• Soon after being sworn into office, Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro launched into an assault on indigenous people and the Amazon rainforest. The new president issued a 120-day decree, putting the agriculture ministry in charge of indigenous affairs, which impacts nearly one million people. The ministry, now overseeing the management of public forests, will also have the power to rule on land claims.
(“Brazil Farm Lobby Wins As Bolsonaro Grabs Control Over Indigenous Lands,” Reuters, Jan. 2, 2019; “Jair Bolsonaro’s Inauguration: The Day Progressive Brazil Has Dreaded,” The Guardian, Jan. 1, 2019)
• In the ultimate act of protest, a Tunisian television reporter set himself on fire in a chilling cell phone video posted on Christmas Eve in the city of Kasserine, which dates back to Roman times. The 32-year-old reporter complained of widespread hunger and massive unemployment.
(“Is Revolutionary Fervor Afire Again in Tunisia,” New Yorker, Dec. 31, 2018)
• Before dawn each morning, hundreds of Mexican-American schoolchildren cross the border, passing U.S. Border Patrol officers to ride school buses to classes in Luna County, New Mexico. Mexican children have attended these New Mexico schools for decades and are warmly welcomed by local officials.
(“Students Cross the Border,” Christian Science Monitor, Nov. 2, 2018)
