As we approach the summer holidays many families are considering having their daughters circumcised. This time of year is considered the best time as it can take up to six weeks for girls to heal. Many consider that circumcising their daughters is a rite of passage to womanhood that ensures that they are marriageable. But…
Christmas can be a time of joy and celebration or of shopping and stress. Either way, most people try and spend it with family and friends. Millions are hitting the roads in a mad dash across the country, battling against the snow and ice. Meanwhile there is little Christmas cheer at the pumps, where a…
“Christmas is about buying presents for your loved ones, eating Turkey and spending quality time with the family,” Jason Roberson from North London told People with Voices. His view seems to be shared by many Londoners regardless of race or culture. In the UK, the original meaning of Christmas is the celebration of the birth…
I am writing this piece on homophobia because over the past few weeks I have listened to and partaken in, various discussions on what it means to be “homophobic”. On each occasion I have stated and will do so from the outset here, that the word is not appropriate and does not make sense, yet…
In September, al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) abducted seven employees of French uranium giants Areva in northern Niger. An ongoing debate has been centred on the possible implication of the local Touareg, and the actual link between AQIM and al-Qaeda, which has yet to be precisely established. It was the ideal moment for Osama…
The Sahara Desert is of strategic interest to many governments, both African and Western. The geostrategic position of the region has made it a central point throughout history, but recent events have brought it under the negative spotlight of the media. The Sahara is back in the headlines following the kidnapping of seven employees of…
Labour leadership contender MP Diane Abbott, has called for ethnic and gender monitoring of public sector job cuts to ensure that minority communities are not disproportionately affected – and I think she’s right. Speaking on Radio 4’s Today programme, Abbott warned that given the large concentration of people from black and minority ethnic backgrounds in…