Author: michaelcaster

Michael Caster is a human rights advocate, researcher, and consultant. He holds an MA in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University and an MA in Conflict Studies and Human Rights from Utrecht University. He has worked in China, Cambodia, Myanmar/Burma, Thailand, Myanmar, Turkey, and Tunisia.

The Politics of Representing ‘Uyghur,’ a socio-historical sketch

February 29, 2012

This piece was republished by the World Uyghur Congress. It is also available on their website. At 6pm on Tuesday, the 28th of February violence erupted in the desert town of Kargilik, between Kashgar and Hotan, in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China. Armed with knives or axes (depending on the report), whether desperate … More The Politics of Representing ‘Uyghur,’ a socio-historical sketch

RUIN PORN AND DERELICT DEBBIE

January 8, 2012

“It’s romantic, it’s nostalgic, it’s wistful, it’s provocative. It’s about time, nature, mortality, disinvestment.” – Greco Recently I came across an exploratory article on the voyeuristic art of “ruin porn.” In a somewhat humorous similarity of terms to riot porn, the ruin porn of today elicits the hedonistic drive, the aesthetic: both intellectual and sensuous, … More RUIN PORN AND DERELICT DEBBIE

The Divine Comedy of Mohamed Ben Soltane: Commentary and Creativity in Tunisia

December 14, 2011

“Before the revolution, I think, the art scene was closed so artists couldn’t make art in public spaces. There was real fear from almost everybody. We can say that it was hell and it is now paradise.” A few days ago I had the chance to sit down with Mohamed Ben Soltane. As an artist, … More The Divine Comedy of Mohamed Ben Soltane: Commentary and Creativity in Tunisia

From Street to Home, the Art of Resistance in Post-Trabelsi Tunisia

December 7, 2011

Amid rising cries of Degage, get out, the people of Tunisia ousted their despotic President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, who fled the country with his kleptocratic wife Leila Trabelsi. It was 14 January 2011 and for some the Tunisian revolution had succeeded and ended, for others perhaps it had only begun. In the days … More From Street to Home, the Art of Resistance in Post-Trabelsi Tunisia

Notes on the Dérive and a Jordanian Surrealist in Tunis

November 26, 2011

“One of the basic situationist practices is the dérive, a technique of rapid passage through varied ambiences. Dérives involve playful-constructive behavior and awareness of psychogeographical effects, and are thus quite different from the classic notions of journey or stroll.” Explained Guy Debord in his 1958 essay The Theory of the Derive. Dérive, the French form … More Notes on the Dérive and a Jordanian Surrealist in Tunis