Category: Politics

Violence erupts anew in Syria: Can U.S. intervention be justified?

by Ted Regencia, posted in Middle East, Politics

An exclusive interview with Middle East Scholar and Columbia University professor Rashid Khalidi

Text and photo by Ted Regencia

(An updated version of this article has been published in the online publication Your Middle East)

 

After a few days of relative calm, violence erupted anew in Syria with news reports claiming as many as 54 civilians killed on Wednesday despite a United Nations-backed ceasefire between President Bashar al-Assad and the rebel forces. On that account, calls for a U.S. led intervention, as a matter of “moral principle,” has resurfaced amidst diametric warnings on American forces being caught in another bloody quagmire.

It has been 14 days since special envoy and former U.N. chief Kofi Annan announced a truce on April 12. Since that day, activists have reported more than 460 casualties many in the besieged west-central city of Hama.

The fresh violence has prompted France to call for tighter sanctions against the Assad regime and issue a threat of arming the opposition. And here in the U.S., some segments in the foreign affairs establishment are advocating a muscular and military approach to the situation. Former U.S. ambassador to NATO Kurt Volker wrote in the Christian Science Monitor that America should not wait for another Bosnia to happen before acting. Writing for the Washington Post, columnist Charles Krauthammer also called on the U.S. government for the “organizing, training and arming” of the Syrian rebels.

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The NYPD ‘Third Jihad’ film flap: Perpetrating Islamophobia

by Ted Regencia, posted in Community, New York, Politics, Religion
Text and photo by Ted Regencia
Written for an Opinion Writing Class at Columbia Journalism School

In light of the revelation that New York City’s top cop, Raymond W. Kelly appeared in a film depicting American Muslims as extremists out to dominate the U.S., it will serve the world’s most diverse city, if Mayor Michael Bloomberg terminates police spokesman Paul J. Browne, orders an independent probe and revisits police actions towards the city’s Muslim population. Left unresolved, the issue poses a corrosive effect on the fragile relationship between the city and the many marginalized minority groups here.

The screening of the film within the confines of the NYPD was wrong. It perpetrates Islamophobia and could elicit more discriminatory acts against American Muslims.

Prejudice and hate towards the Muslims have been on the rise since 9/11, said Prof. Craig B. Futterman, a civil rights professor at the University of Chicago. That should stop. Spreading inaccurate stereotypes and playing upon fears using those kinds of videos only reinforces those prejudices.

Continue reading “The NYPD ‘Third Jihad’ film flap: Perpetrating Islamophobia” →

Jews and Palestinians find a separate peace in Hunts Point

by Ted Regencia, posted in Foreign Affairs, Politics

By Ted Regencia and Janet Upadhye

On one corner of Southern Boulevard and 163rd Street, a 25-year-old Palestinian refugee stirred chicken kebabs over a hot fryer in his halal cart, contemplating the tensions between his country and Israel being reignited this week in the United Nations General Assembly.

Down the block in Hunts Point where Musab Abusbeih peddled his $5 kebab and shawarma specials, Jewish and Palestinian-owned businesses operate peacefully side by side.  Abusbeih believes that if only the warring parties learned to talk like the merchants of Hunts Point peace might be attainable.

“We don’t even fight about parking on this block,” said Ron Levy, a former Israeli soldier.  “And everybody fights about parking in New York City.”

Downtown in United Nations headquarters last week, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas sought official statehood recognition from the General Assembly. Israeli president Benjamin Netanyahu opposed Palestine’s unilateral declaration of statehood, saying a two-state solution can only be achieved through a negotiated settlement, which would include Hamas dropping its call for the destruction of Israel.

To read the full story, please visit BronxInk.org

The Bronx Remembers 9/11

by Ted Regencia, posted in Politics

By Ted Regencia

Ten years ago, nearly 3,000 people died in the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon along with the crash of Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pa.

The lives of many New Yorkers were never the same after Sept. 11, 2001.

In the Bronx, at least 143 residents were reported killed. The loss extends beyond immediate family members and friends of the victims. The Bronx Ink interviewed residents who were also deeply affected by the attacks. One Bronx firefighter shares his experience at Ground Zero. A police officer describes the horror at the scene. Still another, a Palestinian refugee from Jordan, talks about his change of heart after being rebuked by his mother.

Hear these voices from the Bronx as they share their memories. Please visit BronxInk.org

Quinn signs Illinois DREAM Act

by Ted Regencia, posted in Immigration, Politics

AOL-Patch.com
August 02, 2011

By Ted Regencia

SKOKIE, Ill. — With a nod to the growing Latino population in Illinois, Gov. Pat Quinn signed Monday the DREAM Act that expands educational opportunities for undocumented immigrant students.

Quinn signed the legislation at Chicago’s Benito Juarez Community Academy in the presence of Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel along with other elected officials as well as civic, religious and academic leaders.

The Dream Act stands for Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors and aims to use private funds in Illinois to help children f undocumented immigrants continue on to college.

“All children have the right to a first-class education,” the governor said.

“The Illinois DREAM Act creates more opportunities for the children of immigrants to achieve a fulfilling career, brighter future and better life through higher education.”

To read the full story, please visit AOL-Patch.com in Skokie

Bloomberg administers gay marriage; hundreds exchange vows

by Ted Regencia, posted in Lifestyle, Politics

Text and photos by Ted Regencia
Published July 24, 2011

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NEW YORK — In a move that is likely to have far-reaching socio-political implications across the United States, the country’s most populous city of New York welcomed on Sunday hundreds of same-sex couples, who exchanged vows on the first day that gay marriage is legal here.

New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, one of the top politicians supporting gay rights, presided over the wedding of his chief policy adviser John Feinblatt and his Commissioner of Consumer Affairs Jonathan Mintz at the Gracie Mansion, the official residence of the mayor.

“Today in the city and in the state, history takes an important step forward by allowing every person to participate,” Bloomberg said during the Sunday evening ceremony.

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Geithner staying in office for now; warns of debt ceiling impasse

by Ted Regencia, posted in Business, Community, Education, Politics

Web Exclusive
July 01, 2011

Text and photos by Ted Regencia

To read the Xinhua English version of the story please click here

CHICAGO — U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said Thursday he is keeping his post for the “foreseeable future,” telling an audience in Chicago that he wants to continue helping President Obama solve the country’s economic woes, on top of which is the budget negotiation that would raise the debt ceiling and prevent the country from defaulting.

“I live for this work. It’s the only thing I’ve ever done. I believe in it. We have lots of challenges in the country, I’m going to do it for the foreseeable future,” Geithner said when asked by former U.S. President Bill Clinton. Clinton hosted a two-day economic summit here.

Earlier, Bloomberg News reported that Geithner will resign as soon as the Obama administration and Congress reach a deal on raising the U.S. debt ceiling.

“People are worried, or interested, because you know, I have a family. My son’s going back to New York to finish high school and I’ve been commuting for a while, but I’m gonna be doing this for the foreseeable future,” Geithner said.

Speaking about the contentious issue that’s dominating Washington D.C., Geithner urged Republican lawmakers to reach an agreement with President Obama to raise the debt ceiling, warning that failure to do so would be catastrophic to the American economy.

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Bill Clinton hosts jobs and economic forum in Chicago

by Ted Regencia, posted in Business, Community, Foreign Affairs, Politics

Xinhua English
June 29, 2011

Text and photo by Ted Regencia

CHICAGO — Seeking to help the U.S. domestic economy recover from the recession and cut down the 9.1 percent unemployment rate, former U.S. president Bill Clinton kicked-off a two day forum here on Wednesday, while touting Chicago as a model of innovation and economic resurgence.

Clinton, whose eight-year stint at the White House saw the U.S. economy prosper, urged American banks to unlock an estimated $2 trillion in cash for loans.

He also encouraged companies to invest within America another existing $2 trillion dollars in their reservoir, and called on more jobs training to fill as much as three million jobs currently available but remain vacant because of mismatch in qualification.

By filling the three million available jobs, unemployment rate will already be significantly reduced and create a more optimistic economic atmosphere, Clinton said.

On the first day of the event, Clinton has already secured the financial commitment of four organizations, including a 10 billion dollars in capital from the labor group AFL-CIO to be spent for public infrastructure repairs for the next five years.

To read the full story, please visit Xinhua English

Former Chicagoan is first female IMF chief

by Ted Regencia, posted in Business, Foreign Affairs, Politics

Xinhua English
June 28, 2011

By Ted Regencia

CHICAGO — French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde made history Tuesday by becoming the first female managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and her appointment received wide praise in Chicago, where she once served as chairman of one of the world’s largest law firms.

At the same time, international finance experts agree Lagarde’s leadership and financial skills will be immediately tested with the current crisis in Greece that is threatening to undermine Europe and the entire global economy.

“Christine was an effective leader who used her intellect, discipline and diplomacy to take our firm to new heights,” the law firm Baker & McKenzie said in a statement to Xinhua. “As the first female chair of a global law firm, she inspired so many of us with her grace, humanity and consensus-building approach, leaving a lasting impact on our firm and on the legal profession.”

Those skills would prove helpful as Lagarde navigates the turbulent current economic and political landscape, said Prof. Martin Eichenbaum, co-director of the Center for International Economics and Development at Chicago’s Northwestern University.

To read the full story, please visit Xinhua English

Jewish Republicans see Obama as one-termer

by Ted Regencia, posted in Community, Foreign Affairs, Politics, Religion

Huffington Post and Patch.com
June 27, 2011

Text and photo by Ted Regencia

 

SKOKIE, Ill. – Between analyzing the electoral prospects of Republican presidential candidates and ridiculing the “level of mental illness among liberal Jews,” members of the Republican Jewish Coalition(RJC) gathered in Skokie last week to discuss how they could help defeat President Obama in 2012.

The standing-room only crowd came from throughout Illinois to fill a conference room at Holiday Inn, where they listened to political analysts and Republican scholars offer political red meat against Obama, whom one speaker accused of being “more pro-Palestinian than the Palestinians.”

Michael Menis, president of RJC’s Chicago chapter, told Skokie Patch that his group was alarmed at Obama’s policies toward Israel.

“There’s concern in the Jewish community as far as President Obama’s allegiance to the United States’ long-time ally Israel,” he said. “Through his rhetoric and his actions, he seems to have departed from the policy that we’ve seen coming from other presidential administrations since the creation of Israel in 1949.”

Menis said the meeting’s heavy turnout on June 23 was a good indication that RJC members could be invaluable in helping efforts to elect a GOP president in 2012.

To read the full story, please visit Skokie Patch.com