Worldcrunch
Over the past few years, a growing awareness of the colonial histories of individuals or racist connotations of certain names has led to renamed landmarks and torn down statues. But in the Netherlands, activists may be taking the process to a whole new terrain: products.
What has driven the rise and slow decline of Chinese social media influencers on the African continent? A mix of business, racism and censorship — and short attention spans of all of the above.
With Monday’s consecration of the controversial new Hindu temple, Ayodhya Ram, Indian Prime Minister Narenra Modi declared that God had “made him the representative of the people of India” to be present at the ceremony. This is a dark watershed in modern India’s attempt to reconcile church and state.
Many of history’s best-known painters and sculptors were thought to be gay or bisexual, but major Rembrandt and Michelangelo exhibitions have mostly remained silent on the subject. And yet the artists’ works are full of sexual symbols.
For more than two decades, the Egyptian singer and dancer Ruby has pushed the conservative limits of society. Her latest song is more sexually explicit than ever.
Euthanasia and assisted suicide laws are still largely taboo, as Italy has been reminded recently. Still, lawmakers from New Zealand to Peru to Switzerland and beyond are gradually giving more space for people to choose to get help to end their lives — sometimes with new and innovative technological methods.
Our Naples-based psychiatrist laments the state of Italy’s treatment of autistic patients.
Ecuador’s simmering civil war, curiously, appears to also be a byproduct of the disbanding of Colombia’s FARC rebels in 2016. Since then, chaos has reigned through much of Latin American drug trafficking routes, reverberating with criminal elements in Ecuador.
Overweight, permanently exhausted and only able to work two hours a day: a few years after founding the German Empire, Otto von Bismarck was facing burnout. Then a young doctor came onto the scene. The diet he prescribed worked wonders, and may be worth reactivating for our busy modern lives.
Women in the Islamic Republic are fighting to recover social rights and freedoms granted some 80 years ago by a monarchy that was once reviled and is now keenly missed by younger generations.
Some pastors are teaching the gospel in Johannesburg communities plagued by gang violence and murder, even trying to win the souls of gangsters and helping some to rehabilitate. But this makes them a target for rival gangs.
For decades, countries like Germany have resisted implementing school uniforms. But dress codes in schools are not just for the elite. They can help reduce social stigma for students living in poverty, as well as helping fight the climate crisis.
New HIV infections and AIDS deaths have plummeted, but stigma is on the rise. The solution may come from the era when the epidemic was at its worst.
The pandemic brought a massive effort to limit the spread of bad health information. Did it do more harm than good?
For a combination of spiritual and political reasons, Rastas developed a diet based on healthy, local ingredients that was a precursor, it turns out, to some current food trends.
Whether portrayed as heroes or villains, fight attendants increasingly find themselves the unwilling stars of viral videos. And sudden TikTok notoriety can take a considerable toll on the cabin crew’s wellbeing.
Born in Madrid but working around the world, art collective Boa Mistura explores creativity as a powerful force to inspire dialogue and transform urban environments into canvases of hope.
On climate and peace negotiations, Colombia’s president has lots to say. But has he ever seen the filth which late-night drinkers leave on streets and at doorsteps nearly every night?
It is no joke that in a country which is itself inching towards full blown satire each day, comedians have taken on the mantle of relaying news.
From setting up attainable goals to enlisting the support of others, there are some scientific and behavioral strategies that can help you keep your New Year’s resolutions.
When workers do come to Karnali province, high in the Himalayas, they don’t stay long despite being offered hefty bonuses.
In 2008, Ada Beatriz Rico started counting the women who died due to gender-based violence. Argentina began keeping official records seven years later, but the activist’s pioneering work continues.
Wars, terrorist attacks, natural disasters, famines … The news gives us every right to despair – but as the author puts it: “Anyone can be cynical, the challenge is to be an optimist.”
The violence and anger depicted in films, such as RRR, Pushpa, Kabir Singh, or Animal, prompt contemplation on the underlying reasons for the increasing appeal of such violently toxic masculine representations in Indian cinema.
The French-American writer recalls a trip last Christmas to her father’s native Louisiana, and an invitation for some firing-range fun in the backyard.
New Year’s Eve can be challenging for her patients, but our Naples-based psychiatrist puts a sunny spin on end-of-year wishes.
In the short term, a fall in consumption of material objects would be an economic and social catastrophe. In the long term, it is necessary.
This wasn’t supposed to be about politics or identity or anti-Semitism, about war or peace. It’s a story about a name. What’s in a name? Nothing at all, says Mr. Shakespeare. Or maybe all of the above when the name is Israely and the year was 2023.
The writer hits a professional wall the year after the birth of her second child. It’s a reminder of the limits of our modern uber competitive economy.
On learning that being French may make me genetically predisposed to grumpiness — and on coming to terms with my addiction to GIFs.
It’s an opportunity to recreate an otherwise bypass cultural moment. But there are limitations in combining live music and a pre-recorded voice: You can’t respond to the temperament of the audience. You can’t speed it up when required
The list of notable deaths in 2023 includes Henry Kissinger and Silvio Berlusconi, who many believe had already overstayed their public welcome before our writer was even born.
As a measure to limit immigration, the British government announced that the minimum income required to bring a foreign spouse into the country on a family visa will rise sharply.
Manufacturers of toys are now finally working to reduce the environmental impact of their products, using more eco-friendly materials and promoting recycling and repairs. But are parents ready to buy second-hand toys or pay more for an eco-designed product? And do kids actually care?
Daughter of conservative Korean immigrants to Argentina, portrait of rising star in Latin America’s electronic music club scene.
The first obstacle to ending gender-based violence is naming it. But too many obstacles remain which keep women suffering in dangerous relationships. Spanish publication Ethic looks at the state of affairs around gender-based violence in the country.
A patient tells our Naples-based psychiatrist about his questionable plans for Christmas dinner.
The practice of gift giving exists in every culture in the world, and has for as long as recorded history. What does it tell us about the nature of human society?
China’s exam-oriented culture fails to foster imagination, which is necessary to create better employees and better people.
Mao Zedong once cited the “philosophy” in the Chinese parlor game of mahjong. It remains a mass pastime for millions of folk, both in China and among the diaspora.