fabiochiu/medium-articles huggingface dataset:
I’m 66 years old. I’m a white male. I’m pissed!
By: Danny Robinson
Tags: Howie Hawkins, Revolution, Green Party

I’m 66 years old. I’m a white male. I’m pissed!

There is a picture of me as a junior in high school art class floating around. It was the year before I grew a beard, and a scraggly mat of hair. There on either side is one of my grandsons, growing up in todays world. The world I’m leaving him. And I am soo angry, the tears are dripping down onto the keyboard.

A year or so after that picture I found myself out on Central Avenue in front of The University of New Mexico trying to stay away from the tear gas clouds that were floating about aimlessly. We were angry then as well. We were protesting an unjust war. Cars were burned, windows smashed.

Here we are again. Nothing! I mean Nothing Has Changed!

I’m Sooo Sorry.

Please forgive me. I have failed to bring the change that was needed.

The wars continue for no reason but wealth building power.

Black people are still treated like shit along with all the other non white colors of human folk.

Most of the world’s wealth has been filtered into a very few pockets.

I’m sick of the Republicans and the Democrats that just keep driving a wedge between us all to keep us at each others throats while they rape and steal what’s left of this country.

Power, wealth. Wealth, power. Never the people.

Thanks for letting me vent. I have dried up the tears and the snot.

I’m and old man, ready for the revolution.
Kill Your Master, Free Yourself
Tags: Black Women, Celebrity, BlackLivesMatter, Revolution

Your #MondayDose (right on time 😙)

A few years back Issa said “ I’m rooting for Everybody Black “ and everyone cheered. After a lot of back and forth, it sank in that, we are not, nor should we be rooting for everyone Black. Because every Black person is not there for the cause of change.

On Outkasts Aquemini Andre asked “Now question is every ni99a with dreads for the cause? Is every ni99a with golds for the fall? Naw.”

And while on the surface it may appear Outkast was speaking only speaking about appearances, it’s so much deeper and relevant right now. Why? Because this weekend while Black people organized, rose up attacking a globally deep-rooted system of racism fueled by capitalism, your elected officials trotted out celebrities and strung together five Martin Luther King Jr. quotes in an effort to shame you on the ways you SHOULD fight for your freedom. I’m not rooting for those Black people.

These are some of the same people who rooted for the dismantling in Ferguson but when it got too close, they went to hide.

The orange menace tweeted about killing protestors, and these Black people thought to themselves “ Hmm the best thing I can do right now is shame Black people and their forms of protest”

Lesser than Z list celebrities asked through nasal chants what has GUCCI done to you? And why Rosa Parks couldn’t take a cab? And on and on it went.

And so yeah, No. All Black people don’t deserve your loyalty. They absolutely don’t deserve you rooting for them when they are rooting against your life. When they ask you to enjoy the scraps while they fill their own bellies and watch you starve.

Some day you’ll be asked to “Kill Your Masters” and he or she might look like you. Grab that sword and do it anyway.
1000+ artists have joined the platform!
By: Opus Foundation
Tags: Streaming Music, Music, Blockchain, Revolution, Opus

The Opus Team is more than happy to announce that more than 1000 artists have joined the platform! As this is a great milestone, we would like to congratulate and send the best wishes to everyone that have contributed to achieving this success. All of you that have shared information about our platform, invited your friends, family members or acquaintances are the ones behind this great success. We are so, so lucky to have you, the Opus Community.

However, naturally, we are not going to stop here. There is much more to achieve, and our journey has most likely just begun. We are patiently working towards transforming the music industry, in particular, its streaming services branch. The fact that so many of you believe and support us is truly empowering and we cannot even emphasize how much we value this kind of help.

Let’s continue to make streaming services a better place for everyone.

If you haven’t joined the platform already, start now by registering yourself here: https://artist.opus.audio (designated for artists) or here: https://player.opus.audio/login (designated for listeners).

Have a lovely day!
More on The Lebanese Uprising
By: Jade Saab
Tags: Interview, World, Lebanon, News, Revolution

More on The Lebanese Uprising

My life was taken over by the events of the Lebanese Uprising which started on October 17. Since then, most of my writing and reading has revolved around the uprising which has crossed the 50-day mark.

Not only is the uprising directly related to me as a Lebanese person, but it’s also related to my area of interest and study. As such, the uprising has proved to be the best test of my understanding of the process of revolutions — the subject topic of my PhD.

The events in Lebanon have also allowed me to engage with my home country in a way I have not yet been able to. The uprising has revealed a rich layer of activists and intellectuals with similar political persuasions to mine. A promising facet of Lebanon I have not seen before.

As I am currently not in Lebanon, engaging with these people and the events on the ground has been limited. So instead I have been trying to share as much insight as possible outside Lebanon. This has resulted in two publications and an interview on a Podcast.

One of the articles has been published on With Sober Senses, the publication of the Marxist-Humanist Initiative. The article (linked below) deals with the broader picture of the goals of the uprising as well as the historical context behind it, including a description of the Lebanese Confessional system. It also touches on the emergence of the current leadership of the Uprising and their underpinning ideology (or lack thereof).

After publishing that article I was asked to be a guest on Radio Free Humanity, the podcast associated with the publication. The interview, which runs for an hour, is a good companion to the article and elaborates more on the different movements within the uprising. I also outline possible threats to the uprising.

My thoughts on the potential outcomes of the uprising are best put in the below article I’ve written for the Alliance of MENA Socialists — who you can find out more about in their statement of principles. In that article, I clearly present the economic situation facing Lebanon, the tactics used by the government and counter-revolutionaries, and the tactics and demands laid out by revolutionaries. Based on these conditions, I present possible outcomes ranging from military supression to success. I also make a case for larger decentralization so that greater executive power can be moved to the hands of the people in a bid to further weaken the state.
It Was the Young Who Ran Towards the Guns, the Women Who Stood Them Down
By: Conflict Dynamics International
Tags: Revolution, Youth, Peacebuilding, Sudan

On April 11th 2019, President Omar Al Bashir, Sudan’s ruler for more than 30 years, stepped down. His departure came about following months of demonstrations, in which millions of people across the country had come out onto the street.

In the last days of his rule, crowds had begun to gather outside of the military headquarters in Khartoum, in what became perhaps the largest single demonstration of people power in Sudanese history.

Ahmed* was one of the people there. Below is his account of one day in the revolution.

People as Far as the Eye Could See

‘There were people as far as the eye could see — hundreds of thousands of us from every walk of life, from every profession, tribe and region; men and women, boys and girls, artists and musicians, religious and secular.

We had in a few short days achieved an order and harmony that the government had not managed for decades.

Doctors Set Up Clinics

Street teams swept the roads and collected the rubbish. Doctors set up clinics to care for the sick. Community groups organized food deliveries. Musicians put on impromptu performances. There were discussion groups, speeches and workshops, musical performances and street art. Those who could not be present sent goods, food, and money.

Outside the military headquarters, people gathered singing and dancing and chanting, in solidarity, in hope, and in demand for change.

We understood a reckoning was coming; that the peace could not last and that sooner or later there would be violence.

And sure enough, the violence came. At three o’clock in the morning, gunfire rang through the air and the government’s militias descended upon us. The assault had started.

Billboard Translation: ‘My Grandfather was a Pharaoh. My Grandmother a Nubian Queen.’

It Was the Young Who Ran to Meet the Soldiers. It Was the Women Who Stood Them Down.

The crowd surged — some of us in search of protection, others towards the guns. It was the young who ran to meet the soldiers. It was the women who stood them down.

Three died that night. When the violence stopped we did not disperse. Somehow, we grew stronger. The sit- in continued, in mourning, determined. It would take two more days for the government to fall.

*Ahmed is not the authors real name.
How digitalisation fosters revolution of audit practices?
Tags: Sustainability, Blockchain, Digitalization, Revolution, Sustainable Development

We have heard that 3 Ds (Decarbonisation, Decentralisation and Digitalisation) are the key to the energy transition in the previous discussion. One of the very important D also leads the audit industry — Digitalisation.

Why be certificated?

After the industrial revolution, society enjoys the benefit of massive production and wealthy. To keep growing in terms of business development, the Giants try to reduce cost by hiring slaves or minor in the global south. Regarding the food supply chain, the farmers are usually the one who gets far underpaid while the massive production damage the natural environment. Thus, customers concerning these issues ask for ingredients which are not genetically modified organism (GMO) or from free trade. Various certificate come out with the need of the market, such as organic food, free trade cocoa, FSC paper. Then, customers can easily distinguish the “good” products or services by looking at the certificate they trust and with the vision which they agree on.

The transitional way of auditing provides a clear analysis for organisations and businesses on certain objects with a range of identified measures aimed at making savings or demonstrate the value of the products or services, helping firms take steps towards the development of the objects. In the past, the audit processes are closed to the auditors and the suppliers. This makes the information inaccessible to the public. The audit companies are in charge of communication with individuals and help suppliers to save time and resource in public relations.

Transformation of the traditional practices

The certificate eco-system have worked well in the previous two decades, but it ended up a day meeting some difficulties. One of the main challenges of the certificate nowadays is how to communicate with customers (end users). The traditional models sound understandable as the society was not very keen in the disclosure of businesses. However, as the environmental consciousness of the public is improved. It is undebatable that the customers today do not just expect the product or service with a certain certificate. Individuals start understanding that even the products with the same certificate may have various impacts from different perspectives. They are more up to look at the exact engagement of the supplier behind the products. Thank the innovation of digitalisation, we now have very reliable technology to disclose information.

While the certificate can only tell the product or service meet certain criteria, individuals are looking for more reliable information. A platform they can access and disclose the information they concern would help to fill this gap. With the blockchain technology, the audit practice can be transparent and open for the public to review, improving the communication and the reputation for industries.
Can a Museum Revolution Stop Time?
By: Pam Ashlund
Tags: Museums, Orwell, Theaster Gates, Propaganda, Revolution

Soviet Propaganda Poster — Smart Museum Chicago

What if there was no word for weekend and we never had a day off? No “TGIF” because there was no Saturday? No “hump day” because there was no Friday?

I found out one day, when the weather outside was frightful. I took cover in the nearest museum. On this snowy morning, it was the Smart Museum on the University of Chicago campus. The Smart had never made my radar, and so was a lovely surprise, and also, it was warm.

The draw? “Revolution Everyday”, a temporary exhibit staged to correspond with the 100th anniversary of the 1917 Russian Revolution.

Say goodbye Julian calendar, hello Gregorian, sayonara seven-day week, bye-bye 365 days… A masterpiece of mind control unveiled. No word for weekends, poof!

The focus of the exhibit was design, not time; the draw was the design representative of that period; block letters in reds and a particular cement-like color. Indeed, on walking into the room, the music and video presentations filled me with a revolutionary fervor.

Such brazen calls to work designed with a specific target audience: woman. Evoking Rosie the Riveter, these women stood strong and tall and proud, marching into the revolutionary future, no longer oppressed by the rule of men.

Yet it was not the glorious Soviet Propaganda poster art that sent my heart afire, but instead a surprise tucked into a corner. Dystopian calendar art to top any dystopian vision. Propaganda to end all propaganda: the reinvention of time.

Five days in a week, factories working continuously without weekends, color-coded numbers and symbols marking the type of work to be performed. Religious Holidays removed,

In some calendars, the type of work was represented by five symbols representing the type of work to be performed; sometimes a sheaf of wheat, a red star, a hammer a sickle, a book, or a military cap.

The stunner was the Star Automatic Calendar for Twenty-One Years.

The Star calendar was a whirl of mystical symbols, calling to mind alchemical art of the Middle Ages or an astrological chart or a post for a carnival fortune teller. And like magic, the calendar blended form and function, designed so that by rotating the central star becoming a calendar for any month by moving an to align the number “1” with the day of the week on which the month starts. A single calendar that was good for twenty-one years.

A tribute to the exhibits impact, one of oppression and government control, I had the sensation of freedom as I stepped out of the Soviet gallery and found myself in a room of arts and crafts. There I found a Frank Lloyd Wright dining table and six chairs. Nearby stood a wooden cabinet, covered with delightful Japanese glazed plates and objects. Who was the artist? The exhibit label informed me: Theaster Gates.

Read more about the Theaster Gates experience in Part II: Do your security staff see your art?
Youth problems are not their own…
By: Daniel K White
Tags: Unity, Empowerment, Resistance, Millennials, Revolution

We Are All In This Together, So: Unite, Care, and, Yes, Resist and Transform.

Well, how about this, from David Brook’s The Second Mountain:

“The average American has seven jobs over the course of their twenties. A third of recent college graduates are unemployed, underemployed, or making less than $30,000 a year at any given moment. Half feel they have no plan for their life, and nearly half of people in their twenties have had no sexual partner in the last year. These are peak years for alcoholism and drug addiction. People in this life stage move every three years. Forty percent move back in with their parents at least once. They are much less likely to attend religious services or join a political party.”

As a recent member of the Club of the 4th Decade of Life (a.k.a, the 30s), I can now happily look back on those troubled 20s and smile, knowing I can now begin a normal and stable phase of life. Ha. Ha. Ha. Just kidding.

Seeing the larger picture Brooks presents is important for us in understanding how our personal experiences are dependent on our context.

Dear young person of today, you are not a failure for experiencing the agony of your struggles. You are living in one of the most dysfunctional social states our species has ever experienced.

Foolish stories blaming young people abound in web articles and books, but those views suffer from a blindness of hyper-individualism. It’s YOUR fault, right? YOU are too LAZY, too ENTITLED! If you got your NARCISSISTIC head out your rear end, you could get a job, find a spouse, buy a house, save for retirement, etc.

Nope! This is not the case.

The root conditions are many, and they are complex to parcel. But if I had a message for young people, it would be to UNITE. Help each other. We gotta recognize our shared plight. We are MANY. We are suffering the same plight, though varied based on race, gender, sexuality, class, etc., but there must be a shift in how we relate with each other. COMRADE is the appropriate shift. SURVIVOR is also appropriate.

We are in this together. May we act like it, may we extend ourselves to each other, may we become informed and empowered, and may we act.

Peace,

Dan

https://peacepoetrypilgrim.com/2019/06/06/youth-problems-are-not-their-own-we-are-all-in-this-together-so-unite-care-and-yes-resist-and-transform/
A revolution in the online freelance market place?
Tags: Freelance, Freelancing, Revolution

May 21, 2019, Kiev —

illustration credit- Ian Mikraz Akbar

Workoscope is being formed by two people in Ahmedabad who are working to provide thorough freelance services to the public. The goal is to make freelancing more sensible and fair for all parties.

The two behind Workoscope has worked on many freelance platforms for more than seven years. The team has been working as freelancers, but they never felt happy even after completing more than 800 projects over the years. The pay was low, and the commissions that they had to deduct were high. It would often be difficult for them to become visible due to the rough nature of the individual freelance profiles out there.

But the team behind Workoscope decided that they would go out on their own and make their work all the more enticing. It took about a year to figure out a business model, but the team found that it would be easy for freelancing efforts to work where both the client and freelancer will feel positive about the work at hand and will never feel cheated or undervalued during the work process.

The first version of Workoscope took nearly a year to produce and was launched just in India. The company has gotten an immense response with more than 1,500 registered freelancers listed in three months with about 2k projects having closed at the same time. The powerful work has helped Workoscope to go global.

The general effort of Workoscope is to ensure that every party in the freelancing process is happy. The clients will get the work that they need with rates they can appreciate, and the freelancers will get the money that they are looking for. This is a convenient point for work that is simple for all to handle.

Additional details on what Workoscope has to offer can be found at workoscope.com. The site is expected to launch soon and will include many outstanding promotional offers. The exciting things of note on the system will be worth reviewing for anyone aiming to make more out of their freelancing efforts. More importantly, the service offers a balanced and sensible approach to freelancing that all people can appreciate for many purposes.
A Generation with Substance
Tags: Spirituality, Awakening, Christianity, Revival, Revolution

Photo by Maria Teneva on Unsplash

There is a generation more in touch with what they see

Than the One who makes the seeing eyes

One that values godfathers and bloodlines

Yet does not know the God of the fathers

There’s a tale-bearing generation

That tells tales of the fathers’ exploits

Yet barely has a handful of its own testimonies

Rarely knows what an experience with The Father is

The Lord our God is one and same

Revealing Himself anew to every generation

Jehovah to one, El to another

Yet, He is unchanging in nature and purpose

Revealing Himself to all generation

What has he revealed himself as to us?

What heritage do we have to hand down our children?

What God do you know?

Yours or the father's tale?

Awake you complacent

Contend earnestly for the precious faith handed you

Don’t stop at the Wells the fathers dug

Remove the debris, then dig even deeper

Dig deep and reach the everlasting springs

So our children may not lack water to drink

So our children do not drink with broken cisterns

So our children aren’t brought into a faith without substance

So, our children can have our tales, and know our God
The rule of Trump, through the misrepresentative Electoral College, is legal (as was slavery) but…
By: Dale Ruff
Tags: Legitimacy, Elections, Revolution

The rule of Trump, through the misrepresentative Electoral College, is legal (as was slavery) but not legitimate, according to our founding document of 1776 which asserted that those who rule without equality and consent of the governed are unjust and illegitimate…and lack of consent invokes the right of armed revolution. 70 party hacks who selected Trump and overturned the public vote in a legal but not legitimate institutional coup are NOT the governed, nor do they equally represent the will of the voters.

It’s time we completed the American Revolution by voiding the Electoral College, designed by slave owners who feared and despised the democratic principles on which we were founded; it’s time to create, at long last, a democratic republic based on majority rule.

“The first principle of republicanism is that the lex majoris partis is the fundamental law of every society of individuals of equal rights; to consider the will of the society enounced by the majority of a single vote as sacred as if unanimous is the first of all lessons in importance, yet the last which is thoroughly learnt. This law once disregarded, no other remains but that of force, which ends necessarily in military despotism.” — Thomas Jefferson to Alexander von Humboldt, 1817. ME 15:127

“The will of the people… is the only legitimate foundation of any government, and to protect its free expression should be our first object.” — Thomas Jefferson to Benjamin Waring, 1801. ME 10:236

“The measures of the fair majority… ought always to be respected.” — Thomas Jefferson to George Washington, 1792. ME 8:397

“I subscribe to the principle, that the will of the majority honestly expressed should give law.” — Thomas Jefferson: The Anas, 1793. ME 1:332

“All… being equally free, no one has a right to say what shall be law for the others. Our way is to put these questions to the vote, and to consider that as law for which the majority votes.” — Thomas Jefferson: Address to the Cherokee Nation, 1809. ME 16:456
HUMANS FIRST By (@kingakan on IG) I’ve always said it, we are HUmans first before anything else. Don’t allow elements such as tribe, religion and culture make you handicap or forget who you truly…
By: King Akan
Tags: Nigeria, Good Governance, War, Revolution, Endsars

HUMANS FIRST

By (@kingakan on IG)

I’ve always said it, we are HUmans first before anything else. Don’t allow elements such as tribe, religion and culture make you handicap or forget who you truly are; a spark of God.

It’s a shame that while some are protesting peacefully, other myopic minds see it as a protest against Buhari and the North in Power. How dumb? If you’re doing well in this regime, congratulations to you but it’s not about you, it’s about all of us.

Let's be real, Nigerians are patient, committed, tolerant, peaceful. We have taken everything thrown at us but we still stand and of course with a SMILE.

All we seek is answers, nothing more. Answers to all the dumb shit happening in our country Nigeria. The snake & monkey stories, the bullets on innocent citizens which should be used on terrorists we have identified to be in a location (Sambisa) but can’t defeat, the jobless youths, the death traps called roads, the absence of electricity, poor state of the economy, health and education, the billions looted daily, women raped at IDP camps, the herdsmen killings, and now Operation Crocodile. We just want to end everything.

Good governance, sound leadership, unity, freedom in our own land is all we ask.

This is an exam the government must write...
The Sharp Hacker
By: Chris Cross
Tags: Irs, Poetry, Hacking, Revolution

There once was a sharp young hacker

Who was known in the game as James

He lost his day job at the factory

And then needed some money to raise

He tried best he could for a real job

And then tried his hands on the street

But the economy was having not either

And soon he was hungry for eats

He realized in dismay that his neighbors

Worked not a lick in their lives

But somehow managed to make it

And somehow managed to thrive

He found out that old uncle sam

The same one that stole all his pay

Was handing it out to his neighbors

Practically the very next day!

Quickly he dove to his laptop

And began solving all of the above

By hacking into welfare computers

And erasing all files said above

While he was there he then decided

That all of them might as well go

So with a few clicks on his keyboard

All of the files were no more

He thought again of old uncle sam

And his massive taxing scam

Which took from him and his mother

As well as his father and brother

Every extra penny they earned

Which quickly then uncle sam burned

Or handed out to the lazy

Or even the criminally crazy

So he hacked into the IRS

to witness the peoples’ distress

and he erased every file that he found there

and even degaussed their excess

so that the IRS in dismay

had no one to tax the next day

forcing his neighbors to sell their den

which James had bought for them

to James in that very same week

for a fraction of the price on that street

but then old uncle sam came a knockin’

with his thugs and billy-clubs rockin’

saying that no man can steal but he

and that freedom is not free

but you see James was not to be found

not there or anywhere around

for the riots he knew would rise up there

and engulf uncle sam and his thugs

came on just like clockwork

and they reduced each other with slugs

as James with the tax free patriots

miles away from tyranny’s feet

celebrated a life of liberty

and oppression’s deserved defeat!

LOL, I posted this back in 2011 on an “END the FED” forum.

Hope you got a kick out of it. :)
10 years
By: Helana Reyad
Tags: Antiausterity, Neoliberalism, January 25, Egypt, Revolution

Source: Sawt Al Niswa

A precarious state that seeks to pretend and occupy a space as if the past didn’t occur is untenable.

The theme I have encountered today or perhaps, I picked up on because it resonate beyond hollow words of hindsight, is imagination. Imagination is mine and yours. It is the space where you and I are what we want to be and the world can be what we envision. We contribute to each others and are involved in its creation. In 2011, we tried to bring that imagining to reality, but were met with forces our imaginations did not adequately prepare for. Hope carried us away and continues to be our linchpin.

So, while they can crack down and disappear our bodies, now that we have seen and tasted dissent, they cannot and will not remove that from the landscape of our imagination.

This does not mean they — yes again, the arbitrary they — because the movement in Egypt is not an isolated one; it is part of a global one against a system whose manifestation and its guardians are the military in Egypt — won’t try. They will persuade us with narratives that we are on the way to change, just a little while longer. Keeping us in the eternal waiting room, while they build their reinforcements and tighten their grip around the preservation valves. And when we get tired of waiting and demand results, we encounter the brute force that was silently underpinning the niceties. That is where we currently are.

We are in an adjourned state. And while we look back and try to draw lessons in hindsight, I think it important to admit that we are in a precarious state. And that, to me, is a hopeful state because it indicates more to come. A precarious state that seeks to pretend and occupy a space as if the past didn’t occur is untenable.

I don’t know where we are on the trajectory of change, but I know what has passed and I know that we have changed. We have changed and are grappling with how to translate that into the world.

I will leave us with a quote two quotes:
CRYPTO-MANIA MYSTERIES
By: Crypt Qwerty
Tags: Cryptography, Revolution, Treasure Hunt

The Prizes

We believe that your journey is the prize. Knowledge is power.

But not everyone may have the same opinion so our prize format is this:- There will be a Bitcoin wallet at the end of each of the 25 levels . On reaching the end of a level you will gain the seed words for that wallet. With which you will then have access to all the funds in that wallet.

Once you gain access to wallet please transfer the funds to your own bitcoin wallet since everyone else can also access the wallet unless the money is transferred.

In the beginning all the wallets will be empty. We shall not be funding any of the prizes . The participants are can donate to the BTC prize account if they can afford it. Even a single dollar will help.

Our Bitcoin wallet address is: bc1qt4apqhun37hc0ev8dczmf0lq22u9pk4dfs4gee

Please Note :- We do not care whether you donate money into the prize pool. However no donations, may result in no loot for the winner at the end. IF that is the case hopefully having bragging rights and knowledge that you beat the game master should be all that its about!

But if you do decide to donate money for the interest of the community this is how the funds will be allocated.

70 % of the money will go for the final prize at the last level

25% will be divided equally into each of the unsolved level’s accounts

5% will be used to develop future such project

EDIT:- We dont expect anyone to give anything blindly. Just begin the quest earthlings and all shall be revealed.
AYS Daily Digest 19/04/21 Freedom of the press suffered in Greece during 2020
By: Are You Syrious
Tags: Digest, Press Freedom, Greece, Refugees, 2020

Bodies returned to Libya // human trafficking by municipalities in Turkey // insight into the revoked resident permits of Syrians in Denmark // and more…

Reporters Without Borders just published an update on press freedom during 2020 within Greece. The situation is not good to say the least. The conservative government led by Kyriakos Mitsotakis really sought to control the flow of information whether it be on COVID-19 or refugee issues. Here is their summary:

“Press freedom suffered in Greece in 2020. The conservative government led by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis granted generous tax rebates on advertising in the media but sought, directly or indirectly, to control the flow of information closely as part of its efforts to deal with both the coronavirus pandemic and the refugee crisis.

Investigative media and media critical of the government were either omitted or were given a disproportionately small share of the advertising resulting from a controversial 20-million-euro public information campaign about the virus.

Journalists had to get the government’s permission before reporting in hospitals while the health ministry banned medical staff from talking to the media.

In February 2021, public TV channels were ordered not to broadcast video circulating on social media that showed the prime minister disregarding lockdown rules.

The police resorted to violence and arbitrary bans to hamper coverage of the refugee crisis on the islands.

In Lesbos, journalists were prevented from covering the consequences of the fire at the refugee camp in the town of Moria, while a group of German freelancers were briefly arrested while trying to cover the arrival of new migrants.

In Samos, a German documentary film crew was detained without charge and mistreated by police.

The Greek public TV channel, which is directly controlled by the prime minister although the supreme court ruled this to be unconstitutional, censored reports on the new migrant camps.

In Athens, police obstructed photo-journalists covering a commemorative event at the end of 2020 and roughed up a reporter for supposedly violating Covid-19 rules, briefly detaining him. There is concern about the new rules for policing demonstrations, because it designates areas for the press.

In April 2021, the community of Greek journalists was shaken by the assassination of the reporter specializing in crime issues Giorgos Karaivaz.”
On the crest of Waves / Monthly digest / June 2021
By: Waves Tech
Tags: Digest, Nft, Waves, Defi, Summer

Hi Waves community,

The summer holiday season has started, and Waves Digest is also going on holiday until the fall. We hope that the Waves community will have good rest and a lot of fun this summer, as there are plenty of opportunities.

For example, you could enjoy Jumeirah, one of the main beaches in Dubai, which has a special significance for the Waves ecosystem, as recently activated version 1.3 of the Waves protocol was named after it.

Or, you could explore Bali’s exquisite nature by booking your dream holiday on travala.com, which facilitates payments in WAVES tokens.

Meanwhile, if you prefer to combine having rest with doing something useful (like, earning nice rewards), you may want to check out the new farming functionality in the Waves Ducks game. That way, you’ll not only enjoy beautiful nature but will also take advantage of nature’s offerings.

And the lucky winner of the Tesla Model X car in Curve’s recent USDN pool lottery could spend some of their summer riding around the city in a swanky car and attracting looks and thumbs-up. But those who were not so lucky shouldn’t be disappointed as there will be more opportunities to win a great prize.

However, nothing will compare with spending time with your friends. Therefore, we recently launched an activity that is set to drive you and your friends even closer together, the Waves Ducks’ game’s referral program.

Also, remember to check Waves’ social media and, if you haven’t yet subscribed, please, do so. That way, for example, you won’t miss Sasha’s AMAs, which he’ll be doing every other week, as he’s happy to talk to you and answer your questions.

We wish you an excellent summer, and we’ll be back in September with lots of exciting news and updates!
AYS Daily Digest 13/03/20: People removed from Greek islands without a chance to seek asylum
By: Are You Syrious
Tags: Migrant Crisis, Digest, Turkey, Greece, Refugees

Growing Concerns about the Spread of Coronavirus // Illegal Returns in Greece // The Criminalization of Giving Assistance to People on the Move in Bosnia // Disastrous Conditions for Deported Afghans // & More

Growing concerns over COVID-19 in overcrowded refugee camps. Photo: MSF

FEATURE:

Refugees on Lesvos asked to sign documents in Greek, leading to their “voluntary returns”

Greek authorities on Lesvos seem to be returning people on the move to Turkey by having them sign their own voluntary return documents. It seems Greek authorities are giving Afghans, and others being kept in navy boats in the port of Lesvos, documents like the one in the photo below which outlines their “consent” to legal expulsion.

Trusted sources tell AYS that people on the move are being asked to sign these documents, despite the fact that they do not understand what it says and no one explains what impact it will have on them.

“The document makes reference to several provisions of Greek and EU law, as well as the EU-Turkey Statement, but makes no reference to the Presidential Decree in which the access to asylum procedures was suspended for one month”, AYS was told.

Under section 6, it clearly states that by signing this document, the person has been informed, in a language s/he understands, of their rights and the reasons of their detention. Section 8 states that the person has not appealed the return decision within the 48 hour deadline.

There are serious concerns among people on the ground that detained refugees were NOT informed of anything regarding their detention, expulsion or of their ability to appeal the decision. It appears they are not even informed about what this specific document states. Sources say they are sure that the detained people concerned have not been given any actual means to appeal their return decision.

Even though it may seem obvious, it is worth repeating that suspending access to asylum and collectively returning people back to Turkey is in flagrant violation of several EU laws, the Geneva Convention and of the fundamental rights all EU Member States are obliged to protect. Moreover, Commissioner Johansson has said several times that the right to asylum shall be respected at all times and for all cases. Yet, these actions continue occurring in the face of EU principles, laws and norms.

Following the departure of the military boat carrying 500 rejected people from Lesvos, we were unofficially told they would probably be moved to closed facilities in the northern part of Greece, possibly in a new migrant detention centre being established in the region of Serres, in the nearest proximity to the Bulgarian border.
The Lean Startup by Eric Ries in just 250 words
By: Nik Stanbridge
Tags: Lean Startup, Productmanagment, Digest

The Lean Startup by Eric Ries in just 250 words

All the important bits you need to know to build products that add value to your customer’s lives Nik Stanbridge Apr 9·2 min read

Learning what your customers actually want is how you build a sustainable business. You learn by running experiments on your ideas and gathering data. This is validated learning and is the most important thing your business can do. Everything you do needs to be about learning what adds value to your customers. Everything else is a waste.

To determine what adds value, define the KPIs that both analyse customer behaviour and reflect your vision and strategy. They are the metrics that continuously test your hypotheses and help you learn whether you’re building a sustainable business. These are not vanity metrics (e.g. total new users, total revenue). They need to measure the value you’re delivering — for example, conversion and retention rates. Derive them from the hypotheses underpinning your vision and strategy.

The process of experimentation is to test your ideas: in your product with your customers. You will gather empirical data and insights into whether you have advanced your chosen KPIs with the implementation of the ideas. If they do, you know they add value. And if they don’t, you’ve learned something and have the data to show it. This is validated learning.

What you want to learn defines what you measure, and what you build is determined by the idea you want to test. You test your product ideas with real customers and gather data to learn their value and impact. Your validated learning helps you know what to do next.

Build, measure, learn. As quickly as possible. Repeat.

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I can help you create products that add value to your customers. Get in touch now.
AYS Daily Digest 29/01/20: Greece wants to install a floating fence
By: Are You Syrious
Tags: Germany, Digest, Deportation, Greece, Refugees

AYS Daily Digest 29/01/20: Greece wants to install a floating fence

Greece

Three people have been deported from Lesvos to Turkey despite an ongoing asylum procedure, reports Deportation Monitoring Aegean. “Two lawyers had filed an application of annulment at the court to challenge the rejection of the asylum application and suspensive measures in order to stop their deportation.” Despite attempts to stop the deportation, they have been expelled together with six other people.

The European Asylum Support Office (EASO) wants to double its staff to 1000 in Greece in the next months, reports Reuters. With its new asylum strategy, the government wants to speed up the procedure and deport more people to Turkey. At the same time, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis called for greater European solidarity in dealing with new arrivals, writes Ekathimerini.

Meanwhile, the Greek Defense Ministry started a bid for private contractors, supplying a 2.7 kilometer-long floating barrier to prevent boats from crossing the sea, according to Whio. The costs are estimated at €500,000 over four years.

At the Moria hotspot on Lesvos, a 15-year-old boy is in critical condition, after he was stabbed. In another incident, another 15-year-old by was stabbed but his life is not in danger, Stonisi reports.

The Mobile Info Team for refugees in Greece reports that a residence permit, which expires before 30 June 2020, can now be renewed.
AYS Weekend Digest 25–26/01/2020: European ghettoes
By: Are You Syrious
Tags: Ghetto, Digest, Concentration Camps, Moria, Refugees

Slums and tents are one of the faces of European migration policies — in the Greek islands and in Patras, in Sid and Velika Kladusa, in the Italian south, in Paris and Dunkirk.

Feature: European migration policies: camps, slums and detention centres

From the Greek Islands to Dunkirk, from Patras to Sid, from the Italian south to Velika Kladusa, and all the way to Paris, in the last few years people on the move have been forced to live in the most horrible conditions. Summer tents in snow, rain and freezing temperatures, set up on mud and ice.

One would think that over the course of four years, national and EU authorities would have been able to put together a plan to improve conditions for the people arriving in Europe — even before working out if they would fit the categories of “refugee”, “economic migrant”, “legal”, “illegal”, so loved by our politicians. Well, the situation has only gotten worse. In the last few winters, governments boasted about their plans for winterisation, to prevent people living in tents in the freezing winter, to provide decent humane accomodation. They lied. But that was at least a concern.

This weekend the newly appointed migration minister of the Greek government went to Kos and visited the RIC structure and talked with local authorities.

He commented:

Our country has a balanced immigration policy, it respects its international obligations, but beyond that we have national rules and those who are not eligible for international protection will now be returned to Turkey quickly. We believe that this will play a major role in limiting the flow. (via Greek media)

He also announced that he will ensure the implementation of a new law for which all people entering Greece will be detained for 25 days. In that time, the Asylum Service will supposedly distinguish between people “deserving” protection and those who don’t.

Salam Aldeen, a member of Team Humanity, who was recently arrested and then expelled from Greece for his actions in solidarity with people on the move and for his reporting on it, described again the situation on the islands:

Moria Refugee camp on Lesvos island is worst then ever, I have been witnessing the worst things in my life in this camp, no women no child no human should go through this horrible inhuman conditions we shouldn’t allowed this to happen in this world and definitely not in Europe

[…] this island is being controlled by the authorities everything from hospitals to the asylum service, they do what ever they want and no one gets punished for the crimes, women and children getting raped and the police don’t care about this, there is no protection for this women and children,

the police are arresting people when ever they want and throwing them in jail and then illegally deporting them back to Turkey, family’s are getting separated, this is a crime and should strongly be investigated, the food is disgusting even dog food is better then the food the military provides to refugees,
AYS Weekend Digest 23–24/5/2020: Illegal deportations kill, Keerfa report
By: Are You Syrious
Tags: Digest, Unhcr Libya, Greece, Refugees, Bihac

Illegal deportations kill, Keerfa report

According to the Greek antiracist and antifascist organisation Keerfa, Mohammed Rafik is a victim of the murderous policy of illegally deporting people on the move to Turkey.

The complaint was made in KEERFA, with a sound document from immigrant prisoners at the detention centre of Paranesti Drama.

Mohammed Rafik had been held there for 18 months. About five days ago he received a communication by PRO.KE.KE.KA Paranesti administration stating that he would be released. When he got out of the detention centre, police approached him and told him to get on a specific bus. Once on the bus, he found that this was heading to Evros, instead of to Thessaloniki. At the border, he and the other passengers were brought by boat to Turkey.

Mohammed Rafik is now dead. This information was reported by his former cellmates, who were on on the same bus and the same boat, as the police proceeded with this illegal push-back.

Mohammed Rafik lived several years in Greece and is the father of five children, he was the owner of two shops in Athens and he had lost his residence permit.

As it has been widely reported in the last few weeks illegal and arbitrary pushbacks are becoming a daily occurrence. Amid the confrontation with Turkey in February/March and the pandemic, the government has stepped up its brutality towards people on the move.
AYS Daily Digest 26/05/2021—Four Acquitted of Human Trafficking Charges for Showing Solidarity
By: Are You Syrious
Tags: Digest, Solidarity, Belgium, Migrants, Refugees

GREECE

Police Brutality in Moria 2.0’s Quarantine Section

A disturbing story emerged out of the quarantine section of the heavily militarized Moria 2.0 camp. A young woman from West Africa was kicked by police officers after asking the officers a question. In a video taken by the woman and published by Mare Liberum, you can clearly see boot marks on the woman’s thighs and buttocks. She also filmed footage of the quarantine section, showing the cramped living conditions and poor facilities.

This is just one aspect of the violence that is enacted against people on the move by authorities in the camp. They are able to act with impunity because the government heavily restricted the access of journalists and NGOs, limiting information about what is going on.

Things are particularly dire in the quarantine section, where about 140 people are living in very cramped quarters with almost no medical care. This includes people that have tested positive as well as people that were potentially exposed but tested negative, making it highly likely that those who tested negative will actually get sick. According to evidence on the ground, infections in the camp are rising, but authorities conveniently stopped publishing numbers just as the tourist season began. Cases are rising in many camps across Greece, where a year after the pandemic began people still do not even have a place to wash. Despite calls from people such as MEP Tineke Strik to change the situation in the camps, little has been done.

While the government used the pandemic as an excuse to make the lives of people on the move even more miserable, and as restrictions lift for Greek and European citizens, there is little sign of hope or lifting restrictions in the camps.

Instead, the government is building walls around the camps that are as high as the Berlin Wall. This shows that the legal obligation to use detention only as a last resort is rarely upheld.