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Author Archives: Richard Esbenshade
Ukrainian Refugees and National(ist) Politics in Eastern Europe
In an article in our last issue (November-December Public i), I used the case of Hungary—its positive reception of Ukrainian refugees, alongside its negative role in hindering EU political and material support of Ukraine in its defense against Russian aggression—to … Continue reading
436 total views
Posted in Eastern Europe, Immigrants, International, International, Poland, Politics, Refugees, Section, Ukraine
Tagged Eastern Europe, Immigrants, migrant politics, refugees, Ukraine War, Ukrainian refugees
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Ukraine, Hungarian Refugee Politics, and the Future of Migrants in the EU
The February 24, 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine unleashed, in addition to death, destruction, and hardship on the Ukrainian people as a whole, a wave of refugees not seen in Europe since World War II. Over six million Ukrainians were … Continue reading
582 total views
Posted in Eastern Europe, International, International, Politics, Refugees, Section, Ukraine
Tagged Hungary, migrant politics, migration, Ukraine War, Ukrainian refugees
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Should Ukrainians Surrender for World Peace?
The February 24 one-year anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine saw no respite for either the volunteer and professional Ukrainian troops or the civilian population. The Russian-occupied territories in eastern and southern Ukraine and the areas along the military … Continue reading
988 total views
Posted in Eastern Europe, International, International, Politics, Section, Ukraine, War
Tagged Eastern Europe, peace, the Left, Ukraine, war
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Progressive Dilemmas on Ukraine
The Left has tangled itself in knots over how to respond to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Early statements, such as by CodePink and Black Alliance for Peace, while putatively opposing war, laid emphasis on US and Western responsibility, NATO’s … Continue reading
920 total views
Posted in Eastern Europe, Foreign Policy, Imperialism, International, International, Politics, Refugees, Ukraine, War
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Polish Women Take to the Streets
Following an October 22 Polish Supreme Court decision cutting off the main route to legal abortion in the country, Polish women, and many supportive men and children, took to the streets in the biggest mass mobilization in Poland in 40 … Continue reading
Posted in abortion rights, Feminism, International, International, Poland, Women
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Anti-Semitism: Still the “Socialism of Fools”?
Scandals over alleged anti-Semitism have recently ensnared leftist British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn; the populist Yellow Vest movement, which leans both Left and Right (and neither, rejecting both); and Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), critic of Israel and supporter of … Continue reading
Posted in anti-Semitism, Boycott, Israel, Israel/Palestine, Middle East
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What Can We Learn from the Yellow Vests?
The last Saturday in March marked “Act XX” for the the Gilets Jaunes or Yellow Vests protests, the 20th consecutive weekend citizens have marched in the tens of thousands and occupied traffic roundabouts across France. Since hundreds of thousands mobilized … Continue reading
Posted in Democracy, Economy, France, Free Speech
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Brexit, Regrexit, Lexit: Is Socialism in One (European) Country Possible?
On November 25, Great Britain’s Prime Minister Theresa May returned from Brussels with approval from the other 27 European Union (EU) member states for a deal on Brexit, the British commitment to exit the EU pursuant to the results of … Continue reading
Posted in Eastern Europe, European Union, International, International, socialism
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Good-Bye, and Hello, to the “Pocket Prairie”: Interview with Dave Monk—Edited (Print) Version
Dave Monk established the “Pocket Prairie,” across the street from the WEFT 90.1 FM studios on Market Street in downtown Champaign, in the 1980s; due to development of the space, it has been relocated to the Second Street Detention Pond … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
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Good-Bye, and Hello, to the “Pocket Prairie”: Interview with Dave Monk—Long Version
Posted in Uncategorized
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Poland: Following in Hungary’s Footsteps
Second of two parts. On December 20, the European Commission—the executive arm of the European Union (EU), consisting of one representative from each of the 28 member countries—launched the “nuclear option” of EU politics against Poland: a proposed formal warning … Continue reading
Posted in International, Poland
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Understanding the Rise of the Right in Poland
First of two parts On November 11, Poland’s Independence Day, some 60,000 people converged in a Warsaw demonstration organized by Polish extreme-right nationalist groups; large banners proclaimed slogans including “Pure Blood” and “White Europe.” The Interior Minister of the ruling … Continue reading
“Anti-Refugeeism without Refugees” in Eastern Europe
Analysts of post-World War II, post-Holocaust Eastern Europe coined the term “Anti-Semitism without Jews” to characterize the uncanny persistence of prejudice in countries mostly cleansed of any actual Jewish presence. The category of “Jew” took on a symbolic character, incorporating … Continue reading
Posted in International, Politics, Refugees
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The Beheading of a Saint: Junipero Serra and the California Monument Wars
During his visit to Mexico in February, Pope Francis apologized for the “systematic and organized” exclusion of indigenous Americans over the centuries. This took place in San Cristobal de las Casas, the epicenter of the indigenous-identified Zapatista uprising in 1994, … Continue reading
Posted in Indigenous, Latino/a, Politics
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Students Rally for Coal Divestment
On April 4, the student group UIUC Beyond Coal rallied on the Quad to push the Academic Senate to pass a resolution urging the University divest $5.1 million held in the coal industry through stock index funds, in order to slow … Continue reading
Posted in Environment, Politics
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Whither the Refugees, W(h)ither Europe?
Since I arrived in Hungary in early summer, the media, and everyday conversations, were filled with the refugee crisis. From the dangerous boat crossings from Libya to Europe’s Mediterranean island outposts such as Lampedusa, Italy, the main flow had shifted … Continue reading
Posted in International, Politics, Section
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The Greek Crisis: Beginning of the End for European Unity?
Protesters burn an EU flag during an anti-austerity demonstration in Thessaloniki, Greece. Practically since the moment of its victory in the January 25 elections, Greece’s Syriza party has been locked in a struggle with the “troika,” the triumvirate of the … Continue reading
Posted in International, Politics, Politics
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Political Soccer: A Global Phenomenon—Except Here
This summer’s soccer World Cup—always the most-watched sporting event on the planet—in Brazil was accompanied by enormous demonstrations, at times violently repressed. Citizens protested the diversion of vast resources from urgent social needs to the building of hugely expensive stadiums, … Continue reading
Posted in International, Politics
Tagged International, politics, sports
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Monumental Struggles in Hungary
After midnight on Saturday, July 19, dozens of workers with heavy machinery, protected by hundreds of special-unit police, installed the Monument to the German Occupation on Szabadság (Freedom) Square in central Budapest. The surprise nighttime action and heavy police presence … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
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Ukraine: Is There an Alternative?
Surveying both the mainstream and the alternative/Left media on the Ukraine crisis can seem like switching between alternate universes. In one, Ukrainians struggling for democracy, European values and independence, after toppling a corrupt President in thrall to oligarchs and the … Continue reading
Posted in Eastern Europe, International, International, Ukraine
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