by Sabine Berzina | 9 May 2024 | Europe, History, Politics, Russia, Ukraine
It’s been 34 years since the Soviet Union controlled Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. But the Ukraine conflict has people thinking: Are we ready for war? Two photos show Jelgava, Latvia. On the left is Jelgava before World War Two (Credit: The Archive of Jelgava...
by Tom Heneghan | 26 Apr 2024 | Journalism, Media Literacy
The movie “Civil War” gives little backstory, leaving viewers to experience war in the moment, the way the reporters in the film cover it. Scene from the movie Civil War. Credit: A24 This article was produced exclusively for News Decoder’s global news...
by Bernd Debusmann | 14 Feb 2024 | Decoder Replay, History, Politics
Under the United Nations Charter everyone has a right to a life of peace and dignity. But clearly that’s not happening. So what’s gone wrong? Non–Violence or The Knotted Gun by Carl Fredrik Reutersward, UN New York. (Licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0)...
by Thomas Hickey | 4 Jan 2024 | Middle East, Politics, Syria, University of Wisconsin, Women, Youth Voices
The Kurdish people in North Syria are attacked by Turkey to the north and Syria to the south. No one wants them there but they have nowhere to go. People attend the funeral of four Kurds in the town of Jinderis, Syria, 21 March 2023. The assailants shot the Kurdish...
by Ammar Nainar | 20 Dec 2023 | Asia, Educators' Catalog, History, King’s College London, Politics
India and Pakistan — both nuclear powers — have fought three wars over Kashmir. But neither will yield in one of the world’s intractable conflicts. Zero Bridge in Srinagar Kashmir. (Credit: P. Kijsanayothin for Getty Images Signature) Editor’s note: On 11...
This Decoder Replay by Ammar Nainar is an excellent complement to history lesson plans about decolonization and the Partition of India in 1947. How does the past continue to inform the present in ways that matter?
Exercise: Read the article with your history class after students learn about the Partition of India in 1947. Discuss how decisions made in the 1940s continue to affect people living in India and Pakistan to this day. What throughlines can students draw between past and present? Then, divide students into groups of 3-4. Each group will come up with a resolution to the dispute in Kashmir. Resolutions should consider: Who gets control of Kashmir? Which countries should be involved in negotiations? How feasible is Kashmiri independence?