The one-step solution to my problem would be to settle for a “white” name for my “brown” son. It would level the playing field in a world that lacks face-to-face interaction and relies so heavily on communication via a screen of some sort. It would open up a few more doors, bring to light a few more opportunities in his life.
Right? Probably.
What it wouldn’t do was fix the larger problem: the deep-rooted, widespread racism and intolerance in our society. It would send the implicit message to the universe that I had bought in, somehow, to the need to at least accept that world. That simply is not true.
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"After months of traveling around India talking to all sorts of people, including rape victims, about sexual violence, Devineni decided to create Priya. Shunned by her family and village after she is raped, she takes refuge in the jungle and is stalked by a tiger. Parvati, a Hindu goddess, comes to her aid and grants her special powers that include fearlessness and a magical mantra that she uses to change people's minds." "Serial," a new podcast series has gained popularity recently. Lena Shareef of The Chicago Monitor talks about the podcast from the perspective of a Muslim-American, which is interesting because one of the main characters in this story is the son of Pakistani immigrants.
Check it out here! India's Mangalyaan satellite successfully infiltrated Mars orbit. India's space agency is now the only space agency to arrive at Mars on its first mission, and that too, on such a low budget. India is now part of the select group of space agencies - the U.S., Russia, and Europe - that have managed to move into Mars orbit. Other nations, such as Japan and China, have tried, but not succeeded. Prime Minister Narendra Modi claimed that the famously low budget of the mission, $74 million, was cheaper than the $100 million cost to produce the American film "Gravity." Click here to read more about India's success, and check out the images and diagrams below! Photo credit: The Wall Street Journal Indian female scientists congratulate each other on the fantastic news! Photo credit: BBC - Nitya
Links to information: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2014/09/india-triumphs-with-first-mission-mars-201492424235943945.html http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2014/09/23/how-india-mounted-the-worlds-cheapest-mission-to-mars/ http://www.newsweek.com/how-india-achieved-cheapest-ever-interplanetary-mission-mars-273588 http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-29357472 These are the new rules issued by the Advertising Council of India (ASCI):
I'm so happy that some changes are finally being made! Click here to read more about the new rules, and also check out this interesting article from the Wall Street Journal. - Nitya
Links to information: http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2014/08/22/will-new-ad-guidelines-change-indias-obsession-with-lighter-skin/ http://www.ascionline.org/images/pdf/fairness-advertising-code-for-wide-circulation-aug-14-2014.pdf http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/jul/19/india-fair-skinned-beauty
A good read found by our very own Shobhita Narain. Yesterday the BBC posted the following article: http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-28039513?OCID=fbbbcindia, which discussed the lack of bathrooms in rural India, and the problem it presents for women.
Over the past few weeks I've been working with a Microfinance company, which specifically deals with giving loans to women to build toilets. Once I return to the USA I'll be posting my thoughts on what I saw. This brutal incident resulted in protests and captured worldwide attention, similar to the aftermath of the rape of Nirbhaya in December 2012. Furthermore, it is disconcerting that only last month, the head of Uttar Pradesh's governing party, when commenting on his opposition to the death sentence for gang rapists, stated, "Boys will be boys. They make mistakes." Click here to read an interesting article that discusses the problems associated with such a mentality in India. - Nitya
Links to information: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/may/29/indian-sisters-gang-raped-hanged-tree http://time.com/2802038/india-rape-hanging/ In addition to the many problematic aspects of this video, what shocked me the most was how religiously offensive it was. Iggy Azalea sings about "gettin' 'em tipsy" and "shittin' on everyone" in front of a Hindu temple. Check out the video for yourself here! Also, take a look at the lyrics here. - Nitya
For those of you in the New York area this summer, I highly recommend that you check out the Aicon gallery. Located at 35 Great Jones St, the gallery has two South Asian centric exhibitions this summer.
The current exhibition, "Towards the End", features work from Pakistani artist Adeela Suleman. Born and raised in Karachi, Suleman is currently a member of the Fine Arts department at the Indus valley school of Art & Architecture. According to the gallery's press release: "The exhibition hinges around a new group of monumental hand-beaten steel reliefs, rendered in the hammered metal-working tradition of Islamic art, depicting beheaded figures engaged in violent, but also absurd, scenes of armed conflict." (click here to read press release in full) The second exhibition, starting June 12, will feature 10 up and coming Bangladeshi artists. Information will be posted as it becomes available. http://www.aicongallery.com/ |