Scholars, advocates, and activists seeking to make the U.S. a more responsible global partner.
Human Rights
Resurgent Arab Nationalism in Egypt?

Resurgent Arab Nationalism in Egypt?

by , | Jun 7, 2012

The gains of the Muslim Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party and the Salafist al-Nour Party in the 2011-2012 parliamentary elections, as well as the Brotherhood’s Mohamed Morsi’s first-place showing in the presidential election, demonstrate that Egypt’s Islamists carry widespread support throughout the country. Nonetheless, the surge of enthusiasm for Hamdeen Sabahi, which placed him third in the presidential election (fewer than 5 points behind Morsi), demonstrates the growing strength of Nasserism in post-Mubarak Egypt.

read more

American Culture Wars in Uganda

by | May 31, 2012

On March 14, Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG) filed a U.S. federal lawsuit against American Minister Scott Lively, using the Alien Torts Statute (A.T.S.). The ATS allows for non-citizens to launch US court actions for violations of international law. SMUG accuses Lively of collaborating with four named Ugandan co-conspirators (conservative evangelicals Martin Ssempa and Stephen Langa, Member of Parliament David Bahati, and the current Minister of Ethics and Integrity James Buturo) to create an enabling environment for persecution and violence against gays and lesbians in Uganda. Lively is also accused of directly contributing to the infamous 2009 “Kill the Gays” bill1 which never came to a vote. In February, however, Bahati reintroduced the legislation.

read more

Time to Recall the Land Grabbers

by | May 31, 2012

On 5 December 2011, GRAIN received the 2011 Right Livelihood Award, often referred to as the ‘Alternative Nobel Prize’, at the Swedish Parliament in Stockholm. GRAIN was awarded “for its worldwide work to protect the livelihoods and rights of farming communities and to expose the massive purchases of farmland in developing countries by foreign financial interests”. GRAIN seized on the opportunity to demand an immediate end to land grabbing and a restitution of lands to local communities. The following speech was delivered to the Swedish Parliament by GRAIN during the Awards Ceremony.

read more

Syria’s Atamans

by | May 31, 2012

A political solution cannot occur without a military one, but a military solution alone  does not guarantee stability or security, even in the short term.

read more
Review: The Journey to Tahrir

Review: The Journey to Tahrir

by | May 31, 2012

The essays in The Journey to Tahrir: Revolution, Protest and Social Change in Egypt, 1999-2011 validate Hannah Arendt’s famous quote that “revolutionaries do not make revolutions. The revolutionaries are those who know when power is lying in the street and then they can pick it up.” Journey to Tahrir, edited by Jeannie Sowers, rejects the mainstream media’s often monolithic and melodramatic portrait of a random pro-democracy uprising in Egypt. Instead the contributors meticulously dissect the numerous components that coalesced in November 2011 in a mass social upheaval that brought down the Mubarak regime.

read more