Category Archives: Middle East

“We’re Good, They’re Evil,” Israel Defense Forces Reservist Tells Chabad Audience—While Protesters Object to a “Murderer” on Campus

On March 5, the Chabad Center for Jewish Life at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign hosted Ari Kalker, a reservist in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), who spoke about his combat experiences in Gaza. Meanwhile, protesters across the street shouted … Continue reading

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Yemen, Gaza and the Obscenity of the Collateral Damage Claim

It’s telling that Americans discussing the March Signal leak detailing plans for the US air strikes on Yemen have focused more on White House emoji choices than the death tolls. This is what “over-the-horizon” warfare means for Americans now: it … Continue reading

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Remembering the Work of International Human Rights Lawyer Francis A. Boyle

Francis Anthony Boyle passed away suddenly on January 30, 2025 at age 74. Francis A. Boyle was always in the right kind of trouble. Boyle was an international and human rights lawyer and professor in Urbana. He spent his life … Continue reading

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Posted in Human Rights, Imperialism, In Memorium, International law, Israel/Palestine, Justice, Middle East, Sanctuary movement, Section | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Remembering the Work of International Human Rights Lawyer Francis A. Boyle

CU MAC Open Letter to Champaign City Council

This letter was sent on January 28. It has been lightly edited for style. Dear Champaign City Council, Since May 7, 2024, the Muslim community here in Champaign-Urbana has shown up to city council meetings as part of a diverse … Continue reading

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Local Organizers Share Winning Strategies with Weary Residents

As the Champaign-Urbana community considers how we’ll navigate a second Trump presidency, we can learn from the organizing that led to local ballot victories this past November. The massive effort that made these ballot wins possible holds part of the … Continue reading

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Safer For Who?

For many community members, Tuesday night means Champaign City Council (CCC) night. The council chambers are the spot to be! Dozens of diverse community members show up to ask our elected officials to endorse a resolution that includes 1) a … Continue reading

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Mob Action Charges Against Activists for Pro-Palestinian Encampment at UIUC

As students are returning to university campuses, we are seeing signs of continued support for Palestinians who are enduring an onslaught by Israeli military forces. Here at the University of Illinois, the first week of classes students chalked “DIVEST” on … Continue reading

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Posted in Gaza, Israel/Palestine, Middle East, Police, Policing, Section, States'Attorney, University of Illinois | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Mob Action Charges Against Activists for Pro-Palestinian Encampment at UIUC

The Gaza Protests and Grassroot Challenges to US Foreign Policy

Letters to the editor, teach-ins, motions for divestment, campus protests, city resolutions . . . These expressions of citizen concern are not unique to the ongoing war on Gaza and are entirely appropriate to a democracy. Local communities have the … Continue reading

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Popular University for Gaza at UIUC

From Friday, April 26 through Friday, May 10, we established a branch of the Popular University for Gaza at UIUC, joining the national student movement for Palestine. This encampment was just one small piece in the long movement for Palestinian … Continue reading

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Posted in Israel/Palestine, Middle East, Section, Students, University of Illinois, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Voices | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Popular University for Gaza at UIUC

May/June Issue Front Cover

The Suffering in Gaza is Our Community’s Concern!  1,163 total views

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City Business is Whatever the Community Cares About

Americans have been in the streets since October 8 demanding an end to the US-backed Israeli attack on Gaza. They’re at sporting events and camping out in front of top politicians’ homes. They were at tree-lighting and caroling events over the … Continue reading

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Posted in Gaza, Israel/Palestine, Justice, Middle East, Palestinians, Politics, Section, Voices, War | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on City Business is Whatever the Community Cares About

Healing Culture in Wartime

Forty-one years ago when we organized the Common Differences conference on the UI campus, I was a young professor, already quite engaged in women’s issues, which had led to my research, writing, travels, and overall commitment. When I retired from the University of … Continue reading

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Posted in Feminism, International, Middle East, Section, Voices, War, Women, Women, wonen's rights | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Healing Culture in Wartime

March/April Issue Back Cover

Hundreds gathered in Westside Park on Saturday, March 2 as part of a Global Day of Action for Palestine. They heard speeches and then marched through downtown Champaign.  457 total views,  1 views today

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Posted in Imperialism, Israel/Palestine, Middle East, Peace movement, Violence, War | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on March/April Issue Back Cover

Winter Issue Front Cover

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The Age of Disconnect: US Policy and the War Beyond Gaza

The hypocrisy gap between US diplomatic pronouncements and US actions is no surprise to world audiences, but the disconnect on display since October 7 has put the nail in the coffin of the American Century. American officials have been invoking … Continue reading

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Israel’s Violence Will Never Bring “Safety” to Anyone, Including Jews

This article was published in Truthout on October 18, 2023. It has been updated to reflect numbers as of November 2, and lightly edited for style. The horror and heartbreak in Gaza reaches new proportions each minute: Israel’s siege has … Continue reading

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Frozen Conflicts, Flashmob Militants, and the End of the Gunpowder State

Syria, Libya, Yemen . . . and now Sudan. Sudan has the unhappy potential to become the next of the intractable conflicts that have unfolded over the past decade. These multisided struggles involving a cocktail of militaries, militias, and mercenaries … Continue reading

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Posted in Africa, Foreign Policy, International, International, Middle East, Section, Violence, War | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Frozen Conflicts, Flashmob Militants, and the End of the Gunpowder State

Silence and the Continuing Legacy of the US Invasion of Iraq

The twentieth anniversary of the 2003 US invasion of Iraq slid by with an encore performance of the arrogance that characterized the invasion itself. In 2003 that arrogance disregarded inconvenient international norms as easily as it disregarded the Iraqi victims … Continue reading

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Posted in Foreign Policy, Imperialism, International, International, Middle East, Remembering, Section, World-wide death and suffering | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Silence and the Continuing Legacy of the US Invasion of Iraq

Labor Abuse as Product Placement at the World Cup

The 2022 soccer World Cup began its takeover of global sports channels on November 20, transmitting endless images of cosmopolitan crowds enjoying the sparkling new stadiums of Qatar to audiences around the world. The country that hosts the World Cup … Continue reading

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Posted in International, International, labor, Labor/Economics, Middle East, Section, Sports | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Labor Abuse as Product Placement at the World Cup

The Great De-Centering: The World after Ukraine

The Ukraine war is a turning point in history, but not the one you might be expecting. It won’t revive the Cold War. It won’t determine the survival of the Liberal World Order (whatever that is). And most decidedly, it … Continue reading

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Posted in Foreign Policy, International, International, Middle East, Politics, Racism, Ukraine, War | Comments Off on The Great De-Centering: The World after Ukraine