By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | 21 May 2024 (IDN) — Decolonizing institutions, particularly religions on the African continent, is a compelling and urgent task. That’s the novel subject of a paper by Benjamin Tyavkase Gudaku, Master in Religious Studies from Benue State University in Makurdi, Nigeria. It’s also the topic of […]
A Novel Uncovers the Brutal Realities of West African Migrant Trafficking
By Ramesh Jaura BERLIN | 19 May 2024 (IDN) — ‘The Human Flow’, a novel by Jonathan Power—a renowned journalist, filmmaker, and broadcaster—offers a gripping and thought-provoking read. Published by ‘ibidem Press’ in February 2024, it is a captivating book about two journalists—a Tanzanian, Agnes and Jon, an Englishman. They embark on a dangerous journey […]
West African Philosopher Who Challenged Colonialism Leaves Major Legacy
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | 31 March 2024 (IDN)—Paulin Jidenu Hountondji of Benin, West Africa, considered one of the founding fathers of modern African philosophy, has recently passed away at the age of 82. His work “On African Philosophy” (1976) greatly clarified the debate over African philosophy—freeing it from the colonial […]
Close-up of Death Culture: 1,000 in Entertainment Biz Proclaim Support for Gaza Slaughter
By Norman Solomon* SAN FRANCISCO | 26 March 2024 (IDN) — Last week, Variety reported that “more than 1,000 Jewish creatives, executives and Hollywood professionals have signed an open letter denouncing Jonathan Glazer’s ‘The Zone of Interest’ Oscar speech.” The angry letter is a tight script for a real-life drama of defending Israel as it […]
“Oppenheimer” Brings the Harsh Reality of Nuclear Doomsday, Warns UN Chief
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, 25 March 2024 (IDN)— The award-winning movie “Oppenheimer”, based on the life of Robert Oppenheimer, credited with having helped the creation of the atomic bomb, has once again turned the spotlight on the longstanding campaign for nuclear disarmament—and the deaths and devastation caused by one of the world’s most destructive […]
Life on an American Campus: From a Hoodlum to a Dean
By Thalif Deen NEW YORK | 29 February 2024 (IDN) — The crisis in Gaza has triggered a negative fallout on some of the prestigious Ivy League universities in the US, including Harvard, Columbia and the University of Pennsylvania, where philanthropists who doled out multi-million-dollar donations are now threatening to reduce or cut off funding […]
Nigeria: Battling with a Serious Cost-of-Living Crisis
By Azu Ishiekwene The writer is the Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of LEADERSHIP newspaper based in Abuja, Nigeria. ABUJA | 15 February 2024 (IDN) — I was going through some old files in my closet the other day when I saw some documents and receipts that absolutely cracked me up. Among the browning, time-worn papers was the […]
Is the USA Heading Towards the Dictatorship of a Minority?
By Jan Servaes MIAMI | 23 January 2024 (IDN) — It increasingly looks like Donald Trump will win while American democracy is faltering. This is what Harvard political scientists Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt contend in their new book “Tyranny of the Minority: Why American Democracy Reached the Breaking Point”. In “Tyranny of the Minority,” […]
South Africa Grieves Death of Celebrated Writer of ‘Sarafina!’
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | 1 January 2024 (IDN) — Members of the theatre world, the arts community and followers worldwide are lamenting the death of Mbongeni Ngema—playwright, composer, lyricist, director and musician—who died in a head-on collision in Lusikisiki in the Eastern Cape. The celebrated playwright who brought the liberation […]
Two African Films Make It to the ‘Oscars So White’ Awards
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | 25 December 2023 (IDN) — There’s a burgeoning industry of great African films, but you’ll be lucky to see any of them at the Oscars. “I’m sure the majority of the world doesn’t even know we make movies,” commented Likarion Wainaina, the 35-year-old writer-director of Supa […]