Please visit the News Archive for past entries.
A New Email Address
Dear Friends, just in case you have emailed me recently at my Oxford university email address (the one ending in philosophy.ox.ac.uk) and you haven't yet had a response, chances are I have not received your mail. Please direct all mail to the following address: c (dot) korfmacher (dot) 99 (at) cantab (dot) net - or click here.
You're probably wondering why I haven't updated this site in a while. The recent past has brought about many changes and challenges, but as soon as I'm sailing through more quite waters I will begin writing, posting and updating here much more regularly. Promise.
A New Mobile/Cell Phone Number
I have recently returned to Germany, after a good two months in Senegal and Mali and another week in London. I will post updates about my work in Senegal and the trip across Mali soon, together with plenty of photos.
In the meantime I would like to inform you that my mobile/cell phone number has changed. I am now available on +49 163 243 1080. My UK number is still in service and will be re-activated as soon as I am back in the country - whenever that is going to be.
Anti-Nazi Demonstration, Neuss (Germany), October 2007
On October 13th, 2007 a group of regionally known neo-Nazis have attempted to march through Neuss, a city of 150,000 located in the Düsseldorf metropolitan area. The Antifaschistische Aktion ("Anti-Fascist Action") as well as other politically active groups in the city and elsewhere have called upon the people of Neuss to non-violently prevent the Nazis from entering the city area, to express their dissatisfaction with the city council's approval of the Nazi march and to demonstrate that there is no space for fascist, racist and ultranational belief systems in the minds and hearts of our people.
The counter-demonstration was a resounding success: several hundred political activists as well as many hundred “civilians”, who decided to join the demonstration as soon as they became aware of its purpose, have made their voice heard and prevented the Nazis from entering the main city area.
Unfortunately, despite the reputable cause and the non-violent intention, some demonstrators (me included) have seen themselves forced to break the law by masking themselves with hoods, sun glasses and scarves, due to the fact that executive forces repeatedly recorded individuals’ faces on camera. In Germany the legality of this common phenomenon is disputed. If the material is used exclusively to identify perpetrators of a crime related to the incident in question, it is legal. If, however, the material is used for any other purpose (e.g. to establish police files on the behaviour and alliances of demonstrators or otherwise politically active individuals, or to identify potential applicants for state or government positions in the juridical or executive sector as politically active), it is illegal.
Germany has, like the United States of America, a law (known as “Paragraph 129a”) in accordance to which an individual loses a number of basic civil rights, including her right to privacy, if the individual can be shown to have alliances to what is regarded a terrorist organisation, whether or not the individual herself has ever committed a crime. In order for a group to be deemed a terrorist organisation, it has to have three or more members who together commit crimes in order to further political goals. Criminalising and subjecting its citizens to second class status by mere association is in itself an act of terrorism, in this case committed by a state that prides itself on its progressive liberalism. This is because such laws induce fear in people who would otherwise speak their mind on political, social and legal issues, and who would otherwise make use of the democratic tool of demonstrating to exercise their political rights. In contemporary capitalistic societies, this does not even have to be the fear of being subjected to arrests and questionings, but the fear of putting oneself at what is perceived to be an unnecessary competitive disadvantage in the daily race for money and status.
Democracy, we can agree, may sometimes be destroyed by evil tyrants. However, the foundation of democracy, the very reason to regard democracy as a desirable form of government is threatened when citizens are even as much as inconvenienced when they exercise their political rights, and here it doesn't matter whether the inconvenience is caused by a police force, a legal system, market considerations or the persistent indoctrination through "media terrorism".
When it comes to this point, everything is political: every action, every omitted action has political relevance. Do we live in such times? You decide.
Children of Conflict: DR Congo
Part 1 (12 minutes): The first part of this short documentary introduces some aspects of the dreadful life in the Ituri province in the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. There are interviews with former child soldiers, who have fought, looted, raped and killed, and who speak of their experiences as combatants. All interviewees have had several years of civil war experience. The oldest one is now 14 years old.
Part 2 (12 minutes): The second part offers more information about the aftermath of the Second Congo War and the Rwanda genocide that spilled over into the Eastern DRC. The concept of rape as a form of warfare is introduced. There are more interviews with former child soldiers, including two girls, now 15 and 16 years old, who were both victims and perpetrators in the conflict.
These children have not only committed but also suffered from horrible atrocities done to themselves and their families. Former child soldiers are not normally accepted back into society: they are regarded as living reminders of the violence that has been the only constant in the lives of the people of Eastern Congo, of lootings , mass rapes and murders. They are not forgiven.
There are several ways to help the Congolese people. Most international NGOs have projects across the country and smaller NGOs target particular regions or particular aspects of Congolese life in dire need of assistance. My own projects support street children (many of which were child soldiers) in the DRC's capital, Kinshasa, and those people in the Eastern Congo whose villages have recently been looted. To support these projects, visit my DR Congo 2008 page or email me. To support my partner organisation Oneworld Works, who have several projects in the DRC, please contact Ira Simmons per website, email or telephone (+1 310 980 4686).
My USA 2007 Fundraising Trip: The Facts
Starting Point: Bowser, a village on Vancouver Island, off the Canadian West Coast, on April 20th, 2007
End Point: Harlem in New York City, on the US American East Coast, on September 16th, 2007
Distance covered: 13,506 kilometres / 8,392 miles
Means of transportation: Walking, hitchhiking, local and regional buses
Funds raised: $1,250 + funds directly donated to my partner organisation Oneworld Works
The route: Bowser (BC, Canada) -- Vancouver (BC, Canada) -- Seattle (WA, USA) -- Portland (OR) -- Goldendale (WA) -- Vantage (WA) -- Spokane (WA) -- Missoula (MT) -- Clinton (MT) -- Jackson (WY) -- Yellowstone National Park (WY) -- Idaho Falls (ID) -- Salt Lake City (UT) -- Las Vegas (NV) -- Death Valley National Park (CA) -- Las Vegas (NV) -- Mono Lake/Yosemite (CA) -- Midpines/Yosemite (CA) -- San Francisco (CA) -- Santa Barbara (CA) -- Los Angeles/Inglewood (CA) -- Los Angeles/Compton (CA) -- San Diego (CA) -- Tucson (AZ) -- El Paso (TX) -- Albuquerque (NM) -- Oklahoma City (OK) -- Dallas (TX) -- Houston (TX) -- Mexico City (DF, Mexico) -- Monterrey (NL, Mexico) -- Houston (TX) -- New Orleans (LA) -- Biloxi (MS) -- Mobile (AL) -- Montgomery (AL) -- Atlanta (GA) -- Columbia (SC) -- Charlotte (NC) -- Baltimore (MD) -- Washington (DC) -- New York City/Midtown (NY) -- New York City/Harlem (NY)
Update and Photos from Mexico City & Monterrey
Just a brief update to let you know I am finally back in the UK. I will be around until December 3rd, the day I am leaving for Dakar (and subsequently the Casamance) in Senegal.
My US cell doesn't work anymore unfortunately, but my old UK cell/mobile phone still works. So if you have the number, don't hesitate to use it!
It became increasingly difficult to update this site when I reached Texas, so I didn't get a chance to post any reports or photos from the last 2-3 months of my journey yet. This is going to change now. I will post entries regularly, to catch up with myself, so to speak, until the beginning of December. There’s plenty to come: New Orleans, the Dirty South, the remaining Southern states, Baltimore, DC, New York City and so forth. But I’d like to start somewhere else, namely in Mexico City and Monterrey, where I spent some time in July/August.
"Mexico City is not only the second-largest city in the world (after Tokyo, Japan), it is also infamous for its poverty and crimes: widespread gang violence, daylight robberies, taxi express kidnappings, prostitution, human trafficking, murders." That's what I heard before I visited the city. What I found, however, was not a Mexican Soweto, but a Latin-American Paris: the city is in fact a mesmerizing, bustling, eclectic melting pot, which boasts an abundance of bars, restaurants, museums, art galleries, and concert halls. It also prides itself on some of the finest examples of romantic and gothic architecture as well as remnants of pre-Hispanic structures, such as the foundation of the main temple of the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan, the templo mayor, which was largely destroyed by the Spanish conquistadores in the siege of 1521. Especially the historic part of town between the Palacio de Bellas Artes, the city’s premier opera house, and the Plaza de la Constitucion, informally known as El Zócalo, impresses with its architectural beauty and bohemian flair. Needless to say, the people are amongst the friendliest, most forthcoming and hospitable people I have come across and the food is plainly marvellous – if you are in town, do try the stuffed meat and pepper tacos from a street vendor. Here are some photos:
Mexico City, Plaza de la Constitucion: 1 2 3 4 5 6
Mexico City, Street Scenes: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
If Mexico City is the Latin-American Paris, then Monterrey, capital of the northern state of Nuevo León, is the Mexican Monaco. Historically an industrial town of, well, negligible distinction is it now Mexico’s third-populous metropolitan area and ranked as Latin America’s safest city and richest municipality (by per capita GDP). Monterrey is home to some of the region’s most affluent neighbourhoods, upscale shopping districts, bars, restaurants, and, which comes with the territory, an abundance of what is locally known as fresas.
However, even Monterrey has its impoverished areas. Ciudad Solidaridad, for example, the “City of Solidarity,” is a neighbourhood that has been created for the victims of Hurricane Gilbert in 1988. Gilbert left many tens of thousands of people homeless. Unfortunately, due to their low income status, above average unemployment rates and insufficient governmental support, many of the 15,000 families who call the neighbourhood their home cannot even afford to complete the building process on their houses they have started almost 20 years ago. Wide-spread poverty and sub-urban decay are the inevitable consequences.
Ciudad Solidaridad: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Another example is La Coyotera, the “Land of the Coyotes.” La Coyotera is what in the US would be called “the hood”: gangsters, crack heads, drug dealers, transvestite prostitutes, run down hotels, questionable bars, burnt out or cannibalized vehicles, stolen goods sold in the streets - a place where lost souls often find each other, but rarely themselves.
Update from New York City
Dear Friends, I am very sorry I didn't get around updating this site more often in recent weeks. I am spending much of my time travelling and most of the remaining time either recuperating or writing, so there plainly isn’t much time for anything else. The good news is that I have safely arrived in New York City, the place where my journey ends. However, the bad news is that due to a number of necessary route changes I haven’t visited 25 states yet, but only 21 (I’m including D.C. in this list, which is fair enough, given the close proximity to Virginia, where I spent time but never stayed overnight). This means I will have to leave the state again and visit 4 others. I am not sure where I will go. New Jersey, Delaware and Pennsylvania, and maybe also Connecticut are options. We’ll see. This weekend, however, I will enjoy the Big Apple and start thinking about these issues on Monday morning.
I still owe you travel descriptions of the places I visited on my way to NYC. After Atlanta I stayed a few days each in Columbia (South Carolina), Charlotte (North Carolina), Baltimore (Maryland) and Washington (DC), from where I made my way directly to New York City. There is plenty to come, including articles on the Mexico, the “Dirty South” and New Orleans in particular, Atlanta, the Carolinas and much more. I have experienced a lot and took plenty of photos, so you may look forward to all of this and check back soon. Regular updates of this website will have to wait until I return to Europe though, which is going to be September 17.
On other news, on Tuesday, September 13 the Holy month of Ramadan starts. At the beginning of this year I had begun having reservations regarding my rather stringent views on the negative impact of religion on our societies and have subsequently decided to fast each year through both Lent and Ramadan. This is both in solidarity with religious folk and to use the time to learn more about the world religions and how they shape the way human beings interact with each other in the world we share. As with Lent, there are many different views on how Ramadan ought to be celebrated. I shall do the following: I will refrain from any type of food during daylight and am not allowed alcohol, medication, fast food, sweets and sodas during the entire month. Also, there will be restrictions on my meat intake during Ramadan (I am allowed white meat, red meat and fish once a week, the remaining four days being vegetarian). It may sound absurd to some, but the practice means something to me.
So if you run into me between September 1 and October 11 and I happen to be slightly grumpy, you probably know the reason...
Cowboys in Oklahoma
I recently spent a couple of days in Oklahoma City, where I visited the Oklahoma National Stockyards, the nation's largest stocker and feeder cattle market. It was interesting to see real-life cowboys in their natural habitat. Here are a few photos:
Photos of the stockyards: 1 2 3 4
Click here to watch a video of a livestock auction - and admire the auctioneer's chant! Or simply press the "play" button below:
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