Tuesday 9 November 2010

Wipe Out Hate. It’s time to stand up against any form of fascism or racial discrimination

The 9 November is the International Day against Fascism and Anti-Semitism. It is the day on which people commemorate the ‘Crystal Night’, a series of attacks against Jewish homes, shops, towns and villages which took place on 9 November 1938 and resulted in the death of 91 Jews and 30,000 Jewish men taken to concentration camps.

Sadly although history has taught us many lessons since, racism and fascism continue to exist in our society today. Racism and fascism may take many different forms – from open attacks to hate speech to institutionalized racism. Individuals or organized groups inflict fear upon the targeted community, which is their greatest power and by taken control of public spaces they marginalize communities and minorities, isolating them and weakening them.

In memory of the International Day Against Fascism and Anti-Semitism, Future Worlds Center is especially concerned about recent developments in Cyprus as we have been witnessing a rise of racist and fascist tendencies which recently are materializing into acts of violence. Last Friday we witnessed an unprecedented racial attack against refugees, immigrants and antiracist supporters by fascist groups, which acted under the tolerance of the police and in the presence of political figures. This shocking instance of physical violence, efforts of political coverage and impunity needs to alert us all. Future Worlds Center thinks it is time for each and every one of us to stand up against any form of fascism or racial discrimination and to take a step forward to constructively support our increasingly culturally diverse society for the good of all of us. It is time to wipe out the hate and to ensure the voices of vulnerable groups are not being pushed away from the public spaces in the name of nationalism.

Cyprus is a country deeply hurt by nationalistic and racist violence and the duty of creating a peaceful society, free of hatred and violence for all is the duty of all.

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For more information about the International Campaign against Fascism and Anti-Semitism, please visit: www.unitedagainstracism.org.

Thursday 4 November 2010

Your Choice to Act!

Life is about choices. You choose to study, you choose where to live, you choose what to eat, you choose what to buy, you choose where to go for holiday. Throughout your life,`you choose`, which means your choice is your life,and it is what the world has become. You can also chose to act with your everyday choices,and prevent global issues such as hunger, poverty, discrimination, diseases, child labour, and environmental crises.

Visit our new blog, on which we will post articles related to the choices that we have - and that we should think about more often: http://your-choice-to-act.blogspot.com.

Cost of `buying cheap` - Do you know what you pay for?
It feels very good when we find a good deal for groceries, or clothing. In Cyprus, especially lately with the number of choices we have for supermarkets, including all the local and international brands and chains, we can easily find real cheap deals which are good quality. This means you can buy more, and enjoy more!

We feel mesmerized, and so much carried away with the offers we are given, as if it’s a theater and we are the leading actor in this huge grocery store. Everything is for us. All we need to do is `buy and enjoy`. However unfortunately most of the time, we don’t think about what we really pay for. Is it really cheap, good quality shirts or chocolate? Or is it the critical working conditions, child labor, and sweatshops these huge discount supermarkets trade with or set up in Global South to produce and offer these cheap offers for us? What do we really pay for?
- to read more please visit the Your-Choice-To-Act Blog.