Go Set a Watchman: the Finches in 2015

Late in the morning of February 3rd, Twitter was inundated with tweets heralding an announcement that thrilled many people: Harper Lee, of To Kill a Mockingbird fame, will be releasing a sequel to her critically acclaimed 1960 novel. Literary bombshell: Harper Lee to publish a sequel to “To Kill a Mockingbird” http://t.co/x7FFLSDeEq pic.twitter.com/BZdKBhTzgx — Salon […]

Seasons of the Arab Spring: A Review

On Thursday, January 22,  the International Affairs Department hosted a panel discussion, “Seasons of the Arab Spring.” Contributors included Northeastern professors, Denis Sullivan, Valentine Moghadam, and Berna Turam. Visiting scholars Dr. Emily Curry and Shamiran Mako also participated in the panel. The discussion focused on five countries and their involvement in the Arab Spring: Egypt, […]

One Protest, Two Perspectives

One-nation, two-systems: the political reintegration of Hong Kong into China after a century of being a British colony has recently proved problematic, as the people of Hong Kong have taken to the streets to demand further democratic development. The 1997 Agreement placed the former British colony in a semi-autonomous position, where basic civil and political […]

The Japan Conference, Revisionist History, and East Asian Politics

On September 3rd Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe reshuffled his cabinet, a common political action in Japan, often used as a way of maintaining support. The new cabinet included five women, which was widely considered a nod to female voters and a move to make politics more inclusive in a country with very few women […]

Know Thy Enemy: Cyber Warfare in the 21st Century

“It’s the great irony of our Information Age – the very technologies that empower us to create and to build also empower those who would disrupt and destroy.”[1] Referring to the 2010 hacking attacks on Google and several other companies in various industries, President Obama demonstrates the new type of threat that the world is […]

Cuban Privatization: The Newest Victim of a Failed Embargo

The birth of Communist Cuba at the height of the Cold War presented a perceived immediate and dire threat to the United States. In response, President Kennedy authorized a handful of covert CIA operations to overthrow Cuba’s leader, Fidel Castro. All of these attempts failed, culminating with the disastrous Bay of Pigs Invasion. In October […]