New Doors Open for Syrian Refugees in Germany

Friedland Germany, a small town of 5,000 has been experiencing a decline in population has been occurring over the past few decades due to the abolition of over 2,000 jobs after West Germany and Germany reunited in 1990. The upside of 3,000 people (mostly young) have left Friedland in search of work elsewhere. Wilfried Block, 58, has been the mayor of Friedland since 1992 and proclaims that the "once gray, industrial town is now green and pleasant. But we've failed to keep people from leaving." Block now expresses interest in refugees in need of a place to live, hoping they can help fill the void of many empty homes and apartments throughout the town. This looks to be a win-win situation for both the Town of Friedland and many refugees who seek a place to live.

Wilfried Block, mayor of Friedland

source - NPR.org

Racial Barriers Amongst Students in South Africa

In a country such as South Africa, where the percentage of black citizens (76.4%) is far greater than the percentage of white citizens (9.1%), its hard to imagine that many black South Africans aren't granted the same educational opportunities as white South Africans. Unfortunately, this is true. At the University of Cape Town, students are experiencing this first hand. An article written by Norimitsu Onishi for The New York Times we hear the story of  Ramabina Mahapa, a 23 year old student. Mahapa is from a village of only black South Africans and graduated first in his high school class. He expresses that it was only when he began attending the University of Cape Town that he noticed his the color of his skin and how it reflected the level of education he had received up to that point. Black South African students occupy only 24% of the entire student body and only 5% of the university's faculty is black. Black students ranked at the bottom of all test scores and 1 in 15 of all students who own cars on campus are black. Rallies and protests are taking place so the cries of students to decolonize the campus will be heard.


Lindokuhle Patiwe, student at The University of Cape Town, grew up in a poor township outside Cape Town. [ Credit Joao Silva/The New York Times ]

Original Times Article - http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/09/world/africa/student-protests-in-south-africa-highlight-dissatisfaction-with-pace-of-change.html?ref=world&_r=0

       

First Blog Post

The topic of global issues (involving the environment, politics, human rights, etc.) interests me because I've always found importance in seeking information about the world around us. In such a privileged part of the world, we (as young Americans) can easily lose our grasp of the bigger picture and the challenges that are effecting nature, economics, and humanity. This blog will explore current events and controversy throughout the planet. In order to be precieved as people who care about the issues taking place in the world, we must be up to date on these issues. This blog will be an outlet for anyone who shares my interest for issues surrounding humankind .