Towards a better America? A look at Biden’s first day in office
From rejoining the Paris agreement and the WHO to repealing the “Muslim ban,” the 46th President of the United States seems to be determined to undo Trump’s legacy at all costs. But what kind of future awaits the country?
via Twitter @JoeBiden
January 22, 2021 — Only a few hours have passed since Inauguration Day, yet Biden’s term is already in full swing with 17 executive orders having being signed by the newly-elected President after stepping into the Oval Office for the very first time in his presidency.
“We are currently facing four converging crises — COVID-19, the resulting economic crisis, climate change, and racial inequity,” tweeted the official account of The White House on Wednesday. “Today, President Biden took actions to combat these challenges.”
As the President and Kamala Harris, the first US’s female Black and South Asian Vice President, were officially sworn into office, a new page was written in the history of the country. In their first public statements, the Biden-Harris administration talked about “bringing the American people back together,” “healing,” and “overcoming.”
Following the attempted coup that stormed the US Capitol Hill last January 6, Washington DC and Maryland had been put under a state of emergency with the aim of preventing further attacks in the run-up to the presidential inauguration. Now that Biden’s transition into The White House has been safely completed, it’s time for the President to “get right to work” and keep the promises made throughout his campaign.
Here’s a summary of Biden’s first moves to reverse his predecessor’s policies (via Instagram @votesaveamerica). Let’s deep dive into it to understand what those executive orders actually mean for the US population and the international community.
“100 Days Masking Challenge”
The so-called 100 Days Masking Challenge mandates the use of face masks and the implementation of physical distancing on federal property (i.e. federal buildings and lands). This includes post offices, the VA, national parks, and planes. The executive order also challenges everyone living in the US to wear a mask for the next 100 days. This new measure will hopefully reverse the trend that has seen the US reporting nearly 200,000 new COVID-19 infections and 3,000 deaths a day on a seven-day rolling average.
Restructure federal government coordination to the COVID-19 pandemic
The Biden-Harris administration is re-implementing the "Directorate for Global Health Security and Biodefense" which, put in place during the Obama’s era, had been dispersed by Trump in 2018. The body is meant to reinforce the country’s preparedness in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. Jeff Zients was appointed "response coordinator" by Biden himself to provide the presidential team with advice on vaccine, testing and personal protective equipment production, supply, and distribution.
Rejoin the World Health Organisation (WHO)
The US will join forces with the rest of the world in the global vaccine distribution by recommitting to the World Health Organisation (WHO). Last July, Trump’s administration had sent the international body notice of its intent to withdraw after the US government criticised WHO for its handling of the Coronavirus pandemic. The withdrawal — scheduled for early 2021 — was revoked by President Biden. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the US’s top infectious disease doctor, will represent the country at the WHO’s annual executive meeting taking place in Geneva this week.
Extend evictions and foreclosure moratoriums
By extending evictions and foreclosure moratoriums, President Biden seeks to stabilise housing for the estimated 25 million renters and homeowners facing the negative economic consequences of COVID-19. The extension, effective until at least the end of March, will provide support to low-income renters who are at risk of losing their homes. Besides that, a new COVID-19 Relief Bill of $35 billion — adding up to the $25 billion rent relief approved last December — will be allocated to assist households hurt by the pandemic in paying rent. Coronavirus and the resulting economic crisis are known to have disproportionately affected families of colour; compared to their White counterparts (12%), 24% of Latino and 28% of Black renters said they were not able to pay rent.
Continue “pause” on student loan payments until September 30
Answering the President-elect’s request, the Education Department has agreed to extend the freeze on student loan payments for additional eight months. As a result, borrowers will not have to make any payments in the foreseeable future. New York University’s Law Professor Kamin revealed Biden’s intention to ask Congress to lower all borrowers’ debt by $10,000 and set up an income-based repayment plan. Stressing the impact that such student loan payments have on students of colours, Senate members Chuck Schumer and Elizabeth Warren alongside several advocacy groups have appealed to the President to cancel $50,000 from all loan borrowers through a new executive order.
Rejoin the Paris agreement
On his first day at the Oval office, Joe Biden has officialised that the United States is rejoining the Paris agreement. The greatest international effort to tackle the deleterious implications of global warming, the pact aims at controlling the rise of average global temperatures and keeping them below 2 degrees Celsius. As the second-largest producer of CO2 emissions, second only to China, the United States are responsible for contributing to the advancement of climate change over time more than any other country in the world.
End Keystone XL pipeline and revoke oil and gas development at wildlife monuments
Still under construction, the so-called “Keystone XL pipeline” is an expansion of the already-existing Keystone pipeline, the principal infrastructure used to carry Canadian crude into the US territory. The Keystone XL pipeline has now faced criticism from three different presidential administrations, primarily because of the environmental impact related to its greenhouse gas emissions. The project had been stopped by President Obama in 2015 to then be revived by President Trump at the early stages of his presidency. Biden’s decision to suspend the Keystone XL pipeline sparked discussion among the members of the Association of Oil Pipe Lines. “Killing 10,000 jobs and taking $2.2 billion in payroll out of workers' pockets is not what Americans need or want right now," said Andy Black, president and CEO of the company. Nonetheless, the President-elect’s conclusion on this subject matter is in line with what agreed on the Paris agreement.
Actions to advance racial equity through the federal government
The Biden-Harris administration put an end to former President Trump’s policies that denied the existence of systemic racism at all levels of US society — from the institutions and the workplace to public-facing programs. Reversing the previous presidency’s trend on this subject matter, Biden chose to re-implement diversity and inclusion training as well as the use of critical race theory within agencies and federal contractors. The measure is intended to verify and address racially-motivated barriers to opportunity in agency policies and programs. Equity will also be guaranteed on the basis of other discriminatory criteria, including sexual orientation, gender identity, religious beliefs, and disabilities. More funds will be allocated to support communities of colour and ensure that federal programs are available to non-native English speakers. Further action was taken in this regard to make federal data more inclusive through the launch of a new “equitable data working group,” designed to reflect the “diversity of America.”
Count non-citizens in US census again
All US residents, citizens and non-citizens alike — including non-authorised immigrants —, will be counted in state population numbers. Biden’s new executive order, which rescinds President Trump’s Census Policy issued in July 2019, will allow all strata of the US population to be equally represented in the country’s statistics as mandated in the 14th Amendment. These numbers are used once every 10 years to redistribute the share of electoral votes of each state and the 435 seats in the House of Representatives; hence they are crucial when it comes to monitoring the political behaviour and preferences of US residents.
Strengthen workplace discrimination protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity
“Every person should be treated with respect and dignity and should be able to live without fear, no matter who they are or whom they love,” reads Section 1 of Biden’s Executive Order on Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation. The goal is one: to prevent any form of discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity from affecting the lives of US residents by ensuring equal access to a. education, b. workplace, c. healthcare, and d. law as well as condemning all related attacks. Acknowledging the rights and dignity of the LGBTQ+ community, longly neglected throughout the Trump administration, the executive order signed by President Biden will hopefully protect the lives of all its members while fostering their inclusion at all levels of the US society.
Defend “Dreamers” program for undocumented young Americans
On his first day in office, President Biden proposed an immigration bill that would ease the pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants and make Dreamers — young undocumented immigrants who entered the US as children — immediately eligible for green cards. Among the others, he expressed his intention to “preserve and fortify” the Deferred Action for Children Arrivals (DACA) program, an immigration policy that grants unlawful immigrants arrived in the US as children the opportunity to receive “a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation” and the eligibility to work in the country.
End the “Muslim travel ban”
Repealing another policy established by President Trump, Joe Biden chose to restore many nationals from Muslim-majority and African countries’ right to enter the United States, thus putting an end to the discriminatory practice. The President-elect described the measures put in place by the previous administration as “a stain” on the US’s national conscience and stressed their inconsistency with the country’s “long history of welcoming people of all faiths and no faith at all.”
Change Trump’s arrest priorities for Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
President Biden rescinded Trump’s order that, throughout his administration, had made all undocumented immigrants present on US soil a priority for arrest. The former policy had given space for uncontrolled abuses of power at the expense of immigrants with no prior criminal convictions, eventually leading to a rise in the number of arrests and deportations. The measure is meant to redirect ICE’s enforcement efforts against undocumented immigrants with a criminal record so as to reduce the number of “collateral arrests” — taking place whenever “an immigrant that finds himself in the same location of a government target is arrested as well.”
Stop border wall construction
This one is rather self-explanatory. In an official statement published on the website of The White House, President Biden proclaimed the termination of the emergency at the US’s southern border — declared by former President Trump on February 15, 2019 — and announced the redistribution of the funds diverted to the construction of the border wall. Assessments will be carried out to verify the legitimacy of the funding and contracting methods employed to realise the project.
Keep protections for a group of Liberians in the country
President Biden confirmed that the United States will continue to serve as a “safe haven” for Liberians who were forced to flee their homeland “as a result of armed conflict and widespread civil strife.”
Freezing last-minute Trump administration regulatory actions
As explained by the transition team, the “freeze” memorandum issued by President Biden in the first hours of his presidential term aims at pausing “any new regulations from moving forward and give the incoming administration an opportunity to review any regulations that the Trump administration tried to finalise in its last days.” This measure provides the government with the time necessary to analyse any policies that President Trump might have put into place before Biden can proceed with designing ad-hoc new regulations on climate change, public health, and scientific integrity.
Formulate Executive Branch ethics doctrine
The last executive order that President Biden shared with the nation on January 20 concerns the formulation of a code of Ethics Commitments that every appointee, appointed on or after Biden’s Inauguration Day, will have to sign and commit to. According to CNN, this new set of ethics rules are meant to “slow the revolving door between the government and the lobbying world by barring employees who leave the Biden administration from lobbying the administration for the length of Biden's term in office.”
In these times of incredible uncertainty, one thing stands out clearly: President Biden has “no time to waste,” as he stressed himself in a tweet posted on Inauguration Day. With these first 17 executive orders, he seems to have set the premises for a “brighter future” awaiting all US citizens and residents regardless of class, gender, and race distinctions. Still, only time will tell whether such premises will be actually backed up with concrete actions, or rather remain empty words to be taken at face value.
via Twitter @KamalaHarris
Is Fashion Political?
Yasmine Ben Abdessalem
The answer is… Yes. As consumers of fashion trends and tastes, we often do not realise the implications that this business hides behind the curtains. From fashion agendas, to cultural controversies, it appears that there is more we should be aware of before copping a new pair of sneakers or piece of clothing.
After all, it seems like we indeed are fashion victims.
When I was 8, I watched the Devil Wears Prada for the first time. I developed, very unconsciously, an obsession for that movie. Not only for its representation of fashion but also for how it glamorizes workaholics, for Andrea’s passion and determination career-wise. I am now 21 years old, and I watch this movie from a very different angle; yet every time, one specific scene gets me. It is the monologue of Miranda’s, the editor in chief of Runway (the equivalent of Vogue in the movie) about Cerulean Blue.
"You go to your closet and you select out, oh I don’t know, that lumpy blue sweater, for instance, because you’re trying to tell the world that you take yourself too seriously to care about what you put on your back. But what you don’t know is that that sweater is not just blue, it’s not turquoise, it’s not lapis, it’s actually cerulean. You’re also blithely unaware of the fact that in 2002, Oscar de la Renta did a collection of cerulean gowns. And then I think it was Yves St Laurent, wasn’t it, who showed cerulean military jackets? And then cerulean quickly showed up in the collections of eight different designers. Then it filtered down through the department stores and then trickled on down into some tragic “casual corner” where you, no doubt, fished it out of some clearance bin. However, that blue represents millions of dollars and countless jobs and so it’s sort of comical how you think that you’ve made a choice that exempts you from the fashion industry when, in fact, you’re wearing the sweater that was selected for you by the people in this room. From a pile of “stuff.”
— Miranda, Devil Wears Prada
source: New York Post
Blue comes in different shades; everyone knows that Turquoise and Blue Klein are different colors. The point is to highlight the trickle-down effect of fashion. What Miranda explains is that behind a simple color, there is a whole industry, of creatives, producers. A very small microcosm that decides what the average American wears; what he/she buys in the local department store. Yet, this is only one layer of fashion’s universal impact. In fact, fashion is political because of its wider cultural context and social aspect; the who, why, where, when, and how – of a garment is paramount in how our clothes (and by extension, we) are read by others.
Fashion is political because it’s part of a vicious Cycle
Fashion belongs to a whole complexed cycle consisting of creation, production, and consumption. The phase of production is particularly crucial in arguing that fashion is political because the decisions that brands and couture houses make in terms of where they are going to fabric their clothes, base their factories impact the lives of many and their surroundings in ecological terms but also economic ones. Scandals have broken out for Zara exploiting refugees or children under 14. A brand is nowadays called out if its choices are not in line with the vision of their consumers; many people on social media called out for the boycott of Nike and their treatment of Uyghurs. Organizations like Anti-Slavery International and more than 180 organizations organized a pressure campaign to convince Nike from ceasing production of its clothes in China.
source: Save Uighur
The fashion cycle is also inherently political because of the legal implications it detains. Who has the right to produce in certain countries? It appears that the rules do not apply in a similar way for brands or other creatives. Brands like Zara or Nike indeed have more facilities finding ways to produce in countries where the labor is cheaper, where in Brazil for example workers would sew for 16 to 19 hours, with little time off, and in debt to their traffickers ; who then allows these conditions, except for Zara and local traffic groups?
Who makes the decisions about these factories ; except for governments and fashion groups such as LVMH? Nowadays, citizens do not have a direct say about where to produce clothes, who should produce them, unless they take action. Choosing where to produce is choosing where to either benefit people in terms of employment if it is done in a regulated manner ; either crush them with terrible work conditions that have been a long time associated with fast fashion’s poor work ethic.
Fashion is political because it’s about who sets the Agenda.
Fashion Weeks are set years ahead and a single week engenders a whole cycle of production, pollution that is still acceptable because of the magic these events convey. Empty jets fly out to transport one celebrity at a time or garments, yet brands pretend to work sustainably by implementing carbon-free runways, or recyclable textiles; simply, this is not enough. Re-evaluating the agenda of the fashion industry would contribute more to reducing the harm fashion causes in the long-term. Setting the agenda is also about putting your priorities at the top. Yet, some houses are more prominent, more eager to make their fashion weeks more prevalent and mediatized, just as some politicians can make their issues and problems more relevant.
Why is it that fashion weeks in other cities than Paris, London, New York and Milan receive few — if any — coverage in the media? It is not only about financial means or about talent, it’s about power and who detains it.
Fashion is political because clothes have a deeper Meaning
Wearing cerulean blue had a meaning in 2006; you were following a trend and you were consuming what a small industry decided for you. Clothing also have a broader meaning in social movements. Why do people wear military colors; and why is khaki inevitably linked to conflicts, and wars? Why did Maria Grazia Chiuri capitalize feminist slogans on Dior’s t-shirts? Clothes can inspire and have a visible meaning and message, and these messages are often political. It is also one of the easiest ways to defend causes you cherish; it is visible and universal.
source: DNAMAG
Back in 1968, candidate Joseph McCarthy also relied on fashion to gather support. He positioned himself as the anti–Vietnam War candidate and was hoping to attract younger activists, college students. Yet, he wanted to distance himself from the tactic of so-called hippie youths, who irritated political moderates. He, therefore, adopted a strict dress and grooming code for volunteers, to attract the fringe of volunteers he wanted, and at the same time gather support and votes from moderates. But wearing no clothes is a political act in itself, rejecting fashion, or simply rejecting what society tells you to wear — or not to wear — FEMEN protesters are usually topless and write messages on their chest to fight for their feminist causes.
Fashion is also political because clothes relate to Culture
… and especially cultural appropriation. The line between cultural appropriation and appreciation being this thin and blurred, brands often capitalize on other’s cultures such as Gucci; or become insensitive to other’s culture by using blackface in their campaigns or their clothes.
source: Metro UK
Gucci was part of the controversy for featuring white models wearing Sikh turbans in 2019. As a reaction, the Sikh Coalition "a community-based organization and think tank that defends Sikh civil rights", in particular, tweeted: "The turban is not just an accessory to monetize. It's a religious article of faith that millions of Sikhs view as sacred. Many find this cultural appropriation inappropriate since those wearing the turban just for fashion will not appreciate its deep religious significance." Gucci then apologized and decided to retract the item from its collection.
Many themes have been touched upon in this article, but fashion is also political for a myriad of other reasons. One could simply say in conclusion that Fashion is linked to politics because it perpetuates the same hierarchy and the same inequalities. Nowadays, there is rising attention and awareness growing around the topic of sustainability. But who can afford to buy sustainable clothing? Why are people that still buy from Zara and Primark bashed while they cannot afford vegan leather or sustainable textiles? This is a political question; even though it is about fashion.
Class relations are evident on the consumption side; clothes that are not affordable to the public contribute generally to pollution and poor ethic, yet the consumer cannot resort to other options.
Il Razzismo è Una Pandemia - Is Racism on The Rise or Fall in Italy?
Protest and Anti-racism demonstrations are spreading around Europe, and Italy decided to participate and take a firm position. From Milano to Bari, passing through Brescia and Rome: those are just a few of the cities that held the peaceful protests against Racism among many others.
Racial discrimination and injustices have been a very debated and controversial problem in Italy. Not only because of its colonial and fascist past, but also today with the immigration crisis that is counting a number of victims in the Mediterranean sea daily.
The African diaspora has always been disregarded and unrepresented, and most of the Italians are denying the evidence. When the term Racism steps in a conversation, people just refuse to listen and believe it is a problem that needs attention. “Italiani brava gente”, they never cause harm, they never break the law and they are never racist. This is the picture that has been promoted by Italy and its people so far.
Racial accusations are always silenced and excused, whether it is on the football pitch towards Balotelli or at school, or place of work. But how can we justify migrants dying in the southern fields? Or getting sold? How can we justify Emmanuel Chidi Nnamdi? Nigerian. Killed after defending the wife from racial slurs in Fermo? How can we justify Idy Diene? Senegalese. Killed in Florence.
This is just the apex of a bigger problem. A very unspoken and embedded problem that sees actions only when it is a trend. Black people have no representation in any field. They only belong “on the football pitch or on the boats”. There are no possibilities for the black community, besides underpaid jobs or criminal activities.
Francesca - speaker of UNO Collective - who mobilized and organized the protest in Brescia- shares with us the following message:
“Italy can no longer continue ignoring its' responsibilities, sugarcoating its history in the good old “Italians are good people” narrative. We have colonized, we have deprived entire peoples of their sovereignty, identity, freedom, and independence for years and the fact that we were pretty whack at it or were interrupted by world wars does not make it better or less important. We have been and we still are systematically and interpersonally discriminating against and excluding non-white Italians from the public discourse, dismissing their existences as some sort of overlook-able mistake or fallacy in the system, refusing to accept them as Italian, at best. We, non-white Italians, have been living in constant fear -which too often turns into reality- of being verbally or physically attacked, knowing it would go unpunished or would be attributed to some other obscure mental health problem of the individual committing the crime towards us. A prime example of this is the terrorist attack on eight black random people by Luca Traini, former candidate of the far-right Lega party, which was dismissed as the act of a “crazy person” despite the fact that it obviously is a direct consequence of the spiraling delirious hatred towards black people this country has been facing. It is important to highlight how black (and non-white) lives matter in Italy for all the people working in slavery-like conditions in the countryside to bring food on our tables, for all the human beings at the bottom of our sea while we stand aside and watch them die or use them as pawns of a horrifying chess game, for Destà, bought and raped by Indro Montanelli at the age of twelve and who has to see herself being deemed a ‘spot’ in the otherwise glorious life of a person who’s still celebrated with statues and parks to which even “left-wing” politicians hold on to, for all the victims of the skyrocketing number of hate attacks, for Soumaila Sacko and Idy Diene.
Le vite dei neri contano”.
The new generations of Afroitalians are not silent. They are louder than ever and fear no fascist or opposition. They demand a change: political, social, and economic growth just like everyone. The possibility to prosper and build a future. As Italians, not “immigrants”.
A first step to change is recognizing the African diaspora as rightfully Italian, by granting nationality with no question to those who were born in Italy to immigrant parents.
A special thank you to all of the photographers who documented and submitted to us the images that you can view in the gallery above, from the Italian protests against racism. You can view their credits below.
Milano - Karim El Maktafi
Brescia - Martina Piceni
Bari - Mirko Jira
Rome - Noemi Belotti
June 16, 2020