esther armah

The media face of the war in Afghanistan is a woman's face--one particular mutilated woman, in the case of Time. Sonali Kolhatkar of the Afghan Women's Mission notes, though, that this is a clear strategy from those who benefit from the war to win over European and American audiences. Meanwhile, Afghan women who oppose occupation, like former GRITtv guest Malalai Joya, are silenced in the media just as they are silenced in Afghan politics. Sonali joins guest host Esther Armah to talk about the media obsessions in Afghanistan--and why almost no attention is being paid to Pakistan which is still facing U.S. drone strikes and the repercussions of heavy flooding.

The media face of the war in Afghanistan is a woman's face--one particular mutilated woman, in the case of Time. Sonali Kolhatkar of the Afghan Women's Mission notes, though, that this is a clear strategy from those who benefit from the war to win over European and American audiences. Meanwhile, Afghan women who oppose occupation, like former GRITtv guest Malalai Joya, are silenced in the media just as they are silenced in Afghan politics. Sonali joins guest host Esther Armah to talk about the media obsessions in Afghanistan--and why almost no attention is being paid to Pakistan which is still facing U.S. drone strikes and repercussions from heavy flooding. As Sonali Kolhatkar pointed out, "progress" in Afghanistan is entirely in the eyes of the beholder. While the vast majority of the American people believes that the war will end badly, General Petraeus is now repeating the same lines we've heard before, on Iraq and Afghanistan--things are going better, we can win this war.

30,000 people showed up outside of Atlanta in search of Section 8 housing vouchers last week; 62 vouchers were available. To qualify for the vouchers, a family's income is not to exceed 50 percent of the area's median income. That median income for the surrounding area? Just over $31,000 a year.The recession, it hardly needs restating, is far from over. The unemployed and working poor are still struggling to survive, and the weight of the housing bubble's collapse has left more people than ever desperate for housing even as new construction sits vacant, with no one able to buy. Kai Wright, Nation contributor and editor of ColorLines, and Tony Romano of the Right to the City alliance in Atlanta join Esther Armah to discuss.

"Who needs gay bashing when you have the Ground Zero mosque?" Richard Kim, senior editor at The Nation, asks guest host Esther Armah. In a week when gay and lesbian couples may see obstacles to their right to marry in California fall away, he notes, right-wing media are strangely silent on the issue. Even Glenn Beck is suddenly sounding a libertarian note. Instead, it's all about the "Ground Zero mosque," even as Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jerry Brown decide not to pursue their case to uphold Prop 8. The Ninth Circuit and the Supreme Court will rule on the case soon, but it seems that the fearmongering over the issue has shifted dramatically.