What I learned from putting together Aid Worker Voices
What I learned from putting together Aid Worker Voices Aid Worker Voices was published back in September, 2016 and since then I have been busy extending the research with more in-depth interviews with local aid workers and other posts based on more thought and research about a wide variety of topics. Look soon for update posts about local aid workers here in North Carolina, what is it like to be a LGBQI+ aid worker, and some thoughts about the sector overall. On the margins I am an academic that studies and teaches about aid and development and founded a program with a global development focus, and this puts me decidedly only on the fringes of “the humanitarian aid and development industry.” What I have learned from working with J (aka Evil Genius) on our survey, writing dozens of posts about the data and, finally, putting together Aid Worker Voices is that though I have a…
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FollowSpeech give by Natalia Sendawy 22 October 2024 at the beginning of the Solidarity Walk
Speech give by Natalia Sendawy 22 October 2024 at the beginning of the Solidarity Walk “I would like to start off by saying thank you all for being here today to stand in solidarity with oppressed people around the world. This walk isn’t just about raising awareness but it is a statement of unity in fighting for peace, justice, and the fundamental human rights everyone deserves. For those of you who do not know me, my name is Natalia and I am half Polish and half Palestinian. As I stand here, I feel a deep, personal connection to this cause. I have family in Gaza, where the people endure a daily reality of siege, occupation, and oppression, yet remain deeply connected to their land and their history. A powerful symbol of this connection is the olive tree. For Palestinians, the olive tree is more than a source of livelihood;…
Read MoreAmerica must midwife an independent Palestine (written September 2014)
I wrote and published this ten years ago, and I am chilled and saddened to re-read it in light of the past year. September 9, 2014 America must midwife an independent Palestine Enough is enough. The United States in 1948 helped create one state. It is far past time for the most powerful democracy in the world to create another. We hear ad naseum that the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is a difficult and complicated situation. Please, just stop with the dodge. To invoke journalist Edward R. Murrow, “Difficulty is the excuse history never accepts.” History does, however, judge the actions people take when directed not by passion but rather by intelligence and sound logic. At the same time, history also tells us that when two peoples are locked in battle, emotion always trumps reason and violence festers until one side is vanquished. Though the Egyptians recently have done…
Read MoreAddress at opening ceremony for LEAF event 2010
A blast from the past I recently came across this address I delivered in Sri Lanka 14 years ago, long before I imagined critical Hydra theory. The optimism and faith in human agency I exhibit in this essay are for affect; in reality my faith in humanity is weak, especially given the genocides occurring in Gaza and Myanmar -and elsewhere. Are we a failed species? Only time will tell, but we seem incapable of tamping down gluttony and greed and these sins will surely lead us to a environmental future incompatible with human life. The Leaders in Environmental Advocacy Forum (LEAF) event was an academic summit on global environmental issues co-organized by the Periclean Scholars class of 2011 at Elon University and faculty at the University of Colombo. My comments touch on environmental issues, policy changes, the failings of capitalism/neoliberalism, and the hope of human action to make fundamental change….
Read MoreGuest post: My Palestinian/Polish Story
Note Natalia is a rising junior majoring in biology at Elon University. Her story is unique and compelling, bringing together both the Nakba and the Holocaust. [Arabic version below added 30 May] My Palestinian/Polish Story by Natalia S. We all have parents Like most, I am fortunate enough to have two parents and two sets of grandparents. Mine came from different parts of the world, two worlds that were both torn apart by violence and oppression. My mom originates from Poland, specifically from Lezajsk. My dad was born into occupation and raised in Gaza. Below I share a few stories regarding the tragedies of the Holocaust and the Nakba, narratives which are part of my family’s history. Growing up Polish and Palestinian Growing up, when asked about my ethnicity, I would proudly say I am Polish and Palestinian. However, I was often met with puzzled looks; few knew where…
Read MoreFive long years seeking justice
[Note: this post was intended as an op-ed. Mohammad Azizul Hoque of the Centre for Peace and Justice in Dhaka, Bangladesh contributed to this essay. Hoque and his colleague Tasnuva Ahmad wrote an excellent article on this important five year anniversary.] Five long years seeking justice August 25, 2022 marks the five year anniversary of the Rohingya genocide. This ethnic and religious minority has spent five long years seeking justice. The facts are both clear and stark. Five years ago the Rohingya people were the victim of a genocide by the military junta controlling Myanmar. Beginning August 25, 2017 nearly 800,000 Rohingya fled across the border into Bangladesh. Some 140,000 Rohingyas were internally displaced in the melee and herded into IDP camps, where they have remained ever since. Though the Rohingya diaspora nearly global in reach, most are concentrated in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and India, with the vast majority…
Read MoreReactions to “Vale the Humanitarian Principles: New principles for a new environment”
“We can never construct the best world in which our compassion can immediately translate into an end of suffering, but we can try to build a second-best world based on hard-headed assessments of the needs and options.” –Fiona Terry, Condemned to Repeat: The Paradox of Humanitarian Action, p. 216 “It is presumed that market solutions are always to be preferred, that governments and regulators are generally incompetent, and that great wealth reflects superior intelligence or insight, rather than having anything to do with entrenched privilege or power.” -page 6 Reactions to Vale the Humanitarian Principles: New principles for a new environment Overview and thoughts Australian academics Matthew Clarke and Brett Parris recently published Working Paper 001 for the Centre for Humanitarian Leadership at Deakin University. They take us up to 35,000 feet and offer nothing less than what they immodestly call “new principles” to guide humanitarian work. Thoughtful critiques…
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