Columbia Political Review

10/23/2020

The Case of São Paulo’s Child-Friendly Clubs: Stopping Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents — COLUMBIA POLITICAL REVIEW

COMMUNITY PITCH: Pedro Francisco Vormittag (SIPA '21) discusses his work on children's rights as a policy advisor in São Paulo, and provides an overview of current progress there.

"The idea was simple, but not obvious. In order to ensure that a key children’s rights policy could be implemented even in the farthest and poorest areas of the city, it was high time that the City Hall took advantage of its already existing and strategically placed sports facilities throughout São Paulo. If the clubs started being acknowledged not only as a hub of courts and gyms, but as safe environments for children to access their rights to play, the city would benefit from a fast and smart expansion of its public service for children's rights."

The early 1990's inaugurated a period of optimism in the broad scheme of Brazil's children's rights policy conversation. In 1990, the National Congress dove into the agenda, enacting Federal Law 8.069 (“Estatuto da Criança e do Adolescente,” or "E.C.A.")—which was highly praised by experts

10/12/2020

Cross-Examining the Progressive Prosecutor: The Challenges of Reform from the Inside — COLUMBIA POLITICAL REVIEW

The rise of "progressive prosecutors," district attorneys who move away from a punitive, carceral approach, may seem like a victory for activists amid growing calls for change. Chloe Lowell (CC '23) examines the ways in which some DAs have largely escaped criticism for complicity in unjust incarceration:

"This new type of prosecutor runs on a platform of ending mass incarceration in a country that holds 20% of the world’s prison population. They face a simple math problem: reducing the incredible amount of prisoners is an insurmountable task for individual progressive D.A. offices scattered across the country.

Moreover, progressive prosecutors’ policies are selective in which criminal defendants benefit, opting to only forgive crimes the public may be easily sympathetic towards... Despite the challenges of their office, prosecutors, even progressive ones, cannot be overlooked when it comes to accountability."

I am sitting on the phone with Jim Hingeley, the prosecutor for Albemarle County, Virginia, as he walks me through his philosophy in office. As Commonwealth Attorney, known as a District Attorney in most other states, Hingeley occupies the role that Kamala Harris and others have dubbed “top cop......

10/07/2020

What Q Tells Us: Conspiracy Theories and American Civil Society — COLUMBIA POLITICAL REVIEW

We are so excited to kick off our production for the semester! To get us started, Luke Seminara (CC'23) dives into the rise of QAnon and explains the ways in which our current societal conditions of unrest and distrust in institutions are pushing citizens to embrace their conspiracies.

"When evangelical church congregations switched online in the spring and members turned to Facebook for information, they were greeted by Q missionaries. The purportedly patriotic virtues of the movement provided the faithful with a new community—and a new religion—to survive the hardship and solitude induced by social distancing. Distress, distrust, and the internet has led to the rise of an odious form of social capital."

America’s Conspiratorial Heritage Americans have a particular attraction to conspiracy theories. To label conspiracy theories as fringe in this country would be quite inaccurate—with amusement, we contemplate the truth in events ranging from the moon landing to the assassination of JFK. Nor are ...

10/06/2020

The Cost of "Stand Your Ground" Laws — COLUMBIA POLITICAL REVIEW

PODCAST:

“Stand your ground” laws have serious consequences for American life. Daniel Kang (CC '23), Rachel Krul (BC '23), and Oliver Niu (CC '23) talk about those consequences.

Rachel’s piece:
http://www.cpreview.org/blog/2020/5/the-cost-of-stand-your-ground-laws?rq=stand%20your%20ground

Organisms by Chad Crouch is licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 International License.

Algorithms by Chad Crouch is licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 International License.

https://open.spotify.com/episode/59QTN7C87NiXY6SmckH5kT?si=HlH6WhY3TiWl8OP4OwY4RA

On May 5, 2020, a video was leaked to the press depicting the graphic murder of Ahmaud Arbery in Satilla Shores, a small community in Glynn County, Georgia. In the video , two armed White men follow an unarmed Black man jogging down the street and try to block him with their car. The Black man ma

09/14/2020

CPR Fall 2020 Recruitment

We'd love to have you join the CPR community! Staff applications for the Fall 2020 semester are now open: we're taking on new writers, editors, and artists. Freelance pitches are currently being accepted as well, and more information can be found on our website. Find our application at cpreview.org/join-our-staff and let us know if you have any questions!

09/10/2020

Episode 5: Technology, China, and COVID-19 - The Columbia Political Review Podcast

PODCAST: Peter Wang (CC ‘21) and Daniel Kang (CC ‘23) discuss China’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. The pandemic has spread across the entire world, but it grips some countries less tightly than others. China, in its relatively novel use and implementation of technology, has been able to quickly curtail the transmission of COVID-19 in its own populace—but not without trade-offs. Learn all about it through this episode and Peter's piece.

https://open.spotify.com/episode/077MDl66rIDVFGlEadrmDN?si=kkWfXXfAQZe0f7fONPn-Pg

Peter’s piece:
http://www.cpreview.org/blog/2020/8/china-successfully-uses-digital-surveillance-to-fight-covid-19-but-should-not-set-an-example-for-the-world
Organisms by Chad Crouch is licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 International License.
Algorithms by Chad Crouch is licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 International License.

The pandemic has spread its reach over the entire world, but it grips some countries less tightly than others. China, in its relatively novel use and implementation of technology, has been able to quickly curtail the transmission of COVID-19 in its own populace. Daniel Kang and Peter Wang talk about...

09/08/2020

Happy first day of classes! Our editor-in-chief, Alex, and publisher, Maria, are eager to welcome you to the Columbia Political Review community! Find our staff applications at cpreview.org/join-our-staff.

09/04/2020

Staff applications for the Fall 2020 semester are now open! We're taking on new writers, editors, and artists. More information can be found on our website. Find our application at cpreview.org/join-our-staff and let us know if you have any questions!

08/31/2020

The Danger of Inequality in Invisible Institutions — COLUMBIA POLITICAL REVIEW

COMMUNITY PITCH: Shruti Verma (SEAS '23) sheds light on the racial discrimination that exists in the medical research community and describes how it can be transformed to empower, not hinder, the progress of Black and brown communities.

"The medical research community exhibits the same patterns and problems that many institutions in our country do. Just as our police departments and our justice system often turn a blind eye to the violence perpetrated against Black and brown people, the medical institutions in our country continue to disregard their health."

When Ahmaud Arbery’s murderers, Gregory and Travis McMichael, were finally arrested months after they shot him while he was on a jog, Arbery’s family’s lawyer, Benjamin Crump, took to the news not with a statement of triumph but rather one of caution. “I want to make it clear for the record,...

08/28/2020

How a University's Search for a New President Became a Partisan Battle — COLUMBIA POLITICAL REVIEW

Caroline Mullooly (BC '22) reviews the partisan showdown, student backlash, and gubernatorial arm-twisting that took place when the University of South Carolina selected its new president:

"Political interference in state colleges hurts everyone involved. It hurts students and faculty, whose continued attempts to advocate for diversity and inclusion go unheard. It hurts alumni and donors, who will now question if their generous contributions now indirectly support a politician’s re-election campaign."

“I believe that partisan politics should play no role in the affairs of a university funded by taxpayers.” Stephanie Justice, a rising senior at the University of South Carolina, denounced the impact of Governor Henry McMaster’s political lobbying in the 2018-2019 search for the next universit...

08/26/2020

China is Wiping an Entire People Off the Map. The World Must Act. — COLUMBIA POLITICAL REVIEW

COMMUNITY PITCH: Kenneth Gatten III (Penn State '21) writes about the history and current state of the Uyghur Muslims' mass detention in China and what democratic nations, such as the United States, can do to bring an end to these human rights abuses.

"Indeed, some have suggested that the union and its member states fear that taking action against China would further sour trade relations. As a result, Uyghur activist Rishat Abbas has said 'millions of Uyghurs are becoming collateral damage to international trade policies, enabling China to continue to threaten our freedoms around the world.'”

The Chinese government has detained 2 million Turkic-speaking Uyghur Muslims in its northwestern Xinjiang region and placed them in mass internment camps. It has also made detainees engage in state-sponsored forced labor in Xinjiang, whose yarn and cotton are in roughly one in five cotton garmen

08/25/2020

Episode 4: Poll Watchers

PODCAST: 2020 is shaping up to be an enormously consequential year for American democracy. But the elections that will make or break the integrity of American democratic systems are not accessible to everyone. In this episode, Daniel Kang and Oliver Niu interview Carmen Vintro to discuss her recently published piece about voter suppression, the state of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, and the partisan divisions cutting through it all.

Carmen's piece:
http://www.cpreview.org/blog/2020/7/how-poll-watchers-enable-voter-suppression

Organisms by Chad Crouch is licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 International License.

Algorithms by Chad Crouch is licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 International License.

https://open.spotify.com/episode/7BC1ZbSPawPn6ChPcPKixX?si=Gy7g0J5eRvSW6DMoYFlWmA

Listen to this episode from The Columbia Political Review Podcast on Spotify. 2020 is shaping up to be an enormously consequential year for American democracy. But the elections that will make or break the integrity of American democratic systems are not accessible to everyone. In this episode, Dani...

08/22/2020

Hindsight is 2020: Revising Goldwater in the Trump Era — COLUMBIA POLITICAL REVIEW

COMMUNITY PITCH: Matilde Masetti-Placci (University College London '21) tackles the Goldwater Rule, which prevents psychiatrists from commenting on the mental health of public figures—she discusses the importance of professional opinions in today's political environment and elucidates the ways the rule can be improved to both better inform the public and further normalize discussions about mental health:

"Although the stigma surrounding mental health is sure to continue for the foreseeable future, normalizing such inputs from mental health professionals will not only allow for the official’s personality and mental health to become just one aspect of their presence and campaign but would also elevate the level of discussion on this topic as a whole."

“You really want to know what I consider ideal company?” “A total piece of ass.”  This is Donald Trump, in an interview for the New Yorker in the 1990s, when asked by journalist Mark Singer if he considers himself ideal company.  Frustrated by this nonchalant answer, Singer con

08/21/2020

China Successfully Uses Digital Surveillance to Fight COVID-19, But Should Not Set an Example for the World — COLUMBIA POLITICAL REVIEW

COMMUNITY PITCH: Peter Wang (CC '21) discusses the advantages and disadvantages the digital surveillance techniques that China has used to combat the spread of COVID-19 in the country, and advises caution:

"The health code service relies on and integrates itself with existing surveillance technologies, taking the thoroughness of state surveillance one step further. As noted by a widely shared Chinese article, the health code is the first surveillance technology that possesses three key features simultaneously: it is installed in a smartphone, uses facial recognition, and can be set up in a wide variety of public spaces."

Last summer, an American friend who visited me in Beijing complained about how inconvenient it was to travel within Beijing as a foreigner: without providing a Chinese ID and bank account number, she couldn’t sign up for most smartphone apps that local residents use on a daily basis. She couldn’...

08/20/2020

The Green New Deal: A Strong Option for Sustainable Economic Recovery During and After COVID-19 — COLUMBIA POLITICAL REVIEW

Carina Layfield (BC '23) draws on the New Deal's history with the Great Depression to explore the ways the Green New Deal could be used as a catalyst for economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic:

"In the 1930s, Roosevelt’s New Deal proposals may have seemed radical, but they worked, alleviating economic burdens and creating lasting social change. Several of those proposals, such as Social Security, are still in effect today—completely normalized and accepted. The policy goals of the Green New Deal may currently seem new and ambitious, but the persistent conditions of climate change, racial and socioeconomic inequalities, and the unprecedented effects of COVID-19 require similar groundbreaking action."

On October 24, 1929, a day now known as “Black Thursday,” the New York Stock Exchange crashed, marking the beginning of the Great Depression. As global markets collapsed, the world entered a period of economic depression that hit Americans across the United States with rising rates of unemployme...

08/19/2020

Check out Connect the Vote 2020, a research project being undertaken here at Columbia in the lead-up to the 2020 elections:

“Youth consistently turn out to vote at the LOWEST rates of any age group. 2020 is the year to change that! Join Connect the Vote 2020, a Columbia University research project, and take an active, substantive role in promoting civic engagement. Your help is absolutely critical this upcoming election. Check out our page or DM us with questions!”

08/16/2020

An Interview with Joshua Wong: “We Need the World to Focus” — COLUMBIA POLITICAL REVIEW

Staff writer Aditya Sharma follows up with activist Joshua Wong, who recently published a piece with CPR, in a short interview:

Joshua Wong, 23, is arguably Hong Kong’s most prominent pro-democracy figure. Imprisoned twice for his political activities, he has continued to oppose what he characterizes as China’s increasingly authoritarian rule in Hong Kong. After leading the pro-democracy Umbrella Movement protests in 201...

08/13/2020

Due Process is on the Ballot — COLUMBIA POLITICAL REVIEW

COMMUNITY PITCH: Zachary Kimmel (CC '21) highlights the importance of state and local judicial elections, which often receive very low voter turnout:

"Perhaps this lack of constituent enthusiasm indicates that judges do not work on the controversial political issues that drive turnout. Indeed, Herbert Jacob’s foundational study of judicial elections found just that: a pervasive perception that judges are more disconnected from the policymaking process than other political bodies at the state level. This perception, however, could not be further from the truth. Judges are essential political actors in the modern struggle for civil rights and criminal justice reform, as well as other urgent issues."

Barring some kind of intervention from the U.S. Supreme Court, Fair Wayne Bryant, 62, will spend the rest of his life in prison. Just last week, the Louisiana Supreme Court declined to review the proportionality of Mr. Bryant’s most recent sentence. Given his criminal history, his case fell unde

08/07/2020

In the Time of COVID-19, Your Right to Vote Has Never Been More of a Privilege — COLUMBIA POLITICAL REVIEW

COMMUNITY PITCH: Voter suppression is not new. The pandemic has exacerbated old forms of suppression, while also creating new ones. If you can vote in November, your vote is a privilege—one you can leverage to fight for a more just future. Olivia Roche (BC '20) urges readers to exercise their right to vote in this upcoming election and fight voter disenfranchisement at the ballot box.

"Do you support automatic voter registration, no-excuse absentee voting, restoring voting rights to those who have completed felony sentences, and the numerous other ways voting rights can be expanded? By casting ballots for officials in upcoming elections, you express what you want elections to look like in the future."

As a New Jersey resident, I have always found it relatively easy to vote. When I entered Barnard, I filled out an absentee ballot request form. I checked the box to have an absentee ballot sent to my school address in New York City for all future elections. It seemed like a good idea at the time.&am