The Conversation

US will send migrants to El Salvador, a country that can't protect its own people

Written by Mneesha Gellman, Associate Professor of Political Science, Emerson College

The Trump administration is continuing its efforts to keep Central American asylum seekers away from the United States’ border.

On Sept. 20 the U.S. signed an agreement with El Salvador to accept asylum seekers sent out of the United States. U.S. officials have avoided specifics in discussing the deal and implied that only Salvadoran...

Why more places are abandoning Columbus Day in favor of Indigenous Peoples' Day

Written by Malinda Maynor Lowery, Professor of History and Director, Center for the Study of the American South, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Marchers celebrate the first Indigenous Peoples Day in Berkeley, Calif. on Oct. 10, 1992.AP Photo/Paul Sakuma

Increasingly, Columbus Day is giving people pause.

More and more towns and cities across the country are electing to celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day as an alternative to – or in addition to – the day intended to honor...

Could helmetless tackling training reduce football head injuries?

Written by Erik Swartz, Profesor, Kinesiology , University of Massachusetts Lowell

A young football player holds his mouth guard.Suzanne Tucker/Shutterstock.com

With football season well underway, there already have been instances of helmet-to-helmet hits, concussions and yet another round of conversations about strategies to reduce head impact exposure in players.

This is an urgent matter for all football players, but...

Why ending the secrecy of 'confession' is so controversial for the Catholic Church

Written by Mathew Schmalz, Professor of Religious Studies, College of the Holy Cross

In Catholic understanding, Jesus gave his disciples the power to forgive sins.Hernán Piñera, CC BY-SA

Following sexual abuse scandals in the Catholic Church, there is a worldwide push to end the guarantee of secrecy of confession – called “the seal of the confessional.”

On Sept. 11, 2019, two Australian states,...

Panama celebrates its black Christ, part of protest against colonialism and slavery

Written by S. Kyle Johnson, Doctoral Student in Systematic Theology, Boston College

The life-sized wooden statue of the Black Christ in St. Philip Church in Panama.Dan Lundberg/Flickr, CC BY-SA

Panama’s “Festival del Cristo Negro,” the festival of the “Black Christ,” is an important religious holiday for local Catholics. It honors a dark, life-sized wooden statue of Jesus, “Cristo Negro”...

Conservation policies threaten indigenous reindeer herders in Mongolia

Written by Nancy Langston, Distinguished Professor of Environmental History, Michigan Technological University

Rules put into place to protect endangered species have harmed people who depend on nature.Nancy Langston, CC BY-SA

Deep in the sub-Arctic boreal forest of far northern Mongolia lives an indigenous tribe who are among the world’s smallest ethnic minorities and last reindeer herding nomads. The Tsaatan, as they’re known, have been...

Computer science now counts as math credit in most states – is this a good idea?

Written by Chris Orban, Assistant Professor of Physics, The Ohio State University

Forty-seven states let computer science count in place of math or science classes required for high school graduation.Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock.com

In 2013, a who’s who of the tech world came together to launch a new nonprofit called Code.org. The purpose of the organization was to get more computer science into schools.

Billionaires...

The Latin American left isn't dead yet

Written by Santiago Anria, Assistant Professor of Political Science and Latin American Studies, Dickinson College

Argentina, Bolivia and Uruguay will all hold presidential elections in October. And, for now, leftists are strong contenders in all three countries.

This is a somewhat unexpected development. Beginning in 2015, conservatives toppled major leftist strongholds, including in Brazil, Argentina and Chile. The socially progressive Latin American left...

For Russia, talk of Trump impeachment is the gift that keeps on giving

Written by Cynthia Hooper, Associate Professor of History, College of the Holy Cross

The Russians are calling it “Ukrainegate.”

“I never thought I’d say it, but CNN is right,” remarked one pundit on Russia 1, the county’s most-watched television station. “The person who wins in this situation is Putin.”

Commentary in Russian media about the impeachment investigation of U.S. President...

Hurricane Michael recovery efforts point to the power of local generosity after overlooked disasters

Written by David Berlan, Assistant Professor of Public Administration, Askew School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University

The former site of a Panama City plumbing business remained a pile of debris months after Hurricane Michael.AP Photo/David Goldman

When Hurricane Michael made landfall on Florida’s Panhandle on Oct. 10, 2018, as a Category 5 storm it was only the fourth on record to have ever hit the U.S. mainland. The storm surge it brought about, along with...