U.S. Takes Step toward Marriage Equality
The United States Supreme Court yesterday refused to review a series of appeals court decisions that overturned same-sex marriage bans in five states. The decision effectively legalizes same-sex marriage in Indiana, Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin, bringing the total number of U.S. states where same-sex marriage are legal to 24. That number could soon rise … Read more
Amnesty International Says El Salvador Abortion Law Kills Women
In a report released on Thursday, Amnesty International stated that El Salvador’s total ban on abortion is killing women and infringing upon human rights progress. Enacted in 1998, the law makes any form of abortion illegal, even in cases of rape, incest, when the mother’s life is in danger, or when the fetus has serious … Read more
Major Student Protest in Chile Ends in Violence
Thousands of students marched in the streets of Santiago and other cities throughout Chile yesterday to express their impatience with the lack of progress made on education reform—a key promise made by Chilean President Michelle Bachelet after she was reelected in 2013. The Universidad de Chile’s (University of Chile) student organization Federación de Estudiantes de … Read more
A Discussion about Lesbian Roles and Depictions in Mexico
LGBT cyber-activists took to the web last week to publically denounce Mexico City’s 3rd International Lesbian Festival. Through a communiqué posted on Facebook, nearly 20 LGBT organizations and collectives and around 50 individual signatories condemned the festival as a vehicle for perpetuating misogyny and machismo. They also criticized a number of authorities for vouching for … Read more
Missouri Governor Visits St. Louis Following Protests
Missouri Governor Jay Nixon traveled to St. Louis yesterday to address the tense situation developing in Ferguson, a St. Louis suburb, after Michael Brown, an unarmed African-American teenager, was killed by a white police officer on Saturday. Gov. Nixon faces criticism for his slow response to the crisis following four nights of protests that have resulted in police firing teargas and rubber bullets at protestors. Journalists from Al Jazeera America were also targeted with tear gas on Wednesday night … Read more
Trailblazers: First-Generation College Students Tell Their Stories
In honor of Americas Quarterly‘s launch of its Summer 2014 issue on higher education and competitiveness, we asked first-generation college graduates from around the hemisphere to describe how they defied the odds to get their college degrees. The six former students featured below—the first in their families to graduate from college—have since gone on to … Read more
Abandoned Houses Prove Golden Opportunity in Mexico
Miriam Rodríguez, 43, lives in Cañadas del Florido, a low-income neighborhood in Tijuana, Baja California, the northernmost state of Mexico. Three years ago, on any given day, Miriam and her three children would watch criminals, drug addicts, and vagrants frequent the empty house next door. Their streets were littered with garbage and dead animals. This … Read more
Abuses Against Afro-Colombian Communities in Tumaco
Human Rights Watch released a report today that documents killings, disappearances and sexual violence against Afro-Colombian communities in Tumaco, a city in southwestern Nariño department. The abuses were reportedly committed by the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia–FARC). José Miguel Vivanco, Americas director at Human Rights Watch, said that “the FARC … Read more
Higher Ed: Private Investors Get Into the Game
The combination of sustained economic growth in Latin America, a region-wide expansion of the middle class, and a newly competitive business environment has boosted demand for quality education, and stoked desires for alternatives. The alternatives are coming from a slew of new and lower-cost online courses. This innovation has produced a wave of private investment … Read more
The Pull and Example of Science Education in the United States
I expected high school biology students. Instead, I was facing 120 middle school students who were on an outing to Maloka, an innovative science museum in Bogotá. On the fly, I changed my presentation on how the brain works into a series of demonstrations. At the end, I was awed by the questions: “My mother … Read more
MOOCs in Development: Fad or Future?
Those following tech and continuing education news have been surprised by the rising popularity of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs).1 The basic promise for professionals in Latin America and the Caribbean is quite alluring: free online access to a world-class knowledge base. But questions remain. Will this new learning methodology last, or fade quickly once … Read more
Civic Innovator: Oriol Gutierrez
Oriol Gutierrez first came out when he was a high school senior nearly three decades ago, telling his best friend, but not his family, that he was gay. It wasn’t until 1996 that he finally told his parents and sister the truth. Yet Gutiérrez kept another secret from them for 12 more years: while serving … Read more
Protest U.
Millions of students have taken to the streets across Latin America in recent years in protests that reflect an unprecedentedly broad mobilization of popular opinion. Following massive demonstrations led by secondary school students in 2006 in Chile, university students launched a series of protests in May 2011. Powered by a coalition of public and private … Read more
Ask the Experts: Higher Education
Artur Cherbowski Lask answers: It’s important to keep in mind that a region consists of different countries, each with its own needs and strengths, and bound to its particular culture and history—although tied firmly to a common, shared history and culture. In this mosaic, universities try to respond to their regional, national and local demands. … Read more
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