambodian society under the brutal regime of the Khmer Rouge in the 1970s. “[A]rtists are influential. Artists are close to the people,” says Sirivudh. Music is inherently political, used for centuries as a mechanism of control and mobilization. Throughout history, music has shaped public opinion and regime legitimacy by both producing and limiting access to music. From 1955 until 1975, Cambodia’s music experienced what is known as its “Golden Era.” Thanks to increasing global communication, the rise of clubs, bars and nightclubs, and the United States’ Armed Forces’ radio , Cambodian music became infused with Western, Latin and Afro-Cuban pop influences, creating a distinct style of modern music. Traditional Cambodian styles were electrified; garage and surf rock took root in Cambodia’s art scene. Stars such as Sinn Sisamouth, Ros Sereysothea and Pan Ron gained massive popularity. Cambodia’s musical backbone was not only thriving — it was vital to the nation’s social life. A mere 17 years after gaining independence from France, Cambodia entered into a period of civil war. In 1970, an American-backed coup ousted Prince Norodom Sihanouk’s regime as part of their larger war against communism. Sihanouk fled to Beijing, becoming a figurehead for the rising Khmer Rouge, a group of communist insurgents. The years that followed were marked by tensions between communist guerrilla fighters and Lon Nol’s anti-communist government. 1973 saw massive devastation at the hands of U.S. bombardment. The civil war came to an end in April 1975, when Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge toppled Lon Nol’s government and seized the capital, Phnom Penh. 1975 was declared “Year Zero” by Pol Pot’s regime and the country was renamed “Democratic Kampuchea”. The regime, stretching from 1975–1979, was marked by a radical strategy of agrarian communism and strict isolation. Civil and property rights, religious practice and Western influence were completely eradicated, and urban citizens were forced into the countryside to labor in agricultural projects. Any intellectuals, artists or elites were sent to work or killed. Cambodian society was effectively “decapitated.” As part of the eradication of artists, musicians were among the first targets of the Khmer Rouge. All music, other than propaganda of the Khmer Rouge, was banned in an effort to eliminate “old” identities linked to Western culture. At the time, Cambodian musical culture was deeply influenced by the French colonial period, beginning in the 19th century. French colonizers brought Western instruments and genres to Cambodia, infusing Cambodian music with Western designs. The Khmer Rouge, in opposition to anything Western, sought to destroy this Westernized musical identity and create a “new,” yet staunchly traditional, Khmer identity. Although the majority of existing music and musicians were destroyed by Pol Pot’s regime, part of the strategy to mobilize the new Khmer identity was through music. The Khmer Rouge’s re-education program rearranged traditional hymns and melodies, such as basak and mohori , to serve their ideologies and push forth the new agrarian society. Despite the fact that most musicians were targeted in the regime’s early days, others were recruited by the Khmer Rouge to serve as regime musicians. Touch Chhatta recounts that the only “reason I survived was because I knew how to play music.” Chhatta was enlisted by the Khmer Rouge to serve in a band that played at meetings, at which music was played with only traditional instruments, including the khim , tro , and takhe . Chhatta describes that at the beginning of the regime, he purposefully memorized the propaganda music, maximizing his utility to the regime and thus his chances of survival. Children were also recruited by the Khmer Rouge as musicians. “We were like a blank piece of paper. When they tell you to sing, you just sing,” describes Chhom Charvin, who was a child singer under the regime. Easily persuaded and indoctrinated, children were the perfect candidates for the Khmer Rouge’s new musical strategy. “Don’t Think I’ve Forgotten: Cambodia's Lost Rock and Roll” presents footage of the Khmer Rouge’s child singers in a performance, reenacting farmers, chanting “the day is hot and dry / smoke is coming from the earth / but we can take it / we are resilient / we serve Angkar until results are produced.” Undying loyalty to serving the new, agricultural and communist state is conveyed curtly through lyrics, fashioning a new emblem for the nation of the laboring and nationalistic child. Music was also used as a mobilizing tool. Thida Buth, who was a child during the regime, remembers that in the work camps, the national anthem would blare over the speakers each morning, at 4am. The first lyrics are “the bright red blood spilled in the lands of kampuchea / our motherland / the blood of our good workers and farmers / of our revolutionary soldiers / of both men and women / we will make our Motherland / the most prosperous, magnificent, wonderful!”. Every day in the Democratic Kampuchea began with music -– propaganda music. Music which was manufactured specifically to promote the idea of a new nation. The musical construction of Democratic Kampuchea contains a dual nature: one of radical return to tradition yet a complete transformation of society. The Khmer Rouge attempted to erase the existing musical culture in Cambodia while simultaneously promoting a musical culture that was ‘traditional’, thus blurring the line between “new” and “old”. This phenomenon highlights the contradictory nature of the Khmer Rouge regime, which attempted to use old, traditional Khmer music to promote a new, revolutionized identity, which in and of itself reflected a traditional past. Whether restoring an “old” or creating a “new” identity, it is clear that music was a critical tool employed by the Khmer Rouge to carry out their transformation of society. Despite the supposed “eradication” of music in Democratic Kampuchea, it was frequently mobilized by the Khmer Rouge to legitimize their regime and build the foundation of a new national identity. Music, as any form of art, is fundamental to the skeleton of society. Music transmits values, histories and identities; its mobilization by elites in society has the power to structurally, radically reshape what a country is, how it functions and what it stands for. Despite the weaponization of music by Pol Pot’s regime, when the Khmer Rouge fell on January 7, 1979, music was what revived Cambodian society. Sieng Vanthy, a Cambodian singer, was one of the first to return to the capital city of Phnom Penh, which had been emptied at the start of the regime. With much of the nation hesitant to return to the city, Vanthy describes that she sang “Oh, Phnom Penh” on the radio, in an attempt to reassure the displaced that it was safe to return. “Oh, Phnom Penh” seeps with yearning, nostalgia and memories of a place once called home. The first lyrics state, “Oh, Phnom Penh / For three years / I never stopped missing you / We were separated / and my heart was broken.”, and later, the song says, “the Cambodian soul lives on / Oh, Phnom Penh / I meet you again.” While music may have been a tool of manipulation in the Khmer Rouge regime, it was also a unifying factor. Music is what brought Cambodians back together to collectively rebuild their nation physically and culturally. In spite of their efforts, the Khmer Rouge was not able to abolish the musical roots that run through Cambodia. Music continues to flourish, decades after the country was musically sanitized. Dengue Fever, a band formed in the U.S. in 2001, brought Cambodian music back to the global forefront. Lauren Yee’s 2016 play, “Cambodian Rock Band,” recounts the story of a Cambodian American woman and her father, a survivor of the genocide, exploring a history of music and memory. The revival of music in Cambodia is a testament to the nation’s ability to overcome a difficult past and to their cultural resilience. Photo Source: Emile Gsell, Picryl

Should the Knesset move forward with its proposal, it remains to be seen how the state’s diverse actors will reconcile their differences within a system that uniquely caters to a political majority that does not mirror the heterogeneity of Israeli society. < Back Is Netanyahu’s Supreme Court Proposal: Reform or Regime Change? By Magdalena Offenbeck January 31, 2023 Only weeks after its inauguration, Israel’s right-wing government under returning Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has set out to severely curtail the powers of the Israeli Supreme Court. The current legislative proposal by Justice Minister Yariv Lavin will revoke the influential Israeli Supreme Court’s veto rights on government legislation and regulation, and place the judicial appointment panel under government control. This has sent shockwaves through Israeli society which, as the countless failed coalitions in the last years have shown, is already deeply divided. On Jan. 14, 80,000 protesters took to the streets of Tel Aviv to demonstrate against what many consider a step to dismantle Israeli democracy. However, the controversy reflects a tale as old as democracy itself: the intrinsic tension between the counter-majoritarian mechanism of judicial review and the will of popularly elected representatives. Under the reform proposal, government bills could be struck down by the Supreme Court with only a majority of 80 percent of judges in a panel of 15. Even if the Court reaches this supermajority, the Knesset could re-legislate the bill for a period of four years with a simple majority of just 61 Knesset members — a figure lower than the number required to form a coalition government. After that four-year period, any newly elected coalition could re-legislate the statute, making it immune to further judicial review. Additionally, the government could appoint seven of the 11 members to the judicial appointment panel. This would de facto end any possibility of independent judicial review. Israel’s Supreme Court is known for its wide powers and active role in reviewing government legislation. It has historically taken a liberal stance on controversial issues such as Israeli citizenship and settlements in the West Bank and offered an effective counter mechanism to the ongoing shift to right-wing party dominance in the country. However, its mandate and legitimacy are far from unequivocal. Israel’s 1948 Declaration of Independence mandated the drafting of a national constitution; but this was never fulfilled. Instead, the Basic Law, 14 laws adopted since 1958, has served as a growing body of constitutionalism in Israel. Judicial review was only progressively constitutionalized. In 1995, famous ex-Chief Justice Aharon Barak fundamentally altered the balance of power by asserting in the landmark case “United Mizrahi Bank v. Migdal” that the lack of a constitution did not prevent constitutional supremacy. Instead, laws considered fundamental Basic Law enjoy the status of legal supremacy, and the Israeli Supreme Court has the power to adjudicate on the conformity of legislation within this hierarchy of norms. The Court has since used this power to apply controversial principles such as “reasonableness,” whereby it can invalidate government legislation if it finds it unreasonable. Barak has called the proposal “ the beginning of the end of the modern state of Israel ,” outlining that it would leave citizens defenseless against the abuse of their rights. In a lengthy televised interview shortly after the proposal’s announcement, Barak warned of a possible tyranny of the majority and emphasized the importance of a thick conception of democratic principles, including minority rights protection. His comments were met with severe criticism by Justice Minister Lavin, who, like Netanyahu himself, portrays the measure as essential to restore democracy. The coalition government has continuously portrayed the Supreme Court as an instrument of the left and illegitimate due to its power to trump the will of democratically elected lawmakers. In a Jan. 16 Tweet, Netanyahu stressed that his government will not be “deterred by the attacks of the left and the media.” In recent years, the rise of left-wing governments has seemed like a sheer impossibility and cleavages between the left and the right have deepened on all social issues. This is accompanied by an increasing personalization of political power whereby anti- and pro-Netanyahu have become synonyms for left and right-wing political orientations. To the current government coalition, the Supreme Court is a tool the left uses to exert the influence it has lost in democratic elections. The politicization of the Court by the Israeli right is reflected in the stark divide in public opinion. In a recent survey by The Israel Democracy Institute, 54% of participants “agreed that the Supreme Court should have the power to strike down laws passed in the Knesset which conflict with the Basic Laws of the State of Israel.” This view was held by 76% of secular Israelis, while only 15% of Haredi Israelis agreed with the statement. Party alignment shows similar divides. Among the most prominent left-wing parties, 85% of survey participants expressed their support for the Court. Netanyahu’s more religious political base opposed the Court’s prerogative by no less than 95%. At the core of the issue lies a question of democratic legitimacy that has preoccupied constitutionalists since the idea of judicial review was first conceived. Proponents of the Supreme Court, such as Aharon Barak, highlight the essentiality of Constitutional Courts in providing a counter-majoritarian mechanism in societies, especially those as deeply divided as Israel’s. The country’s multiparty system of proportional representation with low thresholds to enter the Knesset has always allowed for diverse representation. Nevertheless, it has also made it possible for right-wing coalitions to overpower minorities in the government. It has been the role of the Supreme Court to assess the conformity of these coalitions’ actions with basic rights and freedoms. Yet, the proposal is hailed by many as a return to true democracy. Reform proponents believe the Court has an overly powerful role in politics as it inherently lacks democratic legitimacy, allowing judges to push an agenda that is not necessarily representative of the right-wing political majority in the country. Those considering democracy as the mere fulfillment of the will of the voting majority have long seen the Court’s powers as undemocratic by nature. Due to its lack of clearly enumerated constitutional powers, the judiciary has been able to take on an increasingly active and powerful role, establishing principles such as “reasonableness” that can be subject to broad application and interpretation. An opinion column by David M. Weinberg, vice president of the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security, reflects these beliefs. He sarcastically outlines that “‘Reasonableness’ is authoritarian jargon that allows High Court justices to elastically apply their own sensibilities to socially re-engineer Israeli society in their enlightened image.” These contradictory perspectives leave little room for compromise and conciliation. The dismantling of the Supreme Court is by far not the only issue in Israeli politics that has seen extreme division and polarization, but to many, it is the most fundamental one yet. Should Netanyahu’s coalition succeed and pass the bill by March as announced, the political power balance is set to change drastically. Many fear that the Supreme Court’s dismantling will unravel the already limited liberal influence in Israeli politics and install a tyranny of the majority. To others, it is the return of true democracy. Whatever perspective one takes, Israel is a special case. Few democracies are forced to accommodate social diversity to this degree. Should the Knesset move forward with its proposal, it remains to be seen how the state’s diverse actors will reconcile their differences within a system that uniquely caters to a political majority that does not mirror the heterogeneity of Israeli society.

< Back A Message from Marseille By Jad Toufic Toutinji October 31, 2023 Throughout September, the Mediterranean caught the eyes of the world as unfortunate disasters propagated on the shores of its countries — the devastating Moroccan earthquake, the Libyan tsunami-like flood, the migrant crisis in Lampedusa and, in October, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Across the sea, however, Marseille shone as the center of eventful festivities that reflected the hope that the region desperately sought. A message of unity and cooperation sailed from Marseille’s port through the peaceful waves of the Mediterranean, ultimately reaching to the shores of its various sea neighbors as people from all around the Mediterranean and beyond gathered to discuss the future of the region in a series of events. The festivities began with ‘Les Rencontres Méditerranéennes’ at Palais du Pharo, which brought together a varied audience of old and young, from around the world, particularly the Mediterranean, to create a stage for discussion breaking down generational divisions. More importantly, these meetings targeted the youth, a group of which were Sciences Po Menton students who are expected to play a crucial role in the future world and specifically, the issues of this region. These events also welcomed president of the European Central Bank, Christine Lagarde, for a conference on the Geopolitical Situation in the Mediterranean. “Où que l’on soit, on peut progresser sur un chemin de paix et d’espérance,” ( wherever we might be, we can progress on a path of peace and hope) stated president Lagarde, emphasizing the importance of hope through her discourse. To describe the severity of the geopolitical fragmentation across the Mediterranean, Lagarde also stated, “Pendant longtemps, la méditerranée est restée non pas le mare nostrum mais le mare clausum,” (for a long time, the Mediterranean has not been the mare nostrum but the mare clausum) reflecting the disunity amongst the people bordering the sea. In the conference, she highlighted the importance of cooperation, specifically the role of the Northern basin in supporting the Southern and Eastern basins, with the aim of reducing segregation. The Conférence Méditerannée du Futur on Sept. 22 brought together 36 countries’ delegations at Marseille’s Grand Cosquer under this year’s subject: water. “La Méditerranée est un carrefour entre les continents, elle a toujours fait lien entre les peuples, avant même l’Antiquité,” ( the Mediterranean is a carrefour between continents. It has always been a link of people even before ancient times) Carole Delga, president of the Occitanie region, noted with enthusiasm in her opening speech. The conference entailed several round table discussions over various topics, one of which surrounded the potential creation of a macro-region uniting all Mediterranean countries, pushed for by the president of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region Renaud Muselier and his counterpart in the Occitanie. “Aux 36 délégations présentes, je dis, construisons, avec ce qui nous rassemble, notre fierté d’être méditerranéens, les coopérations de demain, à l’échelle de notre territoire,” (to the 36 delegations present today, let us build the cooperation of tomorrow amongst the territories which shares our pride of being from the Mediterranean) expressed Renaud Muselier in the conference’s opening speech. The main message from this discussion was the potential that such a region would have, even being compared to Eurorégion Pyrénées-Méditerranée, which was created in 2004 to establish environmental cooperation, economic development, humanitarian relief and peace across a sea crying for it. That said, the peak of this hopeful weekend arrived with Pope Francis’ visit to Marseille, which also prompted visits from several political figures, notably President Emmanuel Macron and the Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin. He commenced his visit through a breakfast with the residents of one of Marseille’s poorest neighborhoods. Later, at the Palais du Pharo, the Pope and President Macron met and the Pope delivered a closing message at the ceremony of Les Rencontres Méditerranéennes. In his speech, he tackled the topic of migration and sent a clear message to Macron and his fellow ministers present in the room. “Ceux qui se réfugient chez nous ne doivent pas être considérés comme un fardeau à porter: si nous les considérons comme des frères, ils nous apparaîtront surtout comme des dons” ( those who seek refuge in us must not be regarded as a burden: if we treat them as brothers, they will surely appear as blessings). Moreover, the also Pope tackled the argument of “invasion” that has risen as a result of populist anti-immigrant politicians, stating, “ Mais ceux qui risquent leur vie en mer n’envahissent pas, ils cherchent hospitalité” ( but, those who risk their lives crossing the sea won't come here to invade us. They are in search for accommodation and embracement). The Pope ended his message about refugees by saying, “ Nous avons besoin de fraternité comme de pain. Le mot même ‘frère,’ dans sa dérivation indo-européenne, révèle une racine liée à la nutrition et à la subsistance. Nous ne nous soutiendrons qu’en nourrissant d’espérance les plus faibles, en les accueillant comme des frères” ( We are in need of brotherhood as much as bread. Even the word "brother" reveals a root linked to nutrition and sustenance in its Indo-European derivation. We will only survive by providing hope to the weakest among us through welcoming them as brothers). After his discourse, the Pope went to the Stade Velodrome for a mass where thousands impatiently awaited his arrival to pray collectively. “I'll go to Marseille, but not to France.” Indeed, the words of the Pope, before his arrival, aptly express the essential role that the beautiful Marseille plays in leading the message of solidarity, love and unity across the blue Mediterranean Sea and the souls that share it.

The success of the Moroccan team at the 2022 FIFA World Cup has disrupted the traditional balance of football. It has shown how the unassuming underdogs can, with the right combination of teamwork, persistence, and a steadfast, strong-willed, bald-headed coach — Walid Regragui, nicknamed “avocado head”— attain new heights. < Back Morocco's World Cup Success Sends the World a Powerful Statement By Colin Lim January 31, 2023 “Avec nos lions!” triumphantly proclaimed the destination displays of the Casablanca buses. Although the Atlas Lions had lost the World Cup semifinals to France a week earlier, the feeling of triumph was palpable under the balmy December sun. As traffic flowed along the wide boulevards of Morocco’s financial hub, adorned with red and green flags, the national team was eagerly welcomed home 80 kilometers away in Rabat. Riding in an open-top bus, conspicuously emblazoned with the national rallying cry, “Dima Maghrib,” the players were greeted by thousands of jubilant fans who recognized and appreciated the magnitude of their accomplishment. The fact that Morocco’s national football team had even made it to this point was an impressive feat. Their unprecedented success rallied Morocco, the Moroccan diaspora, and Muslim communities of disparate origins worldwide behind a single team. As the first Arab or African country to advance to the semifinals, Morocco managed, at long last, to break the glass ceiling that had been so inviolably reserved for European and South American teams, the traditional strongholds of professional football. The players, whose feline moniker dates back to an extinct species that used to roam the mountains of North Africa, carry an array of passports, as the 26-person lineup includes only 12 players born on Moroccan soil and others born in France, Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium and Canada. As the Moroccan team advanced through the World Cup, defeating Belgium, Canada, Spain, and Portugal, they captivated their audience and the world with several iconic images. Photographs that went viral displayed players’ jubilee — even embracing and kissing their mothers, à la Achraf Hakimi. Several photos of Moroccan players and staff united in prayer on the field, all facing the qibla and publicly affirming their faith, gained momentum among Muslim communities globally. The visibility of their devotion in the face of anti-Muslim sentiment in their European birth countries offered a source of inspiration and empowerment. The success of the Moroccan team at the 2022 FIFA World Cup has disrupted the traditional balance of football. It has shown how the unassuming underdogs can, with the right combination of teamwork, persistence and a steadfast, strong-willed, bald-headed coach — Walid Regragui, nicknamed “avocado head”— attain new heights. The Atlas Lions will showcase their improvements at the next World Cup in North America, potentially contributing even more to the diversification of successful football teams.

For most of us, the French-Italian frontier in Menton is a concept, a sort of imaginary line of cheaper groceries and good pizza. One could possibly remain oblivious to this privilege as long as they never venture towards the Ventimiglia train station, where some are desperately trying to cross a very real border in the hopes of a safer life. To try to alleviate their struggles, SciencesPo Refugee Help and Cinementongraphe decided to team up and organize a screening of Lebanese director Nadine Labaki’s film, “Capernaum.” < Back Thou Shall Not Be Indifferent: Nadine Labaki’s Wake Up Call to the West By Krzysztof Kaluzny October 30, 2021 For most of us, the French-Italian frontier in Menton is a concept, a sort of imaginary line of cheaper groceries and good pizza. One could possibly remain oblivious to this privilege as long as they never venture towards the Ventimiglia train station, where some are desperately trying to cross a very real border in the hopes of a safer life. To try to alleviate their struggles, SciencesPo Refugee Help and Cinementongraphe decided to team up and organize a screening of Lebanese director Nadine Labaki’s film, “Capernaum.” All the proceeds funded food distribution for refugees and immigrants in Ventimiglia. The film’s title refers to the biblical city of Capernaum, a place damned and abandoned by God. The protagonists of the film are also forgotten, not necessarily by any form of divine power, but by the Western world and the international public. We follow the life of a 12-year old Zain, whom we meet in court as he tries to sue his own parents, through retrospections of his childhood on the streets of Beirut. Labaki’s decision to cast herself as Zain’s lawyer was purely symbolic. After all, just like her character, the director is giving a voice to the voiceless by providing them with a floor to share their stories. The main character is played by a Syrian refugee who himself grew up in Beirut’s slums, Zain Al Rafeea. The name used in the film was no coincidence: Labaki had changed it after casting the boy, highlighting that the protagonist’s experience in the film reflects the reality of children living in Lebanon. Neither of the Zains had received any schooling. Al Rafeea had to learn his lines by having them read to him as he was illiterate at the time of the shooting. It is impossible to tell that Al Rafeea is not a professional actor throughout the film. He lived that life, he did not have to act. It is perhaps the profound sadness in his eyes that shows the hardships he has been through despite his young age. After having run away from his parents, we witness Zain trying to survive in a hostile urban jungle. Long, stunning shots resemble a fairytale-like child’s odyssey, however, the story is far from The Little Prince’s narrative. The boy interacts with a lot of strangers who all have their problems and shattered dreams of a better life. One of them is a young girl, a refugee from Syria. She tells Zain she received food and is going to move to Sweden. Zain asks her how he could receive the same benefits, and she answers point-blank: you are not a Syrian refugee. This one sentence struck me, especially looking at the girl’s t-shirt which reads “I am Lebanese.” That’s precisely how selective the West is when it comes to providing help. When Zain is referred by the girl to a human trafficker, he receives another blow - he lacks any documents, or as the trafficker describes it, ‘a proof you’re a human being.’ The issue of undocumented people is a recurring theme over the course of the film. Those in power expect a birth certificate from people who can’t afford medical aid in a life-threatening emergency,much less to deliver an infant in a hospital. The film’s somber atmosphere was amplified by a haunting score by Khaled Mouznar, Labaki’s husband who collaborated closely with her in the production of the film, making it, as Labaki called it in her acceptance speech of the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, a “family film created at home.” Given how heart-breaking the story was, it would be simply cruel if the film ended without some positivity or a glimpse of hope. We saw how Zain posed for a camera to have a picture taken for his ID card. Finally, Zain was recognized as a ‘human being.’ What we consider to be a rather inconvenient chore every few years was a life-changing moment for him. The real Al Rafeea also moved forward; his family has been granted asylum in Norway. When Labaki called Al Rafeea to share the news that the film was nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Film, Al Rafeea was in school with teachers and new friends. Labaki might not have won the Academy Award, but I believe the opportunity to make a difference in Al Rafeea’s life was the biggest prize she could gain for this film. As her own character in the story, she was not able to change the system. The best she could do was help an individual. The rest, as for judges in a courtroom, is for the audience to reflect on and decide.

For Iran it was an illegal assassination of a national hero; For the United States a justified pre-emptive attack on a terrorist. For the millions of civilians who reside within the Gulf region, it meant fear of what could be a death sentence by two powerful states in their unending quest for hegemony. < Back Iran and the United States: Fighting for Hegemony at the Cost of Civilian Lives By Emilia Kohlmeyer January 30, 2022 For Iran it was an illegal assassination of a national hero; For the United States a justified pre-emptive attack on a terrorist. For the millions of civilians who reside within the Gulf region, it meant fear of what could be a death sentence by two powerful states in their unending quest for hegemony. For the international community, it is a painful reminder of its continuous failure to uphold international law. January 3 marked the two-year anniversary of the US-led assassination of Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani. Soleimani was commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and on a diplomatic mission in Baghdad when he was killed by a US drone strike on the 3rd January 2020. This triggered counter strikes by Iranian forces on US bases in Iraq, injuring thousands of military staff. In Iran, thousands of mourners have marched in protest to what their government deems as “military adventurism”or reckless military strategies by the United States within the region. This is accompanied by Iraqi demands for the final withdrawal of US forces from their territory. The States legally justified the strike as anticipatory self-defense, however it was immediately disputed that the danger Soleimani represented was “instant, overwhelming, and leaving no choice of means, and no moment of deliberation.” They failed to provide concrete evidence of an imminent threat, in effect failing to justify the principle of self-defense. The United Nations special rapporteur for investigating extrajudicial and summary executions, Agnes Callamard, concluded, “Even at the most basic level, the U.S. did not demonstrate that striking Suleimani was ‘necessary.’” Furthermore, Iraq did not consent to the strike; therefore it concretely violated its sovereignty. Two years later, Iran’s continuous calls for action to the United Nations and Interpol sanctions on those responsible remain unanswered. International law should exist to provide a set of rules by which everyone is required to abide, despite one’s power or influence. It sets the basis for equality amongst states and their people, which is the foundation of conflict-resolution between multiple parties. When there is no consequence to the violation of said law for states which are considerably more powerful, international law fails to address its entire purpose:equal accountability. The assassination of Qasem Soleimani therefore set a dangerous precedent, highlighting that if powerful states such as the U.S. desire to bend the law according to their interests, they face no consequences. Why should other states therefore abide by the law at all? It could neither be considered fair nor necessary. This neglect of an accepted set of rules can endanger millions of civilian lives. In this particular instance, with the increasingly downright insulting rhetoric of both Iran and the States towards each other, armed conflict did not seem unlikely. Maybe Iraq would once again become the playground of the powerful – after all, strikes from both sides took place there. The ones who bear the burden of transgression from either side are innocent civilians, who are not even citizens of the perpetrating countries. They would share the same fate as Syrians, whose home is subject to a pissing contest between powerful states. The dangerous consequences of this fight for regional hegemony indicate that the current global mechanisms which are in place to protect civilians have failed to fulfill their duty. The pick-and-choose of which nation receives sanctions for its actions continues to allow a disproportionate exercise of power — often by countries that do not even lay within the region they seek to control. The guise of spreading human rights and global peace by such states can no longer serve as justification for foreign intervention. The international community cannot continue to accept it as such. Therefore, it is of increasing importance to hold officials of our own countries — and the organizations in which they participate – accountable. For too long this region has been a playground for the powerful at the expense of innocent lives. Two years have passed, and I am back in Qatar sitting in conversation with friends who have seen their homes fall victim to this power play. With the turbulence of COVID-19, many people abroad have forgotten how January 2020 felt. But we still live between 11,000 U.S. troops on the Al-Udeid base mere kilometers from our homes and our neighbor Iran, separated by a flight less than an hour. We joke about the time there was almost a war, but entrenched in our subconscious is the knowledge that any diplomatic misstep can claim our next home.

As more French social media users engaged in the MeToo trend and shared their stories, controversy followed — with even some women in the French entertainment industry condemning the movement. < Back Harvey Weinstein and French MeToo Movement By Peyton Dashiell January 31, 2023 Following weeks of heavy and emotional testimony from over 40 defendants, American film mogul Harvey Weinstein was convicted of one count of rape and two counts of sexual assault in the case that spearheaded the 2017 MeToo movement. Weinstein’s accusers, including actresses Gwyneth Paltrow, Selma Hayek and Rose McGowan, have alleged that Weinstein used his power and connections in the entertainment industry over several decades to rape and coerce women into sex. If his victims chose to pursue justice, they were met with threats of an industry blacklist and a ruined career. While the phrase “MeToo” was coined in 2007 by activist Tarana Burke, the current MeToo movement began in 2017, when actress Alyssa Milano asked women who had been sexually assaulted to spread the phrase on social media to illustrate the gravity and frequency of the issue. The movement led to millions of social media users sharing their stories of rape and sexual assault, several high profile terminations of alleged abusers in business, entertainment and politics, and a reignited cultural and legal conversation surrounding sexual assault, consent and coercion. Legally, the movement led to a ban on non-disclosure agreements in several states — Weinstein’s assistant could not speak out for decades due to a hush contract. In Congress, Representative Jackie Speier introduced the Member and Employee Training and Oversight on Congress Act (METOO Act) to change the way the federal government handles sexual harassment and assault reports. MeToo quickly spread globally through social media, and in France, Twitter users began to use the hashtags MoiAussi, NousToutes, and Balancetonporc. The former two are an equivalent to the English MeToo, and the latter a controversial call for women to publicly name their abusers. As more French social media users engaged in the movement and shared their stories, controversy followed — with even some women in the French entertainment industry condemning the movement. In the newspaper Le Monde, 100 women led by actress Catherine Deneuve signed an open letter denouncing MeToo, characterizing it as a puritan American export with no relevance to the French tradition. While French social media users continued to share their stories, the movement failed to gain significant momentum for several years. However, MeToo was propelled in France in 2019 after public accusations were made by actors Adele Hanael and Valentine Monnier against director Roman Polanski and several others. For the first time since the advent of the French movement, significant professional consequences were brought against an industry professional accused of rape. Polanski’s new film, “An Officer and A Spy,” halted promotion, and the ARP director’s guild began the process of suspending Polanski. This year, the Cesar Awards, scheduled for February 24 in Paris, will ban any actors or film industry workers who have committed sexual violence out of respect for the victims. But what explains the relatively delayed spread of MeToo in France compared to the United States? And has the movement been effective in either country? Many attribute the cold reception of MeToo in France to a culture that often separates personal transgressions from professional life. An anonymous 2A theorized that this variance comes from differing attitudes in France towards gender roles – “in France, it’s often expected for a man to pursue a woman until the woman directly objects, and it is considered less inappropriate to make advances even in contexts like the workplace.” While the relative outrage in the United States over MeToo may lead one to think that the movement experienced wide success, many abusers still hold high status.Men like Harvey Weinstein, Bill Cosby and R Kelly have been almost universally denounced for their crimes. Yet, confessed rapists like, most-followed Instagram user globally Cristiano Ronaldo have enjoyed new heights of fame and shirked responsibility for sexual assault offenses that they explicitly admit to. Weinstein’s conviction and sentencing may be a watershed moment in a new era of accountability, but there is still much work to be done to remove abusers from positions of power and success.

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.

Eastern Europe is often viewed as an exotic, mystical land by those who have neither lived there nor visited the region. < Back The Phenomenon of the Slavic Girl Winter By Nadia Taylor Sol for European Society January 31, 2024 Eastern Europe is often viewed as an exotic, mystical land by those who have neither lived there nor visited the region. The ideas of the brutalist buildings, post-communist memorials and cold, sometimes rude people, seem to be the standard perception people have in their minds when any European country behind the former Iron Curtain is mentioned. While these stereotypes might already ignite some uncomfortable conversations and can easily make any Eastern European start a quick historical-cultural crash course explaining the differences between our countries, I now would rather focus on the often-overlooked harms and dangers of one particular issue: the fetishization of Eastern European women and the standardized image created of them. While Eastern Europe is an extremely diverse region with a vast range of cultural and physical differences between the population, the media fails to do it justice by highlighting Soviet heritage and painting them solely as a political mass of blonde and blue eyed people. This indifference towards distinguishing one nation from another serves as perfect soil for creating the image of the typical Eastern European woman. The idea of a tall, blonde, timid housewife with the perfect beauty of a Barbie-doll, mixed with the image of a fur-wearing gold digger has been circulating in the media for decades. More importantly it is currently experiencing its renaissance thanks to freshly popularized TikTok and Instagram trends. Looking at the videos of people glamorizing the so-called “Slavic girl winter” and decreasing the multiple cultures the ethnicity encompasses to the modern mob-wife aesthetic, with fur coats, hats and expensive jewelry, made me consider how harmful this portrayal is. Especially since the whole stereotype comes from historic roots that are based on the fact that most people, especially women, could not afford to look the way the trend tells us they do. The aesthetic of the trend is the image of women who were either born or married into families and relationships with men that have either gained their wealth through living off the general public or engaging in crime. Just before explaining the problems with the trends, I shall state that there is no problem with people finding the women of the region beautiful or complimenting them for their efforts to look “perfect.” The negatives become more visible when we understand the traumatic past that has led to the creation of this image and the dangerous future these often backhanded compliments hold. The phenomenon itself can be closely linked to the fall of the Soviet Union and the socioeconomic shifts the post-Soviet states and the countries of the Soviet bloc have experienced. The 90s brought poverty and, especially for women, a drastic change in people’s status within the society. During the Soviet years, every adult was obliged by the law to work, meaning women were not tied to their husbands or male guardians to provide for themselves and their families. The collapse of the Union brought both unemployment and an influx of Western, more conventional beauty and patriarchal media, collaboratively resulting in women creating a new approach to wealth and survival. The idea that women have to be beautiful to be appealing to strong and successful men, who were often their only chance to get over the poverty line, became a widespread concept in society. The approach created an ever-lasting and strong duality between the expectations posed towards women and men. While men should be strong, wealthy and successful to be able to provide for their wives, women have to be easy on the eyes and should be ready to serve their men in any way they can. The international image of the Slavic and Eastern European sex workers can also be closely tied to the above-mentioned logic. When the Soviet Union fell, people tried to leave to the West in a hope of starting a new life. We do not have to look much further to understand the unfortunate turnout of events many women had to go through to be able to support themselves in a new, foreign society far from home. With no other way out of poverty many turned to sex work and the jump in the number of Eastern European women in the industry created a new, fetishized image in the minds of many. Women from the region are now viewed as either parts of the sex work industry or overly attainable in exchange for a high-value life and money. And thus, the image of the expensive-looking gold digger was created. An image that we still struggle to distance ourselves from. These stereotypes, while clearly holding an ugly mirror towards the reality of the history of the post-communist Eastern bloc pose dangers in the modern day as well. First, they discredit any attempt by regional feminist movements or just women in general to make people focus on anything but their appearance. One of the greatest examples of this is how online communities reacted to images of Ukrainian women fighting for their country. While some did praise them for their strength and bravery, and made an effort to educate themselves about the ongoing invasion, others decided to stick to the fetishization of Ukrainian women – particularly unacceptable during times of war, when violence against women is used to assert power – compounding the harassment women have to experience both in the virtual and real spheres of their lives. The second most prominent result of these widespread stereotypes is the high number of women from the region becoming victims of human trafficking. It is not unusual for people coming from lower income households to strive to leave their hometowns or countries in the hopes of a better future. While doing so they often fall victim to targeted advertisements, focused on women with certain physical traits. Both the online distributed easy to access work or study opportunities and the seemingly helpful people at the airports can pose grave dangers, as they can end up being linked to organized human trafficking with a special focus on women from the region. The already existing stereotypes and the sometimes-re-emerging fascination with the imagined submissive nature of Eastern European women, a good example of which can be the leaked messages of Andrew Tate and his claims on preferring women from the region, escalate the growth of the market and make women even more vulnerable to the dangers of human trafficking. Currently, the trend of the Slavic girl winter, when not used by members of the ethnicity to regain control over certain elements of their own culture, does nothing more than accelerate an already existing prejudice against Slavic and Eastern European women. It pokes holes into the efforts of reducing discrimination and elevating them to a higher level in the public eye than gold diggers and submissive housewives. As with every other fetishized ethnicity, instead of playing into the general stereotype, the public should rather educate themselves about the diverse and captivating histories and cultures of the region, make efforts to celebrate those representatives of the Eastern European women who deserve the most praise and be aware of the harm generalization brings about.