Human Rights Violation: Research Question

1. How has the Taliban diminished the role of women in Afghanistan?
             -politically (not being able to take public office, no right to vote, voice   
              political opinion, etc.)
             -economically (not being able to work, not making significant financial
              decisions).  
             -socially (education, attire, segregation of women and men in society).

It seems like education is the most important aspect regarding the plight of Afghan women under the Taliban.

2. How has the Taliban diminished education in the lives of Afghan women in Afghanistan?

2. I will have to learn exactly how and in which ways the Taliban has altered the education of women in Afghanistan. It will be helpful to also understand why the Taliban has chosen to particularly target the education of women. Why is education the main concern for the Taliban? The sources that I will have to should give insight into how women have been affected by their lack of education and how this has affected the Afghan society. Also, it will be important to use a source that looks at the Taliban's reasoning for curtailing the educational rights of Afghan women.
These are great sources that will help me answer my research question:
http://feminist.org/afghan/facts.html
http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2007161,00.html http://articles.cnn.com/2010-08-04/world/afghanistan.mutilated.girl.update_1_afghan-women-afghan-woman-taliban?_s=PM:WORLD
http://www.amazon.com/Women-Afghanistan-Under-Taliban/dp/0786410906
http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/6185.htm.

Human Rights Violation

1. I am interested in researching about the plight of Afghan women under the Taliban in Afghanistan. I would like to research about this specific human rights violation because it is interesting to me to find out more about the Taliban has impeded the progress of Afghanistan by persecuting Afghan women. It is also interesting to understand how this human rights violation has allowed terrorism to prosper and continue there, as they are able to oppress women at every level possible.  
2. Sources that discuss past and current investigations (books and articles) of the treatment of Afghan women under the Taliban:
http://feminist.org/afghan/facts.html
http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2007161,00.html http://articles.cnn.com/2010-08-04/world/afghanistan.mutilated.girl.update_1_afghan-women-afghan-woman-taliban?_s=PM:WORLD
http://www.amazon.com/Women-Afghanistan-Under-Taliban/dp/0786410906
http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/6185.htm.

These are just only a few!

3. Questions: What caused the Taliban to begin their oppression of Afghan?
                     In what ways did international support help stop this oppression?

Congo in its current state.

http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/africa/news/article_1589559.php/UN-reviews-its-mission-s-mandate-in-Congo-after-mass-rapes
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/23/world/africa/23congo.html

The first article that I found discussed the current efforts of the UN to help the current "rape spree" in the Congo.  In July 2010, over 300 women in eastern Congo were raped.  The article highlights that the UN finds it necessary to "review its policies and operations in the aftermath of recent fighting and the rape of unprotected civilians" because they truly believe that the current conditions in the Congo present a "clear tragedy".  The UN is trying to find ways to protect the Congolese because of the current situation of the country.  The UN "urges the international community to engage with Congolese society 'on cultural and political issues that contribute to this horrific pattern of abuse'".  After reading this article, it is quite obvious that the state of the Congo is horrible and has, without a doubt, changed for the worse. For me, it is interesting to find out exactly what the Congolese are doing to help their situation and how exactly the UN plans of helping the Congolese.

The second article says that "the rate at which people are dying in the country remains virtually unchanged" after the Congo's war.  It discusses that the mortality rate is increasing because of the lack of control of rebels and the political conflict in the Congo.  The article puts much of the responsibility of the death of the Congolese on the long-lasting effects the war had on the infrastructure of the Congo.  This article also alludes to how the lack of health care in the Congo may be directly related to the rising mortality rate of the Congolese.  This article, very much like the first article, puts in perspective the horrible state of the Congo and highlights some of the many problems that the Congolese have in their country.  This article was interesting to me because it clearly lays out how the people in the Congo are dying.  However, I would still like to know what national and international efforts are being made to decrease the mortality rate in the Congo.

Lingering Comments

I think that the discussion went well.  I was fortunate to have good group members who were willing to collaborate and dive deeper in the text.  However, I feel as if conducting a discussion with only 7 people is often times hard because there is a less of a variety of answers and opinions. 

As for the actual discussion, I thoroughly enjoyed discussing the effect King Leopold would have specifically had on the Congo if he had physically been in the Congo.  We discussed the effect he would have on the people of Congo as well as on his techniques of manipulation.

Response to Reading Assignment #1

Although I enjoyed reading the Introduction and Prologue of the book, the first chapter was somewhat monotonous.  In the Introduction and Prologue, it was particularly interesting for me to read about the history of the Congo and its relationship to European powers, including King Leopold.  Also, I liked reading about King Affonso I because the book highlights that "everything we know about this part of Africa...comes to us from [King Affonso I]" (12).  He was one of the few "African voices" that existed during that time, and it was interesting for me to learn about an African who could represet the supressed African sentiments.  Finally, it was fascinating to read about the different perceptions the Europeans had of Africa, as "they saw the continent as a faceless, blank, empty, a place on the map waiting to be explore" (18).  However, the first chapter was not very intriguing.  The information in the first chapter was specfically regarding John Rowlands, later Stanley, and did not take us into the direct role of King Leopold's imperialistic ways as the Introduction and Prologue have led us to expect. 

Two Discussion Questions:
1: What made the slaves of the Congo the most valuable items of trade for the Portuguese instead of the other vast array of resources in this region?

2: King Alfonso I is an excellent example of an African in the Congo elliciting sentiments to stop the imperialstic takeover.  Despite his efforts, why was there a lack of wider response to prevent slave-trade from the Congo?

Final Class Thoughts

It was interesting to learn about the term known as the "White Man's Burden".  I did not know there was a term like this that existed and never knew that there is a mindset that "there is a duty for a 'white' man to do something".  I would like to learn about this further and understand the context in which it is used.  Also, it is interesting to me if this term is still used today.  I also was not aware of the difference between New and Old Imperialism and I enjoyed understanding the difference. 

Current Events Presentation - September 2, 2010

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/01/world/01military.html?_r=1&ref=politics&pagewanted=print
What's being discussed in this article? This article is an informative editorial that discusses President Obama's recent declaration of an end to "Operation Iraqi Freedom". It talks about President Obama's opinion regarding his decision and puts in perspective the effects the change will have on the United States as well as Iraq. Although this article gives some opinions regarding President Obama's decision, it is more of an article that focuses on discussing what exactly this new declaration entails.  This article puts a historic perspective to the Iraq War, and while it credits the patriotism of the U.S. forces, it shows the Obama's Adminstration's intent to transfer the security responsibilites to its newly government. 

When did the event happen? (Is this breaking news or something that's been analyzed and discussed for a while?) This event happened on August 31 and is considered to be breaking news. 

What questions do you have that would help make this article make more sense to you? This article was very straight forward and easy to understand. However, I feel that I would understand this article a little better if it included exactly how it will benefit the United States in general.

What more do you need to learn about to be able to report on this event?
I would like to know President Obama's exact plans for the 50,000 troops still left if Iraq.

1. What's being discussed in this article? This article discusses the world perspective regarding the mosque by Ground Zero.  The article brings to light the many different views that exist around the world regarding the mosque.  The article goes beyond the opinions regarding this community center in the United States and discusses how others perceive this debatable situation.
2. When did the event happen? (Is this breaking news or something that's been analyzed and discussed for a while?) This event has been having for the past couple of months, and has now turned into a global debate as to whether or not the community should be built. 
3. What questions do you have that would help make this article make more sense to you? What more do you need to learn about to be able to report on this event?  I would like to learn and be provided with more substantial reasons for why Muslims should not continue to build the community center.  

Which news worthy events do you remember from your lifetime?

For my father, the three most noteworthy events that instantly come to mind are the assassination of Prime Minister Indria Gandhi of India in 1984, the September 11th attack on the world trade center, and the tsunami in 2004 in the Indian Ocean. To him, the assassination of Prime Minister Gandhi in 1984 and the riots that followed it were a stark revelation the religious separatist movement in India that led to the loss of several innocent Sikh lives. He remembers this event as a representation of the division of even the strongest of all democracies based on religious differences. Since then the political scene in India has seen a dramatic change and eventually has brought Dr. Manmohan Singh, a Sikh Prime Minister, to the forefront which my father considers reparation for the religious created in the wake of Prime Minister Gandhi’s death. The September 11th attack on the World Trade Center to my father marks the turning point in how Americans and others around the world live their life today. He remembers this event because believes it has changed the way we travel, think, and perceive others. This event is also close to my father’s heart because of the loss of innocent Americans lives at the hands of religious fanatics. Unfortunately, it has created a divide in the world community on religious grounds. Finally, the tsunami in the Indian Ocean represents a natural disaster that affected the psyche of the entire world. This was important to him and he remembers this because there were thousands of innocent lives lost at the hands something that cannot be controlled. In retrospect, he feels that the loss of human life and the negative economic impact on the affected countries could have been prevented using seismologic prediction of this natural disaster.


In my opinion, the three events that I am most moved by are the September 11th attacks, Hurricane Katrina, and the election of President Barrack Obama. Even at eight years of age, the September 11th attacks were overwhelming and important because of the extent of the damage it had on the United States. This event left an indelible image of the horror that American citizens faced at the hands of terrorists, and in retrospect, this event has impacted every Americans life. Hurricane Katrina was an event that left an everlasting effect on me, and I remember it because while I watched the destruction unravel, I felt helpless when others suffered. To me, it is a significant event that still affects the psyche of the United States and its citizens, prompting more preparedness of the emergency response teams at the state and federal levels. Today, as I watch TV events memorializing the 5th anniversary of this event, I am reminded of the gravity of this disaster. Barrack Obama’s election as President of the United States is also an event that still resonates in me, and I feel that is one of the most important events that has happened in U.S. history. I remember his inauguration and the events that surrounded very well, as if celebrating a new era of racial unity in the United States. This newsworthy event was a great milestone as a minority in the American society and was a reinforcement of the strength of the “American Dream”.