Experiments with Truth: 1/28/11

    • Clashes between protesters and security forces in Egypt have escalated. Protesters have been attacked with (US-made) tear gas, stun guns, rubber bullets, and batons. Police armored cars have been set on fire in Cairo, Alexandria, and Suez, some allegedly by the police themselves to justify a crackdown. Police have withdrawn from some areas, overwhelmed by the protesters. An unarmed protester in Sinai was shot and killed after throwing a rock at police. Al Jazeera reports that a woman was killed by a tear-gas canister in Cairo. Journalists have been especially targeted by security forces, including Al Jazeera’s Cairo office. During Friday-afternoon prayers, though, protesters and police shook hands and prayed together in the streets.
    • Between 20 and 50 percent of protesters in Egypt this week have been women, a much higher percentage than usual.
    • Myanmar’s courts have rejected the bid of pro-democracy opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi to reinstate her banned National League for Democracy party.
    • British trade union leaders announced plans today for massive strikes and protests against public-sector job cuts.
    • The “Creech 14” activists who protested US drone attacks at a Nevada military base were finally sentenced—to time already served.


    Recent Stories

    • Analysis

    After October 7, I learned that movements need grief spaces

    October 6, 2026

    From police killings to genocide in Gaza, collective grieving practices have built lasting movement infrastructure and helped overcome alienation and burnout.

    • Feature

    Iran’s teachers movement perseveres against all odds

    October 2, 2026

    After the brutal January 2026 crackdown, teachers unions in Iran are not backing down on their demands for fair wages, free education and free expression.

    • Feature

    How the war in Sudan is teaching society to govern without the state

    September 29, 2026

    After the collapse of state infrastructure and services amid war in Sudan, mutual aid networks stepped up to fill the gaps in health care, food and emergency services.