“The World: Cultural integration 'failed,' Merkel says - San Jose Mercury News” plus 2 more |
- The World: Cultural integration 'failed,' Merkel says - San Jose Mercury News
- Anthem Blue Cross Gains National Recognition For Diabetes Pilot Bridging Cultural Health Care Gaps For ... - Street.Com
- Pushing cultural boundaries with designer hijabs - Tuscaloosa News
| The World: Cultural integration 'failed,' Merkel says - San Jose Mercury News Posted: 18 Oct 2010 08:56 AM PDT BERLIN Cultural integration 'failed,' Merkel says Chancellor Angela Merkel's declaration that Germany's attempts to build a multicultural society had "utterly failed" are feeding a growing debate over how to deal with the millions of foreigners who call the country home. Merkel told a meeting of young members of her conservative Christian Democratic Union that while immigrants are welcome in Germany, they must learn the language and accept the country's cultural norms — sounding a note heard increasingly across Europe as it battles an economic slump and worries about homegrown terrorism. "This multicultural approach, saying that we simply live side by side and live happily with each other has failed. Utterly failed," Merkel said. But some Germans in cosmopolitan Berlin argued Sunday she was out of touch with the country's daily life. "I think her statement is very black and white and does not reflect honestly the lifestyle people are living here," said Daniela Jonas, a German in the city's diverse Kreuzberg district. KINSHASA, CONGO Thousands of women led by Congo's first lady are marching in the country's volatile east to demand an end to a wave of mass rapes. First lady Olive Lembe Kabila led the women through the town of Bukavu on Sunday. The United Nations recently reported that 303 civilians were raped in 13 nearby villages from July 30-Aug. 2. Congo's top U.N. envoy also said more than 15,000 people were raped in eastern Congo last year. But he said it's impossible for 18,000 U.N. peacekeepers to protect everyone in the massive area where armed groups operate. Another UN official said most attacks were committed by "men in uniform."Congo's defense minister denied soldiers were involved. But the justice minister said courts have prosecuted several officers, including a general. RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA The leaders of Mideast rivals Syria and Saudi Arabia met Sunday to discuss rising tension in Lebanon that threatens to break apart that country's coalition government and spark unrest in one of the most volatile corners of the region. The two countries back opposing factions in Lebanon and are concerned that a U.N. tribunal's investigation of the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri could split its shaky governing coalition. Saudi Arabia was close to Hariri and supports political forces loyal to his son, Saad, who is Lebanon's current prime minister. Syria, which dominated Lebanon for decades, backs Hezbollah, the powerful militant group that shares power in Lebanon's government. Rafik Hariri was killed in a massive truck bombing in Beirut in February 2005 that many in Lebanon blamed on Syria. Syria denies involvement. SAN'A, YEMEN A Yemeni official says warplanes have bombed al-Qaida hide-outs in the country's south, killing five militants. The deputy governor of Abyan province, Salih al-Shamsi, says the airstrikes targeted areas around the town of Moudia and destroyed weapons caches. Yemen is battling a resurgent al-Qaida presence in the country that also drew deep international concern after the terror network's local offshoot claimed responsibility for an attempt to blow up a Detroit-bound airliner in December. —Herald wire services This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| Posted: 14 Oct 2010 10:55 AM PDT WOODLAND HILLS, Calif., Oct. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Anthem Blue Cross' health equities pilot is one of seven programs recognized this year with a Best of Blue Clinical Distinction Award. The pilot, developed for Hispanics and African Americans with diabetes, is being recognized for its innovative and successful approach to improving access to high quality, safe and affordable health care for Anthem members. The Best of Blue Clinical Distinction Program was developed by the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and the Harvard Medical School Department of Health Care Policy. The purpose of the Clinical Distinction Awards is to highlight the Blue Cross Blue Shield plans nationally that demonstrate innovation, efficiency and potential for replication. The plan's pilot, "Bridging Cultural Health Care Gaps: Diabetes," took this honor, along with programs from two other Anthem-affiliated health plans in Indiana and Maine. "We know that ethnically diverse populations experience a higher prevalence of certain diseases and worse quality of care than whites regardless of the type of insurance they have or whether they have insurance at all," said Terri Amano, senior product manager, Anthem's Programs in Clinical Excellence. "With this pilot, our goal was to find ways to provide useful and relevant information tailored to the cultures of our Hispanic and African American members. This information helps them better control their diabetes and improve their quality of life." In asking members their opinions and researching behaviors and attitudes, Anthem found that aspects of culture -- food, family, faith and fear of disease complications, such as amputations and blindness, were factors that influence behaviors and attitudes toward health care among African Americans and Hispanics. These issues were explored in many of the educational materials. The pilot focused on creative and culturally appropriate ways to communicate with members -- including providing information on how members could reach out to local churches to share these messages with others and providing bilingual Spanish print fotonovelas, a photographic comic strip version of a soap opera. The pilot also provided diabetes educational materials that included ways to substitute ingredients in favorite ethnic meals to make them healthier.This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| Pushing cultural boundaries with designer hijabs - Tuscaloosa News Posted: 16 Oct 2010 01:27 AM PDT Published: Saturday, October 16, 2010 at 3:30 a.m. It was just after midnight when the 20-year-old walked into the Islamic Center of Irvine, Calif., dressed in a long, flowing burgundy robe, her head wrapped in a charcoal chiffon hijab, trimmed decoratively with gold zippers. After the group prayers, sermon and Koran recitation, a woman approached Atik, gesturing to the scarf. "OK, I want one," she said excitedly. "How can I get it?" Atik has taken the scarf worn by Muslim women and turned it into a canvas for her fashion sensibilities, the ideas inspired by designs from Forever 21 and H&M as well as haute couture runways and the pages of Vogue and Elle. Showing it at a mosque was her way of gauging sentiment to scarves that go beyond the limited fashion realm they have thus far inhabited — floral and geometric prints or lace and beaded embellishment. "I knew that I wanted to do a zipper scarf, because I knew that zippers were in style," Atik said later, her head wrapped this day in a sea-foam hijab, echoing the color of her light green eyes. The hijab has long been a palette of sorts for changing styles and designs and shops across the Middle East are replete with colors and shapes that can vary from region to region. Some women from the Persian Gulf wear their hair in a bouffant with the scarf wrapped around it like a crown. Syrians are known for cotton pull-on scarves, the hijab equivalent of a cotton T-shirt. And in Egypt veiled brides visit hijab stylists who create intricate designs and bouquets of color atop the bride's head. But Atik's experiments with the hijab — meant as a symbol of modesty — are created with an eye toward being even more adventuresome and risky. To some, the trend heralds the emergence of Westernized Muslim women, who embrace both their religion and a bit of rebellion. But to others in the Muslim community, what Atik is doing flies in the face of the headscarf's purpose. When the scarf is as on-trend as a couture gown, some wonder whether it has lost its sense of the demure. Eiman Sidky, who teaches religious classes at King Fahd mosque in Culver City, Calif., is among those who say attempts to beautify the scarf have gone too far. In countries like Egypt, where Sidky spends part of the year, sheikhs complain that women walk down the street adorned as if they were peacocks. "In the end they do so much with hijab, I don't think this is the hijab the way God wants it; the turquoise with the yellow with the green," she said. The conflict is part of a greater, ongoing debate among Muslims of what practices are too conservative and what is too liberal. At a time when Muslims hear stories like that of two women who have sued Abercrombie & Fitch for refusing to hire them because of the hijab and the Orange County, Calif., woman who filed a federal complaint against Disneyland for not being allowed to wear her headscarf on the job, the message is re-enforced that the hijab is still regarded with suspicion. For women like Atik, an Orange Coast College student who works part time at Urban Outfitters, fashion-forward hijabs are not only an attempt to fill a void, but to make the scarves less foreign and more friendly to non-Muslims. The religious parameters for how to wear the hijab — that the entire body must be covered except for the hands and face — are broad enough to include those who wear black, flowing abayas to those who pair a head scarf with skinny jeans. "We've gotten maybe just a few people saying, 'Oh, this is defeating the purpose,' " said Tasneem Sabri, Atik's older sister and business partner. "It really comes down to interpretation." The criticism means little to Atik, a petite young woman who favors skinny jeans, embellished cardigans and knee-high boots. Atik sees the fashion industry's experimentation with the hijab as staid and lackluster. She wants to make the scarves even edgier — with fringe, pleats, peacock feathers, animal prints. "We want to treat the hijab like it's a piece of clothing, because that's what it is, it's not just an accessory," said Nora Diab, a friend of Atik's who began the venture with her but bowed out to focus on college. "We can still dress according to what's 'in' while dressing modest." Scarves from Atik's recent collections are sold under the label Vela — Latin for veil. In addition to the exaggerated, visible zippers, there are Victorian pleats, military buttons and even a black and white scarf with gold clasps named simply Michael (as in Michael Jackson). A recent design features a plain scarf with a large sewn-on bow, called "Blair," after the "Gossip Girl" character who inspired it. There is also a growing bridal scarf collection. The scarves have a certain unfinished look to them — with frayed edges and visible stitching. Atik, whose parents are from Syria, sews many of them herself though she recently hired a seamstress to help fill orders placed through the Vela web site. The hijabs, which are not available in stores, range in price from $15 for basic designs to $60 for high fashion ones, pricier than many scarves on the market. When not in class or at work, Atik spends most of her time researching trends, designing new scarves or filling orders. She makes frequent trips to Los Angeles for fabric. Atik said she is inspired by risk-takers such as Alexander McQueen, the late avant-garde designer with an eye for shock value. "I feel he says it's really OK to be different," Atik said while taking a coffee break in LA's fashion district. Atik, who began wearing the headscarf in eighth grade, was the editor of her high school yearbook but found herself spending more time browsing fashion web sites than looking at photos of student clubs and activities. After school she would spend hours sitting in the aisle of Walmart reading fashion magazines. Last summer when she and Diab decided to design hijabs, she took sewing classes, the youngest among a group of elderly women making patterned quilts. In her makeshift work space before a photo shoot for her site earlier this year, Atik did last minute hemming and sewing in the kitchen of her Huntington Beach home. The kitchen table was covered with half completed designs. Bags of satin and chiffon fabric sat on chairs and lacy and beaded scarves spilled out onto the fruit bowls. Atik fingered a beige and pink chiffon scarf. "I think we're going to try a couple on you," she told her friend Marwa Biltagi, who had arrived wearing a loosely wrapped black and gold scarf. "Because either way you can work it." In the backyard, Biltagi and others posed beside palm trees — heads cocked to the side, backs arched. Someone commented that it looked very French Vogue. "One, two, move, yeah exactly like that... Ok, I'm going to be taking like a lot so just keep switching it up... Yeah, I like how you had your hand up on the wall," Atik said as she clicked the camera. "I feel like we need music." Her mother watched from the kitchen. "There are people who say that it's not a hijab. As long as it covers the hair, I noticed these young people, they like these things," Safa Atik said. "Why I encouraged her is because ... she's making something that looks nice." Alaa Ellaboudy, who runs the blog hijabulous ("A hijabi's guide to staying fabulous"), is familiar with the scolding that can come from wearing hijab in a non-traditional way. The Rancho Cucamonga resident wears her scarf tied behind her neck and has a penchant for dramatic eye makeup and bright clothes. "Everyone has their opinion, 'Oh no that's haram (forbidden) you can't do that,' " said Ellaboudy. "But for me, it's always about finding that balance and still looking good." On her blog, she defines hijabulous as being "exceptionally stylish yet conforming to the Islamic dress code." When the over-sized September issue of Vogue arrived last month, Atik flipped through the pages for inspiration. A few weeks later, stocking up on fabrics and an ostrich feather in the fashion district, she went from store to store with the same request: "Do you have a leopard print chiffon?" At her third store she she saw a leopard print but thought the look and feel of the silk fabric was not quite right. "I wouldn't want this on my head, if only it was chiffon, I'd be all over it." This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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