Anthro in the news 8/15/11

• Looting in England not “mindless”
The recent rioting and looting in several cities in England are not “mindless” or random, according to cultural anthropologist Sean Carey of Roehampton University. In an article he wrote for The New Statesman, Carey points to the targeted looting of high-end shops, including jewelry and technology stores, as an expression of frustrated consumption.

• Death threats to Guatemalan forensic anthropologist
Members of the Guatemalan Forensic Anthropology Foundation testified in the trial of four former soldiers about their role in the massacre of 250 people in 1982 during the country’s civil war. The soldiers were convicted of the killings and sentenced to more than 6,000 years in prison each. The founder of the Foundation, forensic anthropologist Fredy Peccerelli, subsequently received a death threat hand-written in red ink.

• Pilloried without head and feet
An editorial in the Canberra Times comments on a cultural anthropology kerfuffle related to clarity in writing. The quoted sentence is worth reading, and it’s apparently lucid compared to the surrounding text, per a chirpy and quite comprehensible comment from the pilloried writer himself.

• How many people speak Na’vi?
Christine Schreyer, professor in the anthropology department of the University of British Columbia at Okanagan, conducted a global survey asking people about their commitment to Na’vi, the fictional language created for the movie Avatar. She was astonished by the hundreds of responses. Many people visit the Learn Na’vi website where they can study the Na’vi alphabet, read the Na’vi dictionary, and download an application so their GPS can speak Na’vi. Schreyer will present her findings at the annual conference of the American Anthropological Association in Montreal in November.

• Finding missing children in Turkey
BBC news covered the work of Dundee University forensic anthropologist and professor, Caroline Wilkinson, and her student Ozgur Bulut who spent a year at the Centre for Anatomy and Human Identification. Bulut has now established the Forensic Art and Anthropological Examination Unit in Ankara. This unit will help in the investigation of about 1,700 missing children. Dundee University’s Centre for Anatomy and Human Identification has become an authority in facial anthropology and forensic facial reconstruction. Wilkinson’s research has led to improving facial identification methods, and she been an expert witness in several court cases. Her techniques have been highlighted in the hit BBC 2 show History Cold Case.

• Career path: cultural anthropologist to Christian pastor
Cultural anthropologist Edson Way was a professor at Beloit College, then director of the Wheelright Museum in Santa Fe, then the New Mexico cultural affairs officer. At age 58, after hearing a voice instructing him, he entered seminary and is now pastor of an Episcopal church. He says that he finds his earlier training and work helpful in many ways including in developing his sermons.

• Career path: cultural anthropologist to artisanal jeweler
An interview with Pippa Small reveals her commitment to designing and selling ethically sourced jewelry, much of which includes materials from former conflict areas in Africa.

Continue reading “Anthro in the news 8/15/11” →

U.K. riots: poor parenting or lack of opportunity?

By contributor Sean Carey

Politicians in the U.K. are puzzled about the cause and scope of the recent disorders on the U.K. mainland. Last night, for example, I listened to Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, co-chair of the British Conservative Party, and Harriet Harman, deputy leader of the Labour Party, squaring up to each other on BBC Radio 4’s Any Questions.

Hoodies — London Road looking like a tornado swept up it. Fire tenders still spraying water at lunchtime on Tuesday, more than 12 hours after the fires were set. Image/George Rex.

Baroness Warsi, the daughter of migrants from Pakistan and the first Muslim woman to serve in the cabinet, was clear about her view that the riots were caused by a failure of parenting. She said that when she was a child she would not dream of getting into trouble because of what her parents might do once they found out.

Harman, the daughter of a Harley Street physician, appeared anxious not to be perceived as “soft” on issues of law and order or to be some sort of moral relativist. She said that behind the “criminality” other issues drove the behavior of the rioters, including “lack of opportunity.”

What can we learn from some street-side fieldwork? Continue reading “U.K. riots: poor parenting or lack of opportunity?” →

From the field: working with Roma youth in Kosovo

Guest post by Joanne Brucker

Recently, I was helping Faton, a Roma friend of mine, fill out his college application. He had arrived at the question of ‘Father’s Occupation,’ when he looked up and asked me, “Can I write social assistance for father’s occupation.” All I could do was to shake my head and reply, “How about unemployed?”

In the community in which Faton grew up, unemployment has been at about 98 percent since the War in 1999. As Serbian speaking Roma, few in his town have found employment in the new country of Kosovo. Unemployment was high even before the War. Additionally, the town suffers from a problem of 95 percent adult illiteracy. If he is accepted to the university, Faton will be the first in his family to attend any form of higher education.

Roma children — Roma Children. Courtesy of Joanna Brucker

The question of literacy and poor academics in the community is one which has troubled me since my arrival in Kosovo. I currently manage a series of education support centers for Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian youth across Kosovo.

Faton’s hometown of Plemetina hosts one of the longest running centers. However, the importance of education continues to be a problem within the community. Despite their inability to provide academic support for their children, parents are still reluctant to send their children to our educational center. Some parents cite the lack of proper footwear and warm cloths in winter months for their children. Others invoke historic family feuds. Last year, when a lack of funding caused us to cut the “hot meal” program, our numbers dropped significantly.

The most frustrating reason parents cite for not sending their kids is a simple: “What is the point? They will not get a job anyhow.”

Throughout the past year, I have seen so many kids grow and develop because of attending our centers. I have watched children, who had been forcibly returned from Germany, learn the Serbian language and move on to attend school successfully.

I have seen the magic of children learning to count, to read and to do the simple task of spelling their names.

But the cards are stacked against these children. As Roma, many students report discrimination in the schools both in terms of classroom learning, segregated classrooms and school grades. Kosovar Roma children overwhelmingly attend schools taught in the Serbian language while at least 80 percent of the new country of Kosovo speaks Albanian.

Thus, not only are Roma discriminated against in terms of their skin color and culture, but also the language that comes out of their mouths. Few speak Albanian and even fewer speak enough to hold a job in the language. Despite having both a Serbian and Kosovar school in Plemetina, overwhelmingly the Roma there attend the Serbian school.

How does a student like Faton grow up and make the decision to go to college? How does he become part of the 2 percent of the town population able to hold a job and then to give that up to attend university? Remember, even attending high school is a rarity.

Joanna Laursen Brucker has been working in Kosovo for the last year and a half as Educational Coordinator managing a series of 4 educational centers for Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian youth. Previously, Joanna worked as a public high school teacher in the Czech Republic. Joanna holds an Ed.M. from Harvard Graduate School of Education in International Educational Policy and a B.A. from the George Washington University in Anthropology.

Upcoming WAPA event

Title: August 2011 Networking / Happy Hour
Location: Beacon Bar & Grill
Date: 16 Aug 2011, 6:30 PM

WAPA’s next networking and happy hour is Tuesday, 16 August 2011, at 6:30 at the Beacon Bar & Grill. The group can usually be found at the tables next to the large windows, near the servers’ station.

Note: The Beacon has nice happy hour specials on food and drink until 7:00 pm, so arriving early is strongly encouraged. Also, some servers at the Beacon won’t do separate checks, so paying with cash is much appreciated.

How to get there: The Beacon Bar & Grill is in the Beacon Hotel located near the Sumner School at 1615 Rhode Island Ave NW (corner of Rhode Island and 17th St).

Directions from Metro Red Line: From DuPont Circle station, take the south/P St exit, then walk 2 blocks southeast on Massachusetts Ave to 17th St. Cross 17th St and turn right (south) two short blocks to the Beacon. From Farragut North station, take either L St exit, walk one block east to 17th St, turn left and walk 3 blocks north to the Beacon. It is a 7 minute walk from either station.

For more information see: August 2011 Networking / Happy Hour

Celebrate the international day of the world’s indigenous peoples

A note from Cultural Survival:

August 9 is the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, and Cultural Survival joins the world in recognizing and honoring of the strength, resilience, dignity, and pride of Indigenous Peoples around the world. Despite our long histories of struggle, we continue to weave our stories, our songs, our rituals and ceremonies into rich, colorful, textured, and beautiful tapestries that portray landscapes of our Indigenous experience and indigeneity.

We continue to pray and give thanks in sacred places for the knowledge and materials offered to us from this earth, and for all the relations that keep us connected to the heavens, earth, each other, and all beings.

We seek to speak our language to our children so that they speak to their children of this ancestral knowledge. We seek to be recognized as Indigenous Peoples with inherent rights, and we fight for those rights. As Indigenous Peoples we stand up and survive and weave our futures.

That spirit is honored each year on the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, and this year Cultural Survival is marking the day by launching a new campaign to support the Telengit people of Russia.

Telengit person — Telengit man from Russia. Courtesy of Cultural Survival

The Telengit are resisting the building of a natural gas pipeline from Siberia to China that will cross their lands, undermine their way of life and spiritual traditions, and threaten the delicate ecosystem that has supported their lifeways. The pipeline would bisect the sacred Ukok Plateau and the Golden Mountains of Altai UNESCO World Heritage Site in Russia, and the Kanas National Park in China, all of which are home to endangered wildlife that includes the snow leopard, argali mountain sheep, the black stork. The construction will destroy the sacred lands where the Telengit People have journeyed for thousands of years to give offerings to the spirits of the heavens, the mountains, and the waters, and where they conduct ceremonies to bury their dead.

Your letters and financial support can help the Telengit people defend their lands, their traditions, and their rights. To learn more and support the Telengit click here.

Anthro in the news 8/8/11

• Angles of review
Paul Farmer‘s new book, Haiti: After the Earthquake, was reviewed in the Economist and the Washington Post. The first reviewer sniped at Farmer, who is a professor of anthropology and public health at Harvard University, for being thin on history and having no basis to talk policy. The second reviewer chides Farmer for a rush to publish and praises one of the accompanying essays in the book by anthropologist Timothy Schwartz. Neither review mentions that Farmer is a medical anthropologist, doctor, and health advocate. Blogger’s note: Could it be that Farmer brings to the table much more than the reviewers do?

• Indonesian government welcomes cultural anthropology’s “soft” approach
The National Resilience Institute (Lemhanas) plans to use cultural anthropology to better understand Papuan aspirations to maintain stability in the area. According to the National Resilience Institute governor, Budi Susilo, anthropology is necessary because there are many tribes and more than 400 languages in Papua, and anthropological insights will inform the government about how to raise awareness among Papuans regarding their relationship with the central government. The Jakarta Post quotes Budi as saying: “We want to invite anthropology experts to study this as part of soft approach to better understanding Papuan aspirations.” Budi also said that the idea of holding a referendum in Papua is not acceptable.

• Political accountability for high-level Chagos decisions
AW’s contributing blogger Sean Carey wrote an article for the Mauritius Times that likely means he will be stuck in academia forever. In response to a question posed to him by Professor J. Manrakhan, former Vice Chancellor of the University of Mauritius, Sean said: yes, former U.K. Foreign Secretaries Jack Straw and David Miliband should be held accountable for their decisions about Chagos. [Blogger’s note: in an email to me, Sean commented with irony: “End of my chances of being employed by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office!”].

• Ethno-tainment and gross misrepresentations of Amazonian people
According to the Independent online and several other sources this past week, anthropologists claim that a British television company faked scenes and mistranslated quotations from an Amazonian tribe to make them look “savage” and “sex-obsessed.” The series in question is Mark & Olly: Living with the Machigenga, which aired on one of the BBC’s international channels.
In one scene the subtitles indicate a tribesman saying: “We use arrows to kill outsiders who threaten us.” But a respected anthropologist, who speaks the tribe’s language, says the correct translation is: “You come from far away where lots of gringos live.”
The program also features a “wild pig dance.” An anthropologist with 35 years of experience with the people had never seen such a dance.

• The future of Facebook
Daniel Miller, professor of anthropology at University College London, has finished a year-long study of the Facebook phenomenon, published in the book, Tales From Facebook. The research has been used to predict how the site will evolve. Evidence suggests that for Facebook, the future is among older people. Miller says: “We assume that Facebook is something we should associate with the young, but my evidence suggests that this is entirely mistaken. If there is one obvious constituency for whom Facebook is absolutely the right technology, it is the elderly. It allows them to keep closely involved in the lives of people they care about when, for one reason or another, face-to-face contact becomes difficult… Its origins are with the young but the elderly are its future.” The article describing Miller’s work also mentioned an earlier study by cultural anthropology professor Ilana Gershon, of Indiana University. She studied Facebook’s role in the structure of relationship breakdowns among American college students. Miller situated his research in Trinidad and Tobago where people adopt new technology quickly.

Continue reading “Anthro in the news 8/8/11” →

UK riot blamed on outsiders

By Sean Carey

The explanation of the riot that happened on Tottenham High Road in north London last night after a march to protest the killing of a local 29-year-old black man, Mark Duggan, who was shot by police marksmen on Thursday evening, has followed a predictable pattern.

Tottenham High Road riots — Burnt out cars lie in the road after riots on Tottenham High Road on August 7, 2011 in London. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

The local MP, David Lammy, was quick to point the finger at unnamed people from outside the area who hijacked the otherwise legitimate, peaceful protest from the Broadwater Farm estate, scene of a 1985 riot, to the Tottenham Police Station.

The Daily Mail, the paper of Middle England, also gave details in its story of events about “unconfirmed reports [that] suggest a group of around 150 youths arrived in the north London suburb from 4 p.m.”

This evening (Sunday), trouble is reported in the neighbouring area of Enfield, where a police car has reportedly been vandalised and windows smashed on the high street. The local MP, Nick de Bois, has also blamed “outsiders.”

But how true is the “outsider” hypothesis in accounting for riots? In the UK in the early 1980s, people often thought that “outsiders” were responsible for disorders simply because a large crowd would gather when there was an incident which then developed into a riot. Commentators put two and two together and reasoned that the rioters could not all have been local. But research I was involved in strongly suggested that the people who were present on the streets at the time rarely came from outside the area, especially on the first night of disorder.
Continue reading “UK riot blamed on outsiders” →

Is there hope for the Niger Delta?

A new report from the United Nations Environment Programme reveals the extent of environmental devastation in Nigeria’s Niger Delta due to extractive oil and petroleum industries. Although the study was partially funded by Shell, it appears that it has some bite. Perhaps a sign of hope.

Meanwhile, an African king is suing Shell, and Niger Delta villagers are going to the Hague to take on Shell. Perhaps further signs of hope.

Oil-related problems in the Niger Delta are not new. They are old, enduring and stain the future of Nigeria. They have to do with powerful corporate and state interests, corruption, global oil and petroleum demand, and the unrelentingly harsh cruelty of capitalist profiteering at the expense of local people and their environment and livelihoods. Nigeria is a major provider of petroleum to the United States.

The Niger Delta region has been exploited with impunity by outside powers for many years. During the British colonial era, Nigeria provided wealth for the Crown through the export of palm oil (Osha 2006). In the postcolonial era of globalization, a different kind of oil dominates the country’s economy: petroleum. Starting in the 1950s, with the discovery of vast petroleum reserves in Nigeria’s Delta region, several European and American companies have explored for, drilled for and exported crude oil to the extent that Nigeria occupies an important position in the world economy.

Most local people in the delta, however, have gained few economic benefits from the petroleum industry. Instead, most have reaped major losses in their agricultural and fishing livelihoods due to environmental pollution. They are poorer now than they were in the 1960s. In addition to economic suffering, they have lost personal security. Many have become victims of the violence that has increased in the region since the 1990s through state and corporate repression of a local resistance movement.
Continue reading “Is there hope for the Niger Delta?” →

National Geographic channel needs Scientist TV show host

National Geographic Channel is in search of a Scientist / Explorer to host a new 30 minute weekly TV show that highlights everything that is current and happening RIGHT NOW in the world of National Geographic, science, and exploration.

We are in search of females and males between the ages of 28 and 45 years old located in the Boston, NY, Philadelphia or DC / Baltimore areas, preferably. Hosts should have a legitimate background in the sciences, as well as be entertaining and credible while being able to communicate sometimes complex ideas and jargon to our audience without missing a beat. Our host should also be smart, savvy, exciting, and an excellent communicator. All interested applicants should email a brief letter letting us know why you would make an amazing host along with a bio, resume and a recent photo to Sean De Simone (you can google Sean for legitimacy purposes if you’re skeptical – as I’d venture a guess that science folks are not often emailed to be cast for TV shows) at sciencehostcasting@gmail.com. Please also detail any previous television experience and send any links if applicable.

Mapping hate

It’s August and a time when professors try to clear out accumulated reprints, notes and other collected items. Tonight, I spent a while attacking some stacks in my home office. In a cluster of materials relating to social conflict and violence, I found a clipping that I had saved from the Washington Post, dated March 8, 2008.

The title is “Hate Rises.”

It’s not really an article, so much as a series of graphic displays that caught my attention three years ago and now, again. A bar graph shows the rise in number of hate groups in the U.S. since the year 2000. A series of maps show the numbers of particular hate groups by states.

Good news: membership in the Ku Klux Klan declined dramatically since its founding in 1865. Bad news: the size of other hate groups has surged “especially along the border in Arizona, California and Texas.”

These figures are the result of dedicated work by the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Ala. I urge you to visit the website. Explore a map of the United States and the links to currently active hate groups by state. Beware: you may not be able to sleep well after this excursion into the darkness of hate.

On a brighter note, another page offers you an opportunity to take a stand against hate and create a non-hate space on the U.S. map.