by Nelson Graves | 15 Jul 2016 | Europe, Islam, Terrorism
“The truck plowed into the crowd, and then we heard screaming. It was really a horrible experience.” Robert Holloway saw the attack in Nice last night. Bodies at the scene of a truck attack in Nice, France, 15 July 2016. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) “We saw...
by Giuliana Nicolucci-Altman | 7 Jun 2016 | Americas, Europe, Islam, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Terrorism, United States
I’ve spent the past year in France. I’m not French, but I no longer identify completely as an American. It’s given me a new perspective. A Muslim student puts on her head scarf as she leaves high school in Lille, France, 2 September 2004. France bans...
by News Decoder | 16 May 2016 | Islam, Middle East, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Syria, Terrorism
Syrian refugee holds onto his children as he struggles to walk off a dinghy on the Greek island of Lesbos, 24 September 2015. (REUTERS/Yannis Behrakis) By Annique Browne What’s the biggest threat to U.S. national security? During this year’s presidential...
by News Decoder | 9 May 2016 | Europe, Islam, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Terrorism
By Ally Oh We’re always told to look for the good — the silver lining, the upside, the half-full glass — but it’s not always that easy or simple. On a recent weekend, listening to a heartbroken Turkish girl cry and yell at everyone in the bathroom to get...
by Ivy Turinsky | 27 Apr 2016 | Europe, Islam, Politics, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Terrorism, United States
The terror attacks on Paris have prompted the media and nationalist movements to promote fear. To succumb to fear is to play into the hands of the terrorists. “Paix pour Paris,” by Ivy Turinsky, November 20, 2015 This story won first prize in the high school category...
by News Decoder | 21 Apr 2016 | Islam, Middle East
By Nelson Graves Beware misconceptions about Islam that can mar Western accounts of society and politics in Muslim-majority nations. That was the advice of Jonathan Lyons, an expert on the Islamic world, in a mini-course for students in News-Decoder’s pilot...
by Nelson Graves | 28 Jan 2016 | Art, Europe, Middle East, Religion
Diplomatic deference or crass kowtowing? Italy’s decision to cover up nude statues during a visit by Iran’s president provokes scorn, glee and irony. A covered statue at Rome’s Capitoline Museums, 25 January 2016 (EPA/Giuseppe Lami) Supreme diplomatic...
by Giuliana Nicolucci-Altman | 16 Dec 2015 | Europe, Islam, School Year Abroad, Terrorism
Study abroad is about being afraid. The Paris attacks have forced me to confront an unexpected fear and allowed me to discover the beauty of France. A shrine to victims of the Paris attacks, 30 November 2015. (EPA/Geoffroy Van Der Hasselt) Giuliana Nicolucci-Altman is...
by Pauline Bock | 8 Dec 2015 | Europe, Islam, Middle East, Personal Reflections, Terrorism
By Pauline Bock I’m what they call a “millennial.” I am also a journalist. So of course I read it on Twitter first. “Shootings in Paris.” I didn’t have any plans on Friday night. I had to get up early the next morning and was getting ready for bed when my news...
by Bernd Debusmann | 8 Dec 2015 | Americas, Islam, United States
By Bernd Debusmann Take note of a new phrase in the U.S. political lexicon: the Trump Phenomenon. It was coined by pundits who are perplexed by the enduring popularity of Donald Trump, the New York billionaire who wants to become U.S. president, among a segment of the...