TEKEL Workers Stage Turkey’s Largest Protest in 30 Years

by Emel Baştürk Akca - Turkey - Once one of Turkey’s biggest public producers of alcoholic beverages and tobacco products, TEKEL has outlets and factories all over the country. But ever since the Turkish giant opted for privatization and terminated...

Posted by Emel Baştürk Akca on March 4, 2010 12:00 AM

Jeopardizing Children’s Health: Indian Markets Overrun with Toxic Toys

by Lesley D. Biswas - India - The annual Bidhannagar Fair at Kolkata’s Central Park is a swarm of enthusiastic children and their parents. Amidst the tangle of toy vendors and the squeaking and jarring sounds of their toys, seven-year-old...

Posted by Lesley D. Biswas on February 22, 2010 12:00 AM

Half the Sky: Why You Must Join the Global Movement to Emancipate Women

by Katharine Daniels Executive Editor, The WIP - USA - For me and my colleagues, Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn’s new book Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide is exhilarating. Already in its 17th printing, Half...

Posted by Katharine Daniels on January 4, 2010 12:00 AM

Compassion, Courage and Hope: Creating Peace in the New Year

by Sarah McGowan Features & Photo Editor, The WIP I was called a prostitute, I was called a thief…I was called all sorts of names, but none of the newspapers came to call me defender of children’s rights. Very ironic...

Posted by Sarah McGowan on December 24, 2009 5:30 PM

Grassroots Climate Justice Groups Work for Results in Copenhagen

by Brittany Shoot - Denmark - Copenhagen is an odd mix of frustrating inertia and vigilant protest as week two of the COP15 UN climate conference at the city’s Bella Center continues in tandem with Klimaforum09, the people’s summit, and...

Posted by Brittany Shoot on December 17, 2009 12:00 AM

There’s Something In The Air: Copenhagen Prepares for COP15

by Brittany Shoot - Denmark - Copenhagen has been buzzing with activity the last two months. After the Olympics committee met here in October with a slough of American cameos from Oprah and the Obamas, the city quickly switched gears...

Posted by Brittany Shoot on November 23, 2009 12:00 AM

The Water Front: Fighting to Keep the Tap On

by Jessica Mosby - USA - Highland Park, Michigan would seem an unlikely candidate for water access problems – the city is located on the Great Lakes, the largest group of freshwater lakes in the world. The Great Lakes are...

Posted by Jessica Mosby on September 11, 2009 12:00 AM

Looking into the Toilet: Potty Politics

by Mandy Van Deven - India - What do former U.S. Senator Larry Craig, women in Victorian England, and transgender activists have in common? Toilets!...

Posted by Mandy Van Deven on August 17, 2009 12:00 AM

Refusing Silence, Rejecting Simplification:
Kenyan Activist Philo Ikonya Battles Corruption

by Shailja Patel - Kenya - And they asked him: Why do you sing? And he answered, as they seized him: I sing because I sing And they searched his chest But could only find his heart And they searched...

Posted by Shailja Patel on July 27, 2009 12:00 AM

"Fat Activists" Seek Law Banning Weight Discrimination

by Mridu Khullar - India / USA - In December 2008, Binghamton, New York, became one of just six cities in the United States to enact laws protecting against weight discrimination. The others are San Francisco and Santa Cruz (California),...

Posted by Mridu Khullar on July 8, 2009 12:00 AM

Olympic Spirit and Media Objectivity Should Be Upheld

by Yu Sun - China - The earthquake that struck Sichuan recently has shown China’s capacity to mobilize resources, cope with emergency situations and handle crisis. China conducted its own prompt media coverage and provided unprecedented access to foreign media...

Posted by Yu Sun on June 16, 2008 12:00 AM

Divided Opposition: Huge Betrayal for Activists Who Have Suffered for Change

by Constance Manika - Zimbabwe - On March 11th, 2007, 64 year old Sekai Holland woke up unusually early. She was restless and anxious because of the scheduled protests that her party was going to go ahead with against the...

Posted by Constance Manika on February 19, 2008 1:00 AM

Child Rights Activist Betty Makoni “Lights Up the Dark" for Abused and Disadvantaged Young Girls

by Constance Manika - Zimbabwe - “The stories we listened to made us bleed inside, the genital wounds we later had to help nurse evoked us, the long distances we traveled every day and night to educate girls on their...

Posted by Constance Manika on October 29, 2007 6:29 AM

Boys Outnumber Girls in India at an Ever Growing Rate

by Neeta Lal - India - Kaveri Nambiar, 25, a Brahmin woman from Chennai in southern India, married a farmer’s son in Punjab, up north, a few months ago. But rather than glowing with the happiness of newly married bliss,...

Posted by Neeta Lal on October 2, 2007 1:37 PM

Defiant Cont Mhlanga’s Latest Play Banned But He Vows To Continue with Protest Theater

by Constance Manika - Zimbabwe - Hopefully, readers may remember the piece I wrote for The WIP in May 2007 about prominent Zimbabwean playwright Cont Mhlanga, and the premiere of his most recent and controversial play yet, “The Good President.”...

Posted by Constance Manika on August 6, 2007 9:23 PM