Loujain al-Hathloul, Saudi Activist for Women’s Rights, Released– But U.S. Must Keep Up Pressure on Saudi Arabia

Happy news, rare in the realm of human rights in Saudi Arabia, occurred on Wednesday when it was learned that Loujain al-Hathloul, held in a Saudi prison for more than three years on what human rights observers agree were ridiculous, trumped-up, politically-motivated charges was released by the Saudi government under certain autocratic conditions. As reported… Read More Loujain al-Hathloul, Saudi Activist for Women’s Rights, Released– But U.S. Must Keep Up Pressure on Saudi Arabia

February 12, 2021 John Kaufman

Dear Democrats: A Letter for Peace in the Middle East

If the Democratic Party and its presidential nominee, Joe Biden, have a weak spot, it is their general fondness –since the debacle of the Vietnam War– for military solutions and support, including the selling of American weapons, of governments whose commitment to democracy and human rights leave much to be desired. So in the interest… Read More Dear Democrats: A Letter for Peace in the Middle East

June 23, 2020June 25, 2020 John Kaufman

Gnostic Nonsense: The New Homophobia

It was a shock for me to learn, right off the bat, that America is now in a “post-Christian” age, what with all the Christians in the country and talk of Christianity still going on, on Twitter and off.… Read More Gnostic Nonsense: The New Homophobia

May 22, 2020June 8, 2020 John Kaufman

Defend Liberty? Tell the Saudis (and Trump) to Release Women’s Rights Activists

There is, fortunately, a much better way for defenders of democracy and freedom fighters everywhere to make their liberty-loving presence known: tell the Saudi government to release all the women’s rights activists it has imprisoned on trumped-up charges.… Read More Defend Liberty? Tell the Saudis (and Trump) to Release Women’s Rights Activists

May 19, 2020February 7, 2021 John Kaufman

As If a Cell Can Bar a Soul (a poem)

In honor of World Poetry Day Couplets for those who don’t betray The verse of stars, the vow of stones And meet the sinking sun alone– As if a cell can bar a soul … As if a whale can hide the whole.

March 21, 2018June 22, 2020 John Kaufman

The “Human Rights Poetry” of Yevgeny Yevtushenko Very Relevant Today

By John Frederick Kaufman Speaking of his poetry, here’s what Russian poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko, who died yesterday in Tulsa, Oklahoma at the age of 84, told the Associated Press in an interview back in 2007: “I don’t call it political poetry, I call it human rights poetry; the poetry which defends human conscience as the… Read More The “Human Rights Poetry” of Yevgeny Yevtushenko Very Relevant Today

April 2, 2017March 6, 2018 John Kaufman

Both China & U.S. need to improve the human rights of women

Yesterday, at a U.N. summit meeting on women’s rights hosted by, of all nations, China and its president, Xi Jinping, we learned that China will “reaffirm our commitment to gender equality and women’s development,” according to Xi. So far, that reaffirmation has failed to recover the human rights of five Chinese female/feminist activists who were imprisoned… Read More Both China & U.S. need to improve the human rights of women

September 28, 2015September 29, 2015 John Kaufman2 Comments

The Pacific

Category: Human Rights