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Domestic Violence Against Women in Armenia
There is an old folk saying in Armenia, “A woman is like wool, the more you beat her, the softer she will be.” Whether it is the result of a traditional mindset, rampant poverty, or simply a lack of knowledge, domestic violence has been a historically widespread and unacknowledged social issue in the Republic of Armenia.
Full StoryBreaking Barriers: GALAS Empowers LGBT Armenians
The Gay and Lesbian Armenian Society (GALAS) held its fifth annual Armenian LGBT Conference titled “Breaking Through: Legally, Politically, Culturally” on Saturday, May 15. The event took place at the Plummer Park Community Center in West Hollywood, bringing together activists from different communities to participate and speak as part of the panel discussion.
Full StoryLRA Disarmament Bill & Northern Uganda Recovery Act Passes in Congress
In December, the United Human Rights Council (UHRC) invited Invisible Children and held a special documentary screening exposing the brutal civil war waged by Joseph Kony and his guerrilla group, the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) that plagued the people of Northern Uganda for over two decades.
Full StoryThe Darfur Genocide
Darfur is a region in Sudan the size of France. It is home to about 6 million people from nearly 100 tribes. Some nomads. Some farmers. All Muslims. In 1989, General Omar Bashir took control of Sudan by military coup, which then allowed The National Islamic Front government to inflame regional tensions. In a struggle for political control of the area, weapons poured into Darfur. Conflicts increased between African farmers and many nomadic Arab tribes.
Full StoryThe Genocide in Rwanda
In 1994, Rwanda’s population of seven million was composed of three ethnic groups: Hutu (approximately 85%), Tutsi (14%) and Twa (1%). In the early 1990s, Hutu extremists within Rwanda’s political elite blamed the entire Tutsi minority population for the country’s increasing social, economic, and political pressures. Tutsi civilians were also accused of supporting a Tutsi-dominated rebel group, the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF). Through the use of propaganda and constant political maneuvering, Habyarimana, who was the president at the time, and his group increased divisions between Hutu and Tutsi by the end of 1992. The Hutu remembered past years of oppressive Tutsi rule, and many of them not only resented but also feared the minority.
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