On a visit to the Natural History Museum a few years ago, my eye was caught by a small exhibition of animal products confiscated by British customs officials: snakeskin belts, crocodile skin bags, wallets made from the skins of protected species, stuffed baby alligators, stuffed toads arranged around miniature pool tables, clutching cues. As if…
Britain may have invented the soap opera but nowhere has the format been promoted more vigorously than in Latin America. For decades, telenovelas have been produced in Mexico, Venezuela, Argentina and elsewhere, and viewed by hundreds of millions daily from Mexico City to Buenos Aires. Their reach extends to the US and (on a more…
Daniel Dorling is one of the researchers who has shown that the idea that we are ‘sleepwalking into segregation’ because ethnic minorities are becoming more concentrated in British cities like Bradford is wrong – in fact, the reverse is happening. Where we are becoming more segregated is between rich and poor. Affluent people are voting…
Dear Mr. Brooks, In your January 15, 2010, opinion piece in The New York Times, The Underlying Tragedy, you present what you seem to believe is a bold assessment of the situation in Haiti and what you certainly know is a provocative recommendation for Haiti’s future. You also offer some advice to President Obama. In…
In the early hours of Sunday, 28 June the residence of Manuel Zelaya, the president of Honduras, was surrounded by tanks. His supporters, anticipating a coup, formed a human shield but were quickly dispersed with tear gas. In no time at all soldiers had entered the building and disarmed the security guard. Zelaya rang the…
Which country has a railway network but never built a station in its capital city? The answer to such a quiz question would be Honduras. An extensive rail system was built a century ago by the international banana companies, United Fruit and Standard Fruit, to get their products to the Caribbean ports. Even fifteen years…
The old car was typical of Cuba. This time it wasn’t a half-century old Chevrolet, but a slightly younger and less glamorous Lada. Broken door handles and window-winders had been replaced by locally-made spares; the road was visible through a hole below the driver’s legs, ventilation came from a desk-top fan clamped to the dashboard. …