Female genital mutilation is not an easy thing to read and discuss, and it shouldn’t be. FGM and other dangerous body modifications are practices the Western world often imagines happening elsewhere. They are seen as something of another land, another culture, another neighborhood – but that is not the reality. FGM happens in front of our communal faces and we turn our eyes to shield our gaze because of culture,…
On Saturday January 26, public debating space De Balie hosted Michael Ignatieff, a Canadian academic and former leader of the Liberal Party. Ignatieff is the president of Hungary’s Central European University, an institution continually at loggerheads with Orbán’s government. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. One could imagine the opening line to Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities working just as well in a…
The world-wide fascination with Japanese culture and design spans centuries. Today, Japanese design permeates many aspects of our visual culture, from Manga comics, to kawaii, or cute in Japanese, fashion from the streets of Harajuku. Designers from across the globe have been inspired by Japanese design, combining elements of its iconic aesthetic with their own vision. Last weekend, the Tropenmuseum and Mono Japan joined forces to celebrate Japanese design. The…
ISN Welcomes 850 International Students During Largest Ever Introduction Week February 06, 2019 By ISABEL BONNET Last Wednesday, members of the ISN committees and volunteers welcomed around 500 exchange students to Amsterdam at Schiphol Airport. About 850 students participated from Thursday to Saturday in the Winter Introduction Weekend, or Wintro, which is the largest introduction week ever organized by ISN. Last year, the Wintro received 750 students. The three-day…
I think many are persuaded that the gym is a terrible battlefield full of soldiers: the lean ones, the buff ones and the fat ones. And in war, only the first two can win. Instead, it should be seen as a safe space for anyone who wants to feel something, like confidence and power. There are many in-betweeners as well, and in fact, I used to be one myself. It…
Student’s Stand-Up Comedy Fill Crea Café on Monday February 05, 2019 By ISABEL BONNET Personal anecdotes and laughs echoed at CREA Café on Monday evening during the performances of 8 university students. Moderated by one of the founders, Lara Ricote, about 60 people attended the Comedy Crea Open Mic for free. About 60 people attend the Open Mic Night at Crea Café on Monday evening. Kira Guehring / The Amsterdammer Twice a…
