‘Poetry can break open locked chambers of possibility, restore numbed zones to feeling, recharge desire’ – Adrienne Rich Writing to the Wire is a collection of poems about Australia’s treatment of asylum seekers and refugees. Featuring poetry from academics, writers, refugee advocates and refugees themselves, it is a powerful look at our national identity, namely,…
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Australian firm Mercer PR has been widely criticised, including by the Public Relations Institute of Australia, the industry’s peak body, for releasing the name of an alleged rape victim on Nauru, as well as information pertaining to the case. On Monday, the public relations firm released the victim’s name in a police briefing document…
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Trigger warning: rape, sexual assault and harassment Last week footage surfaced of a Somali woman being found by police four hours after being raped. The woman was a detainee at Australia’s offshore detention centre on Nauru. (TW: The video in the link is very distressing to watch). A second woman at the centre has since…
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The creator of Humans of New York, Brandon Stanton, is focusing his lens on the humanitarian crisis unfolding in the Middle East and Europe. As the name suggests, Humans of New York usually documents the stories of people out and about in New York. With a following of 15 million people on Facebook alone,…
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An editorial by The New York Times has attacked the Australian government’s current ‘stop the boats’ policy, in a week where the desperate plight of refugees and asylum seekers has been highlighted in the media. The editorial published in Thursday’s edition of The New York Times pulled no punches, decrying the Abbott government’s policy as…
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The federal election campaign is now officially under way, which means we’ve been plunged headlong into the black hole of empty slogans, tired clichés, insidious euphemisms, half truths, and complete lies. But, hey, at least we’re all in it together. There’s nothing like an impending election to lower the tone of political language and to…
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With his announcement of Labor’s new refugee policy, PM Kevin Rudd has ensured that instead of doing away with ‘old politics’, his party continues to insist on fighting the coalition on its own turf. For the last decade, at least, the ALP has allowed the Liberal-Nationals to dominate the political discourse, dictate the agenda,…
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