The South African Civil Society Information Service
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
SACSIS seeks to examine global issues, particularly as they relate to South Africa.
Democracy Now -
South African bishop and activist, Desmond Tutu, is interviewed by Amy Goodman of Democracy Now, a television and radio news program, pioneering the largest community media collaboration in the United States and airing on over 700 stations.
AMY GOODMAN: We turn now to the South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, one of the leading voices for peace, justice and human rights around the world, a central figure in the South African struggle against apartheid. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize...
Heather Wokusch -
To be honest, Obama, you lost me when you voted for the Patriot Act reauthorization in 2006. You lost me again when you voted for the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) amendment in 2008. And you lost me every single time you voted for yet more war funding.
Don't even get me started on your vote for the $700 billion Wall Street bailout.
I cast a ballot for you in November, but I just can't share in this moment of collective euphoria over your election.
So, if your transition team...
Saliem Fakir -
It would be a squint-eyed view to read in Obama’s victory just a historic moment for African-Americans in the United States of America (USA).
It should be granted that Obama’s entry through the front door of the White House rather than the back door, once reserved for black cleaners only, does mark a turning point in black history.
African-Americans have come a long way since the days of slavery, the civil rights movement and many other sacrifices they have had to make to claim...
Stephen Zunes -
I had really wanted to celebrate Barack Obama's remarkable victory for a day or so before becoming cynical again. I really did.
And yet, less than 24 hours after the first polls closed, the president-elect chose as his chief of staff -- perhaps the most powerful single position in any administration -- Rahm Emanuel, one of the most conservative Democratic members of Congress.
The chief of staff essentially acts as the president's gatekeeper, determining with whom he has access for advice...
Fazila Farouk -
Every once in a while, a miracle cuts through unyielding adversity to deliver a moment of hope. Barack Obama’s ascension to America's highest office is one such momentous miracle in our world’s history.
Who would have thought that America was ready to elect a black president?
The Reverend Jesse Jackson, for one, certainly seemed overwhelmed as he stood among the Chicago victory crowd, tears streaming down his face. Like many of us who have willed Obama’s victory for so...
Robert Jensen and Pat Youngblood -
We have nothing against voting. We plan to vote in the upcoming election. Some of our best friends are voters.
But we also believe that we shouldn't make the mistake of thinking that the most important political moment in our lives comes in the voting booth. Instead, people should take politics seriously, which means asking considerably more of ourselves than the typical fixation with electoral politics.
First, we won't be coy about this election. Each of us voted for Obama in...
