PODCAST · society
Strength & Solidarity
by Strength & Solidarity
A podcast featuring the people and ideas that are driving -and disrupting -human rights around the world. You can learn more about the project at our website, www.strengthandsolidarity.org. We welcome your feedback and your suggestions. In particular, if you have a poem or text, a speech, or a piece of music that expresses something important about your own commitment to rights, please tell us about it at [email protected].
Episodes
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60. Human Rights: Expanding our ambition
Amid constant pressure to raise funds for short term objectives, and to achieve promised impact, human rights organisations can lose sight of the bigger picture and focus inward. Yet they are part of a community of actors seeking to secure “all rights for all people” and that holistic goal…
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59. China: Staying the course
For ten years between 2003 and 2013, Chinese organizer Lu Jun worked to build a movement of advocacy and litigation to secure human rights. He first joined the fight against stigma attached to people with Hepatitis B that limited their access to education and work, and later founded what was to...
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Best Of: North Korea: What future do Koreans want, and do they agree?
While Strength&Solidarity is on a break we’re taking the chance to re-up some favourite episodes. Back in December we featured an episode about North Korea – but with a twist. Beyond the ritual condemnations of egregious practices under Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un, it’s rare to get a close-up view...
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Best Of: The Coda #24: Seamus Heaney’s Casualty - on violence, complicity and freedom
While Strength&Solidarity is on a break we’re taking the chance to re-up some favourite episodes. Coda #24 featured criminal justice and human rights expert Chris Stone reading and reflecting on a poem by Seamus Heaney, called Casualty. This famous poem of the Northern Ireland Troubles tells the...
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Best Of: Iran: Building a movement for rights in exile
While Strength&Solidarity is on a break we’re taking the chance to re-up some favourite episodes. Last April, in Episode 51, I talked with Negin Shiraghaei, founder of Azadi Network, about her work to build a network for Iranians in the diaspora – as a common space for advancing human rights and...
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Best Of: The Coda #3: When African independence struck a chord with US activists
Strength&Solidarity is taking a break and that gives us a chance to re-up some favourite episodes. Here’s Coda #3 in which US civil rights veteran Charles Cobb Jr looks back to 1963 and a chance meeting between some young black activists in the segregated south and a future Kenyan Vice President....
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58. Tunisia: Queer courage as strategy
It can sometimes seem as though fighting for queer rights in a hostile society is an unwinnable project. All too often, punitive laws, state violence, economic exclusion and social hostility are stacked against a community that is isolated and excluded. That’s certainly true in Tunisia and other...
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The Coda #46: Things are gonna be alright
If you are one of the people feeling that things are not going to be all right, this one’s for you. Coda #46 comes from Bill McKibben, veteran climate change activist and founder of multiple campaigns and organisations – check out Strength&Solidarity Ep. 57. He told us how hard it can be to stay...
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57. Climate justice: the untapped potential of the over-60s
What’s your image of an activist? Someone in a bandanna facing down a line of cops? Or chaining themselves to a tree? You may well have imagined someone young because that’s the stereotype: the student ready to take on the world - until they get bogged down in work obligations and childcare. But...
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The Coda #45: Strength from stories of resistance
A young boy growing up in South Bend, Indiana, goes to the library every week with his mother and comes back with a brown grocery bag full of books. He doesn’t know it then, but it’s the start of a lifelong journey of involvement in the human rights movement. Listen to Chris Grove, executive...
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56. Burn-out: the downward spiral harming a whole field
The levels of stress and – at worst – burn-out in the human rights field are, anecdotally at least, at remarkably high levels. That may not be surprising in an era of rising authoritarianism, shrinking funds and expanding abuse of rights. But is the impact on those who organize and work in human...
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The Coda #44: The mood-altering powers of Baroque music
These are stressful times for human rights activists where every day, a new development may cause despondency or rage. Feminist activist and campaigner Francoise Girard explains why you really need some seventeenth century music in your life. Contact us at [email protected] We are now...
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55. Turkey: Watching US developments from Istanbul
The United States has gone, in less than six months, from being seen by many as a defender of democracy and human rights, to being the latest – and most powerful - administration to embrace authoritarianism. Amid a head-spinning flood of presidential orders and harsh policies - towards women,...
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54. Human Rights: The Symposium is ending – what did we learn?
What are the big takeaways from five years of conversation between 200 human rights leaders from nearly 70 countries? How did activism and solidarity get sidelined as vehicle for human rights work, in favour of the multilateral review bodies and government advocacy? Why do many younger leaders...
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53. Mexico: A new home for Central America’s exiles
Fleeing your country to avoid persecution is a deeply disruptive experience, whether it is the loss of contact with loved ones, being marginalized from the work or activism that gave you purpose, reckoning with the danger you escaped, or simply feeling isolated in a new place. With repression...
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The Coda #43: Missing a beloved Venezuelan mountain
When Venezuelan human rights lawyer Mario D’Andrea Canas, escaped from Venezuela last year, he could no longer glance up every morning at the mountain that towers over his beloved home city of Caracas. Nature’s grandeur makes our problems feel more manageable, he reflects, as he learns to cherish...
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52. Nigeria: What’s happening to the activists?
Passionate political debate is a cherished pastime in Nigeria. There’s a rich tradition of active participation too, whether it is in support of a favoured electoral candidate, or protesting against oppressive practices by security forces and price hikes that hit a struggling population hard. On...
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The Coda #42: How Fairuz’s songs pointed to a life defending rights
Farah Abou El Sel recalls the mornings in her Lebanese childhood, when the silken, plangent voice of Fairuz could be heard in every street, welcoming the day. Farah grew up hearing and loving the songs without thinking much about the lyrics. But in hindsight she sees how profoundly Fairuz’s…
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51. Iran: Building a movement for rights in exile
In the quarter century since Iran’s Islamic revolution, thousands of Iranians have left their home to live in exile. Although they all have a country in common, that diaspora is hugely diverse – coming from different generations and with a wide range of origin stories, political allegiances and...
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The Coda #41: Learning lessons in resilience from nature
When Burcu Meltem Arik first read Nazim Hikmet’s poem, The Walnut Tree, she exhaled with relief at its message. She reflects that nature has much to teach us - especially the value of community and connectedness for resilience – but we don’t always notice the lesson. Music Credit: Ben Sığmazam by...
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50. US Aid freeze: Catastrophe or Opportunity?
The Trump Administration’s freeze on US aid has caused a global outcry. Poor and vulnerable communities in famine and war-afflicted locations are suddenly without food, and without the medications that keep people with chronic conditions alive. That aid also helped to protect persecuted activists...
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49. Myanmar: What a decade of democracy meant for LGBTQ rights
In 2011, nearly 50 years of military dictatorship came to an end in Myanmar, allowing LGBTQ activists to organize publicly to repeal a homophobic law, and advocate more positive attitudes towards SOGIE (Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Expression) rights. They were making big strides in...
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The Coda #40: ‘Books are a freedom for me’
Indonesian human rights defender Fatia Maulidiyanti spent over two years fighting criminal defamation charges brought by a government minister, charges that could have landed her in jail. But when life gets complicated, Fatia has her own private refuge to which she can retreat and recharge....
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48. North Korea: What future do Koreans want, and do they agree?
With North Korea becoming ever more repressive and closed to the outside world, what is the best path to change? For some, aggressive advocacy for human rights is needed; for others, especially an older generation of North Koreans who have found their way to the south, unification of the two…
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The Coda #39: Soccer as a strategy for cooling passions
Things can get tense between lawyers, police and judges when human rights cases are being litigated. But veteran human rights lawyer Arnold Tsunga has a tried and tested strategy for keeping things cordial. Music by Oliver Mtukudzi. https://strengthandsolidarity.org/podcasts/ Contact us at...
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47. Gaza: Is the global human rights system at risk?
Israel’s war on Gaza and its population has now been underway for 13 months. An estimated 42,000 Palestinians have died from the violence. A further 62,000 are reported to have died from starvation, and 5,000 more for lack of medical care and drugs. The vast majority of those who have lost their...
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Asking a favor...
The Strength & Solidarity team would be grateful for your help. With nearly 50 episodes under our belt we need some feedback from our listeners. Please go to this link and fill in our four-minute survey so we can get a better sense of what you, our listeners think of the show and how we can...
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Best Of: 37. Uganda: Fighting to turn back a law – and anti-LGBT hatred
Strength & Solidarity Season 6 will start in November. Meanwhile we’re repeating some of our favourite shows from past seasons. This week we're revisiting episode 37, first released, November 9, 2023. Original Episode Description from November 2023: Uganda has become one of Africa’s frontlines in...
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Best Of: UDHR@75: Can our human rights system ever fulfill its promise?
Strength & Solidarity Season 6 will start in November. Meanwhile we’re repeating some of our favourite shows from past seasons. This week we're revisiting episode 39, first released, December 21, 2023. Original Episode Description from December 2023: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights...
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Best Of: USA: A Jewish group’s 30-year solidarity with Palestine
Strength & Solidarity Season 6 will start in November. Meanwhile we’re repeating some of our favourite shows from past seasons, starting with episode 40, first released, January 11, 2024. Original Episode Description from January 2024: It is now three months since the October 7 brutal attack by...
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46. Kenya: The Birth and Resilience of a Social Movement
People power has been on display in Kenya as tens of thousands of citizens faced down tear gas and live bullets forcing the government to withdraw legislation that would have mandated higher taxes. Notwithstanding enthusiastic praise for leaderless movements, Gen Z and the power of digital tools,...
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The Coda #38: How storytelling rewrote resistance in Burma
Although women were, and still are, deeply involved in Burma’s fight against military rule, their contributions were often invisible.. Activist and advocate Debbie Stothard recalls that when she started paying attention, she discovered that “the auntie making our tea in the kitchen was a former...
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45. South-East Asia: When does a hashtag become a movement?
Back in 2020, a hashtag - #MilkTeaAlliance – began appearing across the Internet. Netizens in Hong Kong and Taiwan, Thailand, Japan and the Philippines seemed to be building a cross-regional solidarity movement to support pro-democracy activists, like the young people defying the generals who...
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The Coda #37: The human rights leader who writes TV scripts
Sevan Doraisamy started writing film scripts when he was still a student and despite a shift into social justice activism and – eventually – leadership, he has never stopped. He explains why it’s important to him and how it helps him to avoid burning out.…
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44. Colombia: The strategy that decriminalized abortion
In 2022 the United States’ Supreme Court ruled that there is no constitutional right to an abortion, triggering a flood of measures in multiple states to restrict reproductive rights. But further south, that same year, Colombia’s Constitutional Court ruled in the opposite direction. Colombian...
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The Coda #36: The library that became a home for black Berlin
Racial justice activist Daniel Gyamerah celebrates the foresight of an Afro-German woman who over the course of her lifetime collected hundreds of books by black authors and bequeathed them to Berlin’s black and diaspora community to create the library that became EOTO – Each One Teach One....
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43. South Africa: Organizing – a superpower for the landless
The shack dwellers of South African cities have been abandoned by their government, left to try and make homes on land they don’t own, without sanitation or electricity, and vulnerable to adverse weather or corrupt and violent law enforcement. But being poor and marginalized doesn’t mean you are...
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The Coda #35: "What I regretted most were my silences"
Eleanor Thompson, a Sierra Leonean human rights lawyer and social justice activist in Freetown has been reading an essay by Audre Lorde, written during a period of heightened awareness of her mortality. Lorde reflects on the ways we avoid speaking our truth in case we provoke anger or rejection…
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42. US: The promise – and the challenge – of a coalition for rights
Activists can boost their power and impact by combining their efforts, but persuading diverse actors to work together can be challenging. Organizations and movements working on multiple issues may disagree on policy and principle or set conditions on their collaboration so bringing them into...
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The Coda #34: Learn to stop, if you want to keep going
Katrina French is an activist in constant motion, pursuing multiple projects in her area of expertise, racism in UK policing and the criminal justice system. But there came a moment when she realized she was close to burning out and decided to take avoiding action....
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41. UK: When the police are the harm not the cure
Many grow up being told that although there are bad guys in the world, the police are there to keep you safe. But this episode hears from someone who had to recognize that police saw her community not as deserving of protection, but as the source of problems. In communities where there is already...
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The Coda #33: Letting go of a cherished illusion
For decades, Latin America’s reporters have treasured a celebration of their craft by one of their most beloved writers, the late Gabriel Garcia Marquez - a great novelist but also a passionate journalist. Jonathan Bock was, until recently, one of them. He runs an organization in Colombia that...
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40. USA: A Jewish group’s 30-year solidarity with Palestine
It is now three months since the October 7 brutal attack by Hamas on targets in Israel which triggered the Israeli bombardment of Gaza in which a reported 21,000 people have so far been killed. In the US, as much as widespread condemnation was expressed after the Hamas attack, the subsequent…
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The Coda #32: Making art to mend what is broken
Human rights lawyer Carmen Cheung Ka-Man helps communities around the world secure accountability for crimes committed against them. But she is also an artist, for whom making is a metaphor – an effort to find solutions within the constraints of her craft and skills. She sees printmaking is a...
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39. UDHR@75: Can our human rights system ever fulfil its promise?
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) turned 75 on the 10 December 2023. Passed by the UN General Assembly in the wake of two brutal world wars, it expressed an aspiration for a new world, one in which every human being’s rights would be acknowledged and respected, and international…
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The Coda #31: When activism falls short, try a poem
Lissette Gonzalez leads the investigations and research team at PROVEA, a Venezuelan human rights organization. Well-versed in the tools of human rights activism, she knows they don’t resonate for everyone. A poem, however, channels what people are feeling and can have greater impact. She makes…
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38. Bahrain: The power of direct action – and the cost
An activist finds themselves in conflict with their government and they make the decision to go into exile. They are able to find somewhere to take them in. Do they sigh with relief and keep a low profile? Stay engaged in the struggle but leave the frontline work to others? Or do they double-down...
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37. Uganda: Fighting to turn back a law – and anti-LGBT hatred
Uganda has become one of Africa’s frontlines in the battle for LGBT rights. In 2014 a law was passed criminalizing same-sex conduct but it was nullified by the courts on a technicality. This year that same legislation was revived, passed again in parliament and signed into law by President...
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The Coda #30: The film inspiring a new generation of disability activists
In the early 1970s, a group of disabled American teens found themselves at a summer camp with new freedom to think for themselves. The selfhood, courage and joy they tapped into was to power a revolution in US culture and policy towards disability. The story of those activists is told in the...
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Best of: Palestine: Refusing to be a second-class citizen
Strength & Solidarity Season 5 will start in November. Meanwhile we’re repeating some of our favourite shows, continuing with episode 27, first released, December 8, 2022. Palestinian activist Issa Amro grew up studious and apolitical – until his university was permanently shuttered in 2003 by…
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
A podcast featuring the people and ideas that are driving -and disrupting -human rights around the world. You can learn more about the project at our website, www.strengthandsolidarity.org. We welcome your feedback and your suggestions. In particular, if you have a poem or text, a speech, or a piece of music that expresses something important about your own commitment to rights, please tell us about it at [email protected].
HOSTED BY
Strength & Solidarity
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Strength & Solidarity have?
Strength & Solidarity currently has 126 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Strength & Solidarity about?
A podcast featuring the people and ideas that are driving -and disrupting -human rights around the world. You can learn more about the project at our website, www.strengthandsolidarity.org. We welcome your feedback and your suggestions. In particular, if you have a poem or text, a speech, or a...
How often does Strength & Solidarity release new episodes?
Strength & Solidarity publishes regularly with 126 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to Strength & Solidarity?
You can listen to Strength & Solidarity on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Strength & Solidarity?
Strength & Solidarity is created and hosted by Strength & Solidarity.
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