This Worker's Day ...

Never Forget That You've Got The Fight In You...

Newsha Tavakolian is based in Tehran and her work debuted at the Thomas Erben Gallery in New York on April 11. She served as the secretary of the 2013 Heed Awards, a prize awarded for Iranian Social Documentary photography.

*Read more: http://lightbox.time.com/2013/04/23/through-story-a-look-into-iran-newsha-tavakolians-portraiture/#ixzz2RsqRPwSM

After You've Gone...

Happy Freedom Day ...

Freedom Day commemorates South Africa's first democratic elections, held on 27 April 1994.
This year's theme is, "Mobilising Society Towards Consolidating Democracy and Freedom". The idea is to encourages everyone living in the country to join hands to celebrate the achievements that have been made in entrenching democracy and creating a better life for all. 

Not only is today a time to reflect on the inroads we have made towards achieving the vision of a better life for all but also a time to reconsider what we are doing for all those still awaiting what they have been promised by the most progressive constitution in the world.

The Biggest Current Affairs Issue In The World This Week...

Officials have booted three male tourists out of Saudi Arabia - for being TOO HANDSOME. Cops in the ultra-religious state arrested the hunks - from the neighbouring United Arab Emirates - at a cultural festival in the Saudi capital Riyadh.
Officers from religious police force, the Mutaween, reportedly feared local women would find the fellas irresistible and be tempted break the country's strict laws.

Saudi women have to stay covered up at all times and are banned from speaking and interacting with men who aren't their relatives. Sexual contact with a man outside marriage is a punishable offence.

A local newspaper reported: "Three Emiratis were taken out on the grounds they are too handsome. (It was) feared female visitors could fall for them."

*More photograpic evidence of the criminals @ http://blog.asiantown.net/-/17945/ladies--for-your-treat--the-man-who-is-deported-from-saudi-arabia-for-being-too-handsome

Unfuck The World...

If you want to be able to make sense of the Boston Marathon bombing case, begin by turning off your TV. Forget 24-hour news reportage. Rely on the best sources (Democracy Now), plus analytical comments from people like Glenn Greenwald (Guardian). 

Then...think about what is not being covered, and ask why: earthquakes in China, massacres in Syria, tens of thousands of Americans killed by gun violence, expedited wars against Iran, Monsanto, a Republic having become an Empire, hunger strikes in Guantanamo Bay, domestic violence, etc. I mourn the four victims of this bombing, and we should keep praying for their families. And we should keep asking about the tens of thousands whose death and suffering we are not talking about.

Our humanity is connected. Our suffering is connected. Never minimize the suffering of human beings over here. Insist on seeing our lives here as precious, no less precious, and no more precious, than lives over "there." And know that the lives over there are as precious as our lives over here. We are all God's children.

Don't become a slave to made-for-ratings-TV that glamorizes "drama" and breathless reporting over speaking truth to power. Insist on seeing our shared humanity. Demand it. The more connected we are with one another, the more real of an existence we live.

Yes, much of the world around us is fucked up.

It wasn't made this way. We fucked it up.

Let's unfuck the world. Let's make it beautiful.

God bless.

A short rant/prayer - Omid Safi 

Is Chechnya Next On America's Hitlist?

Ramzan Kadyrov, the president of the republic of Chechnya in southern Russia, has issued a statement on Instagram, the Facebook-owned photo-sharing service where he frequently posts casual photos of himself and has over 116,000 followers. In the statement, written in Russian, he criticizes the way that US authorities have handled the search for Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsanaev, the two Chechen brothers who are suspected of carrying on the Boston Marathon bombing.

Here is our translation of the statement. 

The events that took place in Boston are tragic. People have been killed as a result of a terrorist act. Earlier we expressed our condolences to the residents of the city and to the American people. Today, according to media reports, during an arrest attempt a certain Tsarnaev was killed. It would have made sense to arrest him and carry out an investigation, clarify all the circumstances and his degree of guilt. Evidently, the security services needed a result at any price in order to calm the populace. Any attempts to link Chechnya and the Tsarnaevs, if indeed they are guilty, are futile. They grew up in the USA, their viewpoints and beliefs were formed there. You must look for the roots of [their] evil in America. Terrorism must be fought everywhere. We know this better than anyone. We wish all the victims a [speedy] recovery and share in Americans’ grief. #terroristact #Boston #consequence

Some, relying on Google Translate, have claimed that Kadyrov said ”It is necessary to seek the roots of evil in America.” I think that’s a mistranslation; Russian has no definite article, so read in context, “the roots of evil” most likely means “the roots of the evil,” or “their evil,” referring to the brothers’ motives. (But Alexey Kovalev, editor of Russian news site InoSMI.ru, disagrees with me, implying Kadyrov may have deliberately intended the ambiguity.) The final hashtag, #следствие, is also ambiguous. Its first dictionary meaning is “consequence” or “result,” but it can also mean “investigation.” Under the circumstances, it’s not entirely clear what it is meant to imply.

(http://qz.com/76337/on-instagram-chechnyas-president-criticizes-americas-handling-of-the-boston-manhunt/)

Is This Love Or Is It Punishment ...

pyaar hai ya saza ai mere dil bataa 

Is this love or punishment, tell me my heart

toot ta kyon nahi dard ka silsila 

Why doesn't break this chain of pain

iss pyar mein ho kaise kaise imtehaan 

In love why are there such tests

yeh pyaar likhe kaisi kaisi daastan 

What stories does love write

ya rabba 

O my lord

dede koi jaan bhi agar 

Even if someone gives their life

dilbar pe ho na dilbar pe ho na koi asar 

Let no effect there be on the one I love

ya rabba dede koi jaan bhi agar dilbar pe ho na dilbar pe ho na koi asar pyaar hai ya saza ai mere dil bataa toot ta kyon nahi dard ka silsila kaisa hai safar wafa ki manzil ka 

How is this journey of faith

na hai koi hal dilon ki mushkil ka 

There is no solution to the problem of the hearts

dhadkan dhadkan bikhri ranjishen 

Heartbeat is steadfast

saanse saanse tooti bandishen 

Breathing is broken, uneasy

kahi to har lamha honton par faryaad hai 

Always on my lips there is a problem

kisi ki duniya chaahat mein barbaad hai 

Someone's (my) life is ruined in love

ya rabba dede koi jaan bhi agar dilbar pe ho na dilbar pe ho na koi asar ya rabba dede koi jaan bhi agar dilbar pe ho na dilbar pe ho na koi asar koi na sune sisakti aahon ko 

No one listens to my cries

koi na thaame tarapti baahon ko 

No one to hold my arms

aadhi aadhi poori khwaahishein 

Half fulfilled are my wishes

tooti footi sab farmaahishein 

All broken are my dreams

kahi shak hai kahi nafrat ke deewar hain 

If not mistrust then there are walls of hatred

kahi jeet mein bhi shaamil pal pal haar hai 

Even in victory there is the feeling of loss

ya rabba dede koi jaan bhi agar dilbar pe ho na dilbar pe ho na koi asar ya rabba dede koi jaan bhi agar dilbar pe ho na dilbar pe ho na koi asar pyaar hai ya saza ai mere dil bataa toot ta kyon nahi dard ka silsila na poochon dard bando se 

Do not ask to a person with pain

hasee kaisi khushi kaisi 

what is smile and what is happiness

museebat sar pe rehti hai 

Always a cloud over my head

kabhi kaisi kabhi kaisi 

Sometimes this, sometimes that

o rabba, rabba 

O lord

Kailash Kher

Brazilian Police Evict Indigenous Squatters from 2014 Stadium Site...

As Brazil prepares to host the 2014 World Cup, massive construction and reconstruction is taking place, and residents living near stadium sites have faced a series of evictions and relocations. In Rio de Janeiro, a group of indigenous people have been squatting in abandoned structure near the famous Maracana Stadium since about 2006. The building, formerly an Indian museum, is now slated for demolition, making way for a planned 10,000-car parking lot, part of the $500 million renovation of Maracana Stadium. The indigenous group and their supporters staged numerous protests over the past year, trying to halt the planned eviction, but lost their battle on March 22, when hundreds of police officers in riot gear surrounded the building. A tense 12-hour standoff took place, as supporters outside the building were tear-gassed and arrested. By the end of the day, police were able to forcibly remove all members of the community from inside the building.

A native man gestures as he protests against eviction from the former Indigenous Museum -- aka Aldea Maracana -- next to the Maracana stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on March 22, 2013. Indigenous people have been occupying the place since 2006, which is due to be pulled down to construct a parking lot for the upcoming Brazil 2014 FIFA World Cup. (Vanderlei Almeida/AFP/Getty Images) 

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The old Indian Museum, left, stands near Maracana soccer stadium, right, in Rio de Janeiro, on March 19, 2012. Dozens of indigenous people who have built homes on the site of Rio's old Indian Museum, abandoned since 1977, will have to move as part of the neighborhood's makeover for the 2014 World Cup. Carlos Tukano, the group's leader, says the space provides a place to stay for indigenous people visiting Rio, whether looking for medical care, pursuing their education or hawking crafts to tourists on the beach.(AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano) # 

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Two masked men keep a lookout on the rooftop of the old Indian museum, in Rio de Janeiro, on January 12, 2013.(AP Photo/Felipe Dana) # 

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A native man blocks a gate as riot police officers stand guard at the entrance of the old indigenous museum in Rio, on January 12, 2013.(Vanderlei Almeida/AFP/Getty Images) # 

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An indigenous man holds a small pot of fire at the Brazilian Indian Museum in Rio, on March 21, 2013. (Reuters/Pilar Olivares) # 

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A Brazilian Indian girl from the Guajajaras tribe sits in a hammock at the Brazilian Indian Museum in Rio, on March 18, 2013.(Reuters/Pilar Olivares) # 

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Inside the former Indigenous Museum next to the Maracana stadium in Rio, on January 28, 2013.(Christophe Simon/AFP/Getty Images) # 

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An indigenous man lights a fire as others dance after a press conference inside the abandoned Indian Museum, in Rio, on November 23, 2012. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) 

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A indigenous man films a press conference in the abandoned Indian Museum in Rio, on November 23, 2012. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) # 

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A Brazilian Native boy balances on a swing at the abandoned Indian Museum in Rio, on January 28, 2013. (Reuters/Sergio Moraes) # 

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An indigenous man participates in a protest at the old Indian Museum in Rio, during the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, or Rio+20, on June 21, 2012. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) 

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A man wearing a headdress and another wearing a ski mask sit on a windowsill on the site of the old Indian museum, in Rio, on January 12, 2013. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) # 

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Brazilian native Indian Zahy Guajajara checks her computer in the former Indian Museum where she lives, in Rio, on June 2, 2012.(Reuters/Sergio Moraes) # 

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A man wearing a headdress and another wearing a ski mask sit on a windowsill on the site of the old Indian museum, with a view of Maracana Stadium, on January 12, 2013. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) # 

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Natives paint their faces inside the former Indigenous Museum in Rio, on March 21, 2013. (Christophe Simon/AFP/Getty Images) # 

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On March 22, 2013, riot police officers stand guard as Indians and their supporters, right, negotiate with authorities in Rio de Janeiro.(AP Photo/Felipe Dana) # 

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An Indian man wearing a headdress and holding a bow and arrow stands behind two policemen in riot gear on the site of the old Indian museum, on January 12, 2013. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) # 

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Indigenous people and their supporters hold a baby while shouting at police as they stay inside the old Indian Museum in Rio, on March 22, 2013. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) # 

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Natives protest during their eviction from the former Indigenous Museum, on March 22, 2013. Indigenous people have been occupying the place since 2006, which is due to be pulled down to construct a parking lot for the upcoming Brazil 2014 FIFA World Cup.(Christophe Simon/AFP/Getty Images) # 

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A police officer uses pepper spray on supporters of a native Indian community living at the old Indian Museum during a protest against the community's eviction, on March 22, 2013. (Reuters/Ricardo Moraes) # 

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A police officer grabs a supporter of Indians occupying the old Indian Museum during clashes with riot police, on March 22, 2013.(AP Photo/Felipe Dana) # 

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A police officer grabs a supporter of Indians occupying the old Indian Museum under his jaw as the protesters block the road outside the museum in Rio, on March 22, 2013. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) # 

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Brazilian natives protest their eviction by the police from the former Indigenous Museum in Rio, on March 22, 2013.(Vanderlei Almeida/AFP/Getty Images) # 

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An Indian man laying on the ground receives medical attention after being evicted from the old Indian Museum in Rio, on March 22, 2013. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) # 

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A native Indian and a supporter react as they observe police officers from the roof of the old Indian Museum, on March 22, 2013.(Reuters/Sergio Moraes) # 

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A Native Indian woman reacts inside a municipal vehicle after leaving the Brazilian Indian Museum, after a deal was made with authorities in Rio, on March 22, 2013. Brazilian military police took position early morning outside the Indian museum. Indians were ordered to leave the museum in 72 hours by court officials last week, local media reported. (Reuters/Ricardo Moraes) # 

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An indigenous man is arrested during clashes outside the old Indian museum, on March 22, 2013. Police in riot gear invaded an old Indian museum complex Friday and pulled out a few dozen indigenous people who for months resisted eviction from the building, which will be razed as part of World Cup preparations next to the legendary Maracana football stadium. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) # 

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Natives who were evicted from the former Indian Museum speak with Brazilian prosecutor Marylucy Santiago Barra, at the Federal Court of Justice in Rio de Janeiro, on March 24, 2013. (Christophe Simon/AFP/Getty Images) # 

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A native who was evicted from the former Indian Museum plays the flute after testifying at the Federal Court of Justice in Rio de Janeiro, on March 24, 2013. Authorities say they will now go ahead with the demolition of the abandoned colonial-style building at the request of football's world governing body as part of an urban renewal program. (Christophe Simon/AFP/Getty Images) # 

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An aerial view shows the final touches of the roof installation at the Maracana Stadium, which is undergoing renovation for the 2014 World Cup, in Rio de Janeiro April 9, 2013. The abandoned Indian Museum can be seen at lower right. (Reuters/Ricardo Moraes) #