African Politics

Latest Articles

Freedom Watch: Speak no evil

Why are African-American leaders silent about slavery in Sudan?
It wasn’t the first time members of the Congressional Black Caucus had heard – and done nothing about – Sudan’s dirty secret. Even before a recent House international-relations subcommittee hearing on human-rights violations in Sudan, they knew that kidnapping and slavery had become a barbarous byproduct of Sudan’s bloody holy war.
By TIM SANDLER | May 20, 2010

Equal scary people

Should foreigners -- like folks from NH -- vote in Maine?
I have nothing against people who've had the misfortune of being born in other nations. Unless they're from Chad.
By AL DIAMON | April 08, 2009

Stop the bastards!

African exiles get political.
If you’re unfamiliar with the history of Ethiopia, you’ll probably be lost. (Try skimming a summary before you go.)
By GREG COOK | July 08, 2008

Power outage

As South Africa celebrates 14 years of post-apartheid rule, AIDS and electricity could spark revolution
Damn it, I want to be optimistic. I have always seen my glass as half full and not half empty. Now I think it’s dry. I’ll check once the lights come on again.
By PETER-DIRK UYS | April 23, 2008

It's out of this world

The ART hosts Elections & Erections; Trinity does Blithe Spirit
Uys’s new show takes its title from two things that were illegal when the now-63-year-old gay white man was growing up in South Africa: democracy and sex.
By CAROLYN CLAY | April 08, 2008

What about Tibet?

The Olympics may prove to be China’s Achilles’s heel
It is about money.
By EDITORIAL | March 28, 2008

Casting ballots

The Human Rights Watch Film Festival on the campaign trail
Some believe democracy can save the world. Others wonder whether it can even work in America.
By PETER KEOUGH | January 08, 2008

Hell on earth

The Devil and Darfur
How does the Devil get his work done? With the greatest of ease, seems to be the answer.
By JAMES PARKER | November 27, 2007

Killing the deity

Waterville author takes atheism one step further
In God is Dead ’s title story, God is searching — for unapparent reasons — for a boy named Thomas Mawien.
By CHRISTOPHER GRAY | September 05, 2007

Taking sides

The Devil Came on Horseback; La faute à Fidel
Have you been remiss in taking a stand on the killing war in Darfur because the situation there seems too complex to understand?
By GERALD PEARY | August 15, 2007

By | January 01, 0001

The last Potter

What does the end mean for Harry’s strange Boston disciples?
The end is never easy, is it?
By SHARON STEEL | July 24, 2007

Starbucks faces criticism on Ethiopian coffee deal

Fair trade
The ubiquitous coffee merchant is under fire for what critics describe as giving a raw deal to small Ethiopian coffee farmers.
By MIRIAM ALTMAN | April 04, 2007

Africa's invisible slaves

Human bondage resurfaces in the dark heart of Sudan
This article originally appeared in the June 30, 1995 issue of the Boston Phoenix.
By TIM SANDLER | November 14, 2006

Terror incognita

Phillip Noyce takes on apartheid
Even as Aussie Phillip Noyce built a lucrative career as a director of proficient 1990s Hollywood blockbusters, fans of the distinguished films he’d made back home felt sold out.
By GERALD PEARY | October 25, 2006

Liberians in RI view new president with hope

Foreign Affairs
After years of bad news from home, local Liberians have reason for optimism as they watch the performance of Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf.
By TIM LEHNERT | July 12, 2006

Africans suffer while the world stands by

Despite the efforts of student activists, it’s hard to get Americans to care about death, rape, and disease in Sudan
Raised on a steady diet of “Never Again,” members of Brown University’s Darfur Action Network found it infuriating to watch the international community stand idly by as murder and rape in Darfur continued unabated.
By ALEXANDER PROVAN | June 07, 2006