The Importance of Recognizing the Diversity of Muslims
It seems that most major news stories that discuss Islam only do so when talking about conflict and violence involving the religion. Understandably, there are things to report on extremist Muslim groups. For example, in Nigeria a militant Islamist group, Boko Haram, has been a part of a recent conflict in the country. The group aims to take over the [...]
Death Traps in Bangladesh
A little less than a month ago, the Rana Plaza building in Bangladesh collapsed with over 3,000 people inside of it. When cracks were discovered in the building’s structure, shops and a bank inside were closed, but workers in an upstairs garment factory were told to report to work the following day. The next morning, April 24th, the building suddenly [...]
Boko Haram and the fight for Nigeria’s North
Nigerian President, Goodluck Jonathan has admitted that Nigeria no longer controls all of its territory. On May 14th, the president declared a state of emergency was being issued in three northeast Nigerian states, Borno, Yobe, and Admawa. The president acknowledged that there has been an almost complete collapse of law and order in those states due to the radical Islamist [...]
RT @ —
I anxiously clinched my IPhone on the morning of May 12, the day after elections in Pakistan on May 11, 2013. As I hurriedly went over Facebook updates about one of the most anticipated elections in my country’s history, I was disappointed by the outcome. In hope for details, I switched the TV on to a Pakistani channel, only to [...]
Eat Organic?
Every time I check out groceries from my favorite newly opened Whole Foods store in my neighborhood North of Pittsburgh, I cannot help but notice the hike in the grocery bill from when Wal-Mart used to be my place of choice. The difference in cost is no less than 100% but I choose to pay that money in the name [...]
The Revolutionary Optimists: Empowering Children to Change Their World
“I never say that, ‘okay, here’s a child, what can he do?’ No, never that. He can change the world.” – Amlan Ganguly Global Solutions Pittsburgh, together with WQED Pittsburgh and the Girls Coalition of Southwestern Pennsylvania, is proud to sponsor the showing of The Revolutionary Optimists on May 13 at the Union Project. The Revolutionary Optimists is a documentary [...]
The Immigrant Experience
I read Jhampa Lahiri’s “The Namesake” in 2004 and could empathize with the chief protagonist Ashima Ganguli in some oddly personal way, which I completely denied at that time. I had newly immigrated to the United States and was ready to forsake my past in order to be more socially acceptable. Women, who held on to their native roots, whether [...]
The Intersection of Civil and Human Rights
Hello again! This is the second in a series of blogs that address human rights violations that are perceived as cultural norms. If you missed my first post in this series, you can check that out here. Again, the following does not reflect the views of Global Solutions Pittsburgh or the Pittsburgh Human Rights Network (PHRN). It is solely my [...]
The Padma Bridge Paradox
The Padma Multipurpose Bridge project has evolved into a Catch-22 for Bangladesh. This controversial project is to be one of the most expensive and arduous engineering projects in recent history. It faces many challenges from being constructed in the deep, strong currents of the Padma River to loosing major funding. On the flip side, if the Padma Bridge is completed [...]
Same-Sex Marriage Debate on the Global Stage
The long debate over whether same-sex marriage should be given the same legal rights and privileges as a marriage between a man and a woman seems to have come to a head recently. Both opponents and supporters of same-sex marriage flooded the streets outside the Supreme Court in March during the days surrounding two court cases questioning the constitutionality of [...]
