
Sunday Long Reads
Surviving the crackdown in Xinjiang
She immigrated to Canada but was pulled back to Xinjiang by her family. What followed is a story of discrimination, incarceration, and survival. The first hand account of China’s re-education camps through the eyes of Anar Sabit is a wake up call for us all. Read more at The New Yorker.
The death of a Prince, a chance to remember a Princess
Prince Phillip died at the age of 99 on Friday. Many around the world will grieve the loss of a man who was unapologetically himself, but stood by his Queen and sacrificed his dreams for the good of the commonwealth for decades.
His death will no doubt throw up many questions about the future of the Royal Family, considering the Queen’s own age. As we mourn Prince Phillip, it is only apt to see how his influence helped shape the Queen’s reign. As a young woman, the world barely knew a 17 year old Princess Elizabeth. In one of the first profiles written about her as she began to take her place in public life in 1943, comparisons to Queen Victoria, a raging world war, and hope for the future she would herald were core to the evaluation of the Royal. Just a few years later she and Phillip together, would change the course of history. Read more at The Atlantic.
Sofagate
This week, Turkey and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan almost downgraded European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s status to a mere aide to European Council President Charles Michel. #Sofagate was born. Charles Michel has since expressed his regrets, but Turkey says they didn’t do anything wrong. Read more at Politico.
And here’s the story of what happened to get everyone hot and bothered!
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Experts in geopolitics, economics, technology, and society delivering sharp, concise analysis on the forces shaping our world.
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