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The Student Voice of Fordham Lincoln Center

The Observer

The Student Voice of Fordham Lincoln Center

The Observer

The Student Voice of Fordham Lincoln Center

The Observer

SOGAND AFKARI, Staff Writer

All content by SOGAND AFKARI
Because these tragedies have happened to strangers in far-off Afghanistan, Westerners are sadly less likely to take an interest in their deaths. (Courtesy of Officer/Wikimedia Commons)

Our Western World Focuses on Staff Sergeant Robert Bales Rather Than His Innocent Victims

March 28, 2012
Recently, Frenchman and self-proclaimed “jihadist” Mohammed Merah went on his own killing rampage in France by targeting a Jewish school. He murdered seven people, three of them children.
Students gather at the town hall to voice their concerns over the homophobic slur found in McMahon Hall. (Charlie Puente/The Observer)

Campus Slurs Require Equal Condemnation

March 7, 2012
On Tuesday, Feb. 28, I attended the Lincoln Center emergency town hall regarding the homophobic slur found in McMahon Hall. There were well over 30 people in attendance.
“The Artist” is just one of the year’s Best Picture nominees that harkens back to the Hollywood filmmaking style of yesteryear. (Courtesy of La Petite Reine Production Company)

Oscars Nostalgia: Best Picture Nominees Rightly Embrace the Past

February 15, 2012
Michel Hazanavicius’ “The Artist” exemplifies why Classic Hollywood (pre-1960s) was the pinnacle of filmmaking. My generation criminally underrates this time period in American cinema. However, there may be hope for my peers yet. This season the Academy of Motion Picture celebrates the style and the history of the golden age of Hollywood cinema era by highlighting the excellence of “The Artist” and a few other equally notable films.
When confronted with the question of race, some citizens are forced to categorize themselves as “other” on the U.S. Census. (Courtesy of U.S. Census)

Race Doesn’t Define My Identity, Yet the U.S. Census Allows It To

February 1, 2012
Unlike Latinos, I don’t belong to an exponentially growing community in the United States. Unlike Latinos, the 2010 U.S. Census did not concentrate on my ethnic identity and place of origin.

Libya, Check; Iran, You’re Next

November 2, 2011
As a Middle East studies major and the daughter of Iranian immigrants, I’ve long held a strong interest in Middle East politics.
Due to her efforts at home, Karman is a dictionary example of what great peacemakers symbolize.

Yemini Activist Tawakkul Karman Rightfully Earns Nobel Peace Prize Recognition

October 19, 2011
Nobel Peace Prize laureates haven’t always been deserving of the accolade. I’m still wondering why President Obama received a Nobel Prize. I also don’t understand why Al Gore earned one for “An Inconvenient Truth” when he didn’t lead the scientific research behind its content. In these cases, the famous award is more of a gesture to encourage a politician’s humanitarian work and/or to spread awareness about an issue.
Korean dramas like “First Shop of the Coffee Prince” make for a more worthwhile viewing experience than the average American soap. (Courtesy of Lee Jung Ah Production)

Korean Dramas: I’m Not Crazy, I’m Just Obsessed

October 5, 2011
Hello, my name is Sogand and I am a Korean drama addict.
 Troy Davis' sister Martina Correia, seen here, fought for justice for her brother up until the very end. (Slp1/WikiMedia Commons)

Injustice for Troy Davis: Why the Death Penalty Must be Abolished

September 24, 2011
Years from now when my four-year old brother is in high school, he’ll come home from his civics class and recount how they learned about the death penalty...
The Pentagon is one place where there's no discussion of whether it's appropriate for Muslims to pray near the site of the 9/11 attacks. Every Friday, Muslims gather to worship in a chapel built in the very space where a hijacked jetliner plunged into the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001.(Olivier Douliery/Abaca Press/MCT)

Acceptance of Self: Learning to Be Muslim in a Post-9/11 World

September 11, 2011
I do not know any victims, survivors, servicemen or families who lost loved ones on Sept. 11. However, I do know what it is like to be Muslim and Middle Eastern in post-9/11 America...

OkCupid: Why Online Dating Doesn’t Have to Be a Stigma

July 24, 2011

Published: May 5, 2011 One time when I returned home from Fordham, my mother’s middle-aged friend inquired after my single status. “No boys at college?” she asked. I awkwardly giggled,...

Revolutions Overthrow Public Perception: Success in Egypt Does Not Mean Iran is Ready

July 23, 2011

Published: March 2, 2011 On Feb. 14, protests broke out again in Iran. Instead of receiving an emoticon heart to celebrate Valentine’s Day, my cousin texted me a frown to mourn the 25th of Bahman....

Making a Difference in the Middle East

July 23, 2011

Published: February 16, 2011 Several months after the Green Movement protests in Iran, I was sitting in my Middle Eastern history class listening to my professor reminisce about the 1979 Revolution....

Sanity Marches on Washington—Well, We Weren’t Really Marching, it was More Like a Leisurely Stroll

July 19, 2011

Published: November 3, 2010 In August at the Restoring Honor Rally in Washington D.C., Glenn Beck asked, “Where have all the founding fathers gone?” On Oct. 30 Thomas Jefferson reincarnated...

Fordham Students Join in Protests Against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

June 25, 2011

Published: October 8, 2009 On Sept. 23, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, president of Iran, spoke before the U.N. General Assembly. In response, many protesters—among them students from Fordham College...

What H.R.3 and Its Proponents Are Hiding

May 24, 2011

At the Rally for Women’s Health on Feb. 26, the master of ceremonies quoted Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. before 5,000 people. "You will not remember the words of your enemies,” she asserted, “but you...

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