By Julianne DeGuardi

Weave News contributor Julianne DeGuardi is investigating the conditions facing migrant workers who help keep the dairy industry running smoothly in the North Country (northern New York state). In this introductory post, she describes how she has approached the process of digging into this often invisible topic.

By Bridget Ireland

Created by Wael Morcos of Lebanon, the poster to the left highlights an important characteristic of Jordanian culture in stunning simplicity. Surprisingly to many Westerners, English is very prevalent in a Jordanian’s everyday life. When I arrived in Amman, I was caught off guard by the amount of English present. Street signs, restaurant advertisements and storefronts almost always display both the Arabic and English names. Looking into the history, I have learned that the use of both languages is is in part due to the historical occupation by Great Britain until 1946. However, English is also becoming more popular in media, music and of course, art (check out Majed Mohamed Hasan Drbseh’s comments in this article from the International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications for more information on both languages in Jordan) for the general population. My initial impression of this poster was that the bold English text was targeting the Western world and urging English speakers to be aware of civil liberties. However the subtle and more graceful Arabic script suggests that it is a better representation of the blending of both languages in political life. This poster is a very accurate representation of life in Jordan, where a globalizing world has led to a need to advertise messages and communicate in both English and Arabic.

By John Collins

In the 10th and 11th installments of the Silent Voice From Holot series, Ali introduces us to some of the people who come to visit the Holot detention facility to express their solidarity with the asylum-seekers being held there. Episode 10 features human rights workers, while Episode 11 features a special performance by Dream Boys, a musical group that was created in Holot.

By Osman Mohamed Ali

This post is part of our project, Holot: Crossroads of Global Violence.

I am one of the victims and survivors of the Darfur genocide in Sudan.

I was born in a small village around Zalingei in Western Darfur. Growing up in Sudan, education has always been something that helped me to overcome obstacles in my life, but obstacles have now arisen that stop me from even obtaining an education. My primary school was far from my village, and it took me more than two hours to get to school on foot every day. Despite all the difficulties and instances of interruption, I have never lost faith in the power of education.

By John Collins

In the 8th and 9th episodes of the Silent Voice From Holot series, Ali speaks with some of the other African asylum-seekers who are being held in the Holot detention facility.

By John Collins

In the 6th and 7th episodes of the Silent Voice From Holot series, Ali explains the process of how asylum seekers are summoned to Holot and gives us additional information about the regulations of the Holot detention center.

By John Collins

In the fourth and fifth reports in the Silent Voice From Holot series, Ali provides some information on how the detention center is structured and gives us a look inside one section of the facility.

By John Collins

Silent Voice From Holot is a citizen journalism project featuring short videos made by asylum-seekers being held in the Holot detention facility in Israel. All videos will be featured here on the Weave News website, on our YouTube channel, and on the Silent Voice From Holot website. In this post we feature the first three episodes of the series. Ali, an asylum-seeker from Darfur (Sudan) and Weave News contributor, introduces us to the detention facility and the reasons why the asylum-seekers have found themselves living there.