Francisco Alves Mendes Filho,[1] better known as Chico Mendes (December 15, 1944 – December 22, 1988), was a Brazilianrubber tapper, trade union leader and environmentalist. He fought to preserve the Amazon rainforest, and advocated for the human rights of Brazilian peasants and indigenous peoples. He was assassinated by a rancher on December 22, 1988. The Chico Mendes Institute for Conservation of Biodiversity (Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade), a body under the jurisdiction of the Brazilian Ministry of the Environment, is named in his honor. Early life[edit] Francisco "Chico" Alves Mendes Filho was born on December 15, 1944, in a rubber reserve called Seringal Bom Futuro,[2] outside of Xapuri, a small…

Every empire, however, tells itself and the world that it is unlike all other empires, that its mission is not to plunder and control but to educate and liberate.   What we must eliminate are systems of representation that carry with them the authority which has become repressive because it doesn't permit or make room for interventions on the part of those represented. The sense of Islam as a threatening Other - with Muslims depicted as fanatical, violent, lustful, irrational - develops during the colonial period in what I called Orientalism. The study of the Other has a lot to…

India wants to be a $10 trillion economy by 2032. Another way of putting that: In 16 years, it aims to be where China is today. That’s a remarkable target and could be achievable, especially since India’s economy grew by 4.6 times in the last 16 years. From $494 billion in 2001, India is expected to become a $2.2 trillion economy by the end of this year. China’s economy is currently pegged at over $10 trillion, while the US is worth over $17 trillion, according to the World Bank. Last year, India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi went even further,announcing that his dream was to make India…

Every year in the month of Ramadan, all Muslims fast from first light until sundown, abstaining from food, drink, and sexual relations. Those who are sick, elderly, or on a journey, and women who are pregnant or nursing are permitted to break the fast and make up an equal number of days later in the year. If they are physically unable to do this, they must feed a needy person for every day missed. Children begin to fast (and to observe the prayer) from puberty, although many start earlier. Although the fast is most beneficial to the health, it is regarded principally…

Christian Zionists—and their most ardently supported organization, “Christians United for Israel”—have once again proved that no matter how slavishly they try and ingratiate themselves with Jewish Supremacists, their overlords will always ultimately object to non-Jews having any say in Jewish matters. The latest example has come with Jewish reaction to a new Christians United for Israel (CUFI) project designed to fund and promote a mass exodus of Jews from various countries to Israel. While the Christian Zionists believe that they are thereby helping to fulfill some biblical prophecy, and at the same time supporting the Jews-only state of Israel, Jewish…