2017 has been a year of feared elections. After the American elections and Brexit, the European elections were expected to be a battle between the established power and the far-right movements. And so far, it has been. The Dutch elections last month were the first in a series of feared elections, and many were relieved…
The Man Box: Gender stereotyping at its best…
“Men, we’re creatures of habit. We like what we like. Do we like shopping? Nmm. We like tennis. We like… cooking. Mmm. We like fishing. Because… we don’t shop. We decide. The MAN BOX is for you. Your style choices. In a box. To you. Men’s style decision, too.” (Zalando man box, 2017). This TV…
“13 Reasons Why”: Dangerous or Necessary Evil?
Netflix’ new hit show has received both praise and critique, but some of its dangers might be extremely relevant. When Tabula Rasa approached me this week I was supposed to write an article on something related to my major – maybe something on bees making a ‘whoop’ sound when they bump into each other. While…
Flash #8: Floodings, Legs, and Triggers
After a well-deserved Spring Break, Tabula Rasa is back with your weekly coverage of news you might have missed being responsible students. Russian opposition leader in jail Alexei Navalny has been sentenced to 15 days in jail following the Sunday protests against the corruption in the Russian government. The protests were sparked by a report…
Professional Journalism Legging It
Last Monday, British Prime Minister Theresa May signed article 50 of the Lisbon treaty, which starts the ball rolling for Brexit. You would think that this would be the most important news story in British newspapers this week – but no. The Daily Mail decided to run with a story on Tuesday which is…
Time to Party
If you have read any news article, sporadically scrolled through your Facebook feed or talked to anyone with an opinion, you have noted that the Dutch elections are nearing at an enormous pace. You might want to vote in these elections, or you are just generally interested and would like to be aware of what…
A Sticky Situation
Shell strikes again: How an oil ‘giant’ pays no consequences for their actions So remember when you were a kid and your parents told you to never swallow your gum because it would stay in your stomach for 500 years? Then there would be that inevitable moment where you ended up swallowing your gum by…
The global gag on abortion
During his first month in office – yes it has only been a month – Donald Trump has been signing executive orders left and right. From the Dakota Access Pipe Line and the wall on the border with Mexico to the infamous travel ban, there has been global outrage concerning his new legislation. However, there…
UCR Votes: We All Want Jesse
And Dutch voters reject the Wilders movement The UCR Votes project started in the sociology class “New Social and Political Movements”, taught by professor Vazquez. For this course, all students have to set up an outreach project. The idea was to raise political awareness amongst UCR students – not that we lack political opinions at…
How I experienced the Women’s March in Amsterdam
Last Saturday, the 11th of March, I participated in the Women’s March in Amsterdam. The crowd gathered on the Dam and after some encouraging speeches we slowly made our way to the Museumplein. As one of the 15,000 people who came to Amsterdam to protest, I got to experience how separate voices can come together…
Column: The Demise of Democracy
By Anna Roodhof I am taking a train from Middelburg to Amsterdam. Across from me, two girls are chatting away in Dutch. One of them looks Caucasian. The other wears a hijab. They are discussing a party that they both attended the night before. This scenario is entirely in line with the motto of the…
Women’s March Amsterdam
By Joëlle Koorneef This Saturday, the 11th of March, the Women’s March on Amsterdam will take place. Go to the Women’s March to hear other people’s stories. Go to understand that we are all there for different reasons, with different backgrounds and different demands. If you think you know who is a ‘woman’, think again….
Fake News And Alternative Facts
The concept of ‘fake news’ has been in the public eye in the US since the news broke that during the 2016 elections, various websites have been sharing fabricated articles critical of Hillary Clinton and supportive of Donald Trump. However, the term was soon picked up by Trump’s team and supporters to refer to any…
The Flash #5: Poison, Rising Temperatures, And Less Intelligence
Somehow, we have already arrived at week 6. This means midterms, papers, presentation – the stuff of nightmares. Luckily, TR is there to provide the news, so that you can keep on studying. VX poison Source: The Guardian Kim Jong-Nam, half-brother of North Korea’s leader, died of a high dose of XV poison. Malaysian health…
Tabula Rasa Spring I Print Edition: Diversity
At Tabula Rasa, we decided we wanted to do things just a tiny bit different this Spring semester. That’s why we’re releasing not one, but two full-blown print editions this semester! The first, themed ‘diversity’, will be released in just a few days, while the second is coming your way after the Spring break, featuring…
UCR Votes: An Experiment
Bringing Dutch Parliament Elections Closer to You The past year was a political hurricane, to say the least. England is now making concrete steps to leave the European Union, and we are being confronted with US President Trump’s shenanigans every day again. But buckle up everybody, there is much more to come! Germany, France and…
An Interview With Wouter Meijer: “Sports, royalty and a little bit of sex before the weather”
By Mijke van Leersum On the 22nd of February, Professor Luscombe’s students in the Capstone-course Comparative Media (CAP 317) got to conduct a skype-interview with Wouter Meijer, a reporter with the NOS (the Dutch public broadcast corporation) who was stationed as a foreign correspondent in Berlin from 2008 until 2014. Ever since he moved back,…
The Flash Week 4: Deals, Coral, and Grexit
By Annick Wijnstra The first four weeks of the semester have passed and we’re completely back into the game that’s called UCR. Essay deadlines, midterm exams and the release of our very own first print edition of the Spring semester are drawing near. So much to do, and so little time to catch up with…
Brainstorming on the Future of the Netherlands: A Generational Blueprint
As students of UCR, we pride ourselves on being highly opinionated, cosmopolitan academics in the making. During the American elections, there was no end to the discussions, the shared Facebook posts and links to TrumpDonald.org – which is still a solid piece of gold. Even now, President Trump is an almost unavoidable topic, although I…
The Flash #3: Michelle Obama, Smog, and Yale
The first three weeks of the Spring semester have vanished like the snow in Middelburg. Stats exams, election GA’s and regular UCR life might get in the way of keeping up to date with current affairs. Luckily, section editor Annick is there to provide you with some of the most important news stories of the…