Comment archive

Thursday, 25 Mar 2021
Antiracism: the willingness to understand others

Polarized debates about racism can be counterproductive, closing down possible spaces of mutual understanding, instead of opening them. Over the last few months, the debate in Norway around racism has been far more polarized than it needs to be. Many of the discussions are important, like the exchanges around the ...

Tuesday, 9 Jun 2020
‘It should change’: Young people on skin colour and national belonging in Norway

The fight against racism and discrimination cannot be won without the silent, non-targeted, majorities’ active contribution and participation – recognizing one another as equal human beings, but significantly also going beyond this, to call out and change the structures and practices that prevent real equality. This is true whether we ...

Tuesday, 19 May 2020
Can We Combat Conspiracy Theories about Pandemics?

Did you know that HIV was created by the US government in order to oppress the country’s African American population? Or that researchers engineered the Zika virus to ruin Brazil’s hosting of the 2016 Olympics? Or that coronavirus is linked to the roll-out of 5G mobile networks? This piece is ...

Tuesday, 14 Apr 2020
Whose Needs? Reflections on Health Information and Minorities

On 1 April, the Norwegian News Agency (NTB) reported that rates of coronavirus (COVID-19) infection among Norwegian-Somalis were significantly higher than among other foreign-born inhabitants of Norway. Hospitals are reporting that 30–40 percent of patients who test positive for the virus are from immigrant backgrounds. The government has now granted NOK ...

Monday, 6 Apr 2020
Migrants and COVID-19 in Norway: Five Reflections on Skewed Impacts

This piece is part of our blog series Beyond the COVID Curve. COVID-19 has quickly changed everything from our daily routines, to the policies of governments, to the fortunes of the global economy. How will it continue to shape society and the conditions for peace and conflict globally in the ...

Wednesday, 13 Apr 2016
Myanmar's Ethnic Minorities Marginalized More

For the first time in over half a century, Myanmar has a government with a popular mandate, led by the National League for Democracy (NLD). Although the Myanmar armed forces still have extensive political powers under the 2008 constitution, and may seriously curtail the independent action of the new government, ...

Thursday, 17 Dec 2015
Myanmar: What now for Women and Minorities?

Will Aung San Suu Kyi dare to engage in a direct confrontation with religious nationalism and insist that the new parliament reconsider Myanmar’s laws on
 race and religion? Doing so could cost her dearly. Sexual violence Myanmar (formerly known as Burma) has been in a continuous state of civil war ...