Deadly floods in the U.S. that bear the fingerprints of climate change are prompting an exodus of workers from the Midwest, the world’s biggest professional social network, LinkedIn, said Wednesday.

The website, on which millions of U.S. workers maintain profiles, said data showed a spike in members changing their work location from areas flooded last month to cities in the Southwest and on the West Coast.

“When you look at the most real-time data that we have, and that’s our ‘job starts’, we’ve seen those come down quite a bit in the cities that have been hit,” said Guy Berger, chief economist at LinkedIn.

The finding emerged from a LinkedIn analysis of user-generated data. LinkedIn users can share their location and job information — such as when they start a new job — on their profile.

Hiring rates tracked through the platform dropped across the Midwest, LinkedIn said in its April U.S. workforce report, published Monday.

Omaha, Nebraska, and Fargo, North Dakota, registered among the most extreme decreases in hiring rates at nearly 8 and 14 percent respectively, it said.

The findings were based on the more than 155 million profiles of U.S. workers that are listed on the site, the company said.

The U.S. labor force — employed and unemployed people — totaled 163 million people last month, according to the Department of Labor.

Climate change had a hand in the record floods that have damaged crops and drowned livestock along the Missouri, Red and Mississippi rivers, especially in Nebraska, Iowa and Missouri, scientists have said.

Fargo was also among communities impacted, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.

LinkedIn’s workforce report said that it has noticed “migration trends” following other natural disasters, such as Hurricane Irma, which hit the U.S. East Coast in 2017.

Workers would likely move to such cities as Denver, Dallas-Fort Worth, Phoenix and Seattle, largely due to their proximity, affordability and growing economies, Berger predicted.

It was unclear how permanent the retreat of workers from Midwest areas that were recently flooded would prove to be, Berger said.

But a repeat of extreme weather events could lead to “a sustained bleed of talent,” he said.

A handful of American cities, from Duluth, Minnesota, to Cincinnati, Ohio, have begun promoting themselves as future havens for U.S. climate migrants as climate change is predicted to cause intense natural disasters elsewhere.
…

From: MeNeedIt

Deadly floods in the U.S. that bear the fingerprints of climate change are prompting an exodus of workers from the Midwest, the world’s biggest professional social network, LinkedIn, said Wednesday.

The website, on which millions of U.S. workers maintain profiles, said data showed a spike in members changing their work location from areas flooded last month to cities in the Southwest and on the West Coast.

“When you look at the most real-time data that we have, and that’s our ‘job starts’, we’ve seen those come down quite a bit in the cities that have been hit,” said Guy Berger, chief economist at LinkedIn.

The finding emerged from a LinkedIn analysis of user-generated data. LinkedIn users can share their location and job information — such as when they start a new job — on their profile.

Hiring rates tracked through the platform dropped across the Midwest, LinkedIn said in its April U.S. workforce report, published Monday.

Omaha, Nebraska, and Fargo, North Dakota, registered among the most extreme decreases in hiring rates at nearly 8 and 14 percent respectively, it said.

The findings were based on the more than 155 million profiles of U.S. workers that are listed on the site, the company said.

The U.S. labor force — employed and unemployed people — totaled 163 million people last month, according to the Department of Labor.

Climate change had a hand in the record floods that have damaged crops and drowned livestock along the Missouri, Red and Mississippi rivers, especially in Nebraska, Iowa and Missouri, scientists have said.

Fargo was also among communities impacted, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.

LinkedIn’s workforce report said that it has noticed “migration trends” following other natural disasters, such as Hurricane Irma, which hit the U.S. East Coast in 2017.

Workers would likely move to such cities as Denver, Dallas-Fort Worth, Phoenix and Seattle, largely due to their proximity, affordability and growing economies, Berger predicted.

It was unclear how permanent the retreat of workers from Midwest areas that were recently flooded would prove to be, Berger said.

But a repeat of extreme weather events could lead to “a sustained bleed of talent,” he said.

A handful of American cities, from Duluth, Minnesota, to Cincinnati, Ohio, have begun promoting themselves as future havens for U.S. climate migrants as climate change is predicted to cause intense natural disasters elsewhere.
…

From: MeNeedIt

Внедорожник / Кроссовер, 5 дверей, 5 мест. Родной пробег 60 тыс. км. Двигатель 2л (150 л.с./110 кВт), бензин, коробка передач автомат, привод полный, цвет: золотистый металлик. Куплена в салоне, одна хозяйка, эксплуатировался очень аккуратно.

Состояние автомобиля: хорошее. Двигатель, коробка, мосты и ходовая в идеальном состоянии. Салон: чистый и ухоженный. ТО проходилось по регламенту. Не бит! Не крашен! Абсолютно все исправно и все работает.

Комплектация: помощь при спуске, двухзонный климат-контроль, подогрев сидений, мульти-руль, складывающиеся зеркала, автосвет, омыватели фар. Задние парктроники. Вложений никаких не требует. В машине не курили, не сорили. Центральный замок, подушки безопасности (Airbag), ABS, иммобилайзер, сигнализация, галогенные фары, усилитель руля, эл. стеклоподъемники, бортовой компьютер, кондиционер, климат-контроль, круиз-контроль, задние парктроники, подогрев сидений, омыватели фар, подогрев зеркал, электропакет, мультируль, мультимедиа, магнитола, акустика, CD, тонирование стекол.

телефоны: 093-0075667, 050-3892259

Ваша реклама в сети seLLines

From: MeNeedIt

Внедорожник / Кроссовер, 5 дверей, 5 мест. Родной пробег 60 тыс. км. Двигатель 2л (150 л.с./110 кВт), бензин, коробка передач автомат, привод полный, цвет: золотистый металлик. Куплена в салоне, одна хозяйка, эксплуатировался очень аккуратно.

Состояние автомобиля: хорошее. Двигатель, коробка, мосты и ходовая в идеальном состоянии. Салон: чистый и ухоженный. ТО проходилось по регламенту. Не бит! Не крашен! Абсолютно все исправно и все работает.

Комплектация: помощь при спуске, двухзонный климат-контроль, подогрев сидений, мульти-руль, складывающиеся зеркала, автосвет, омыватели фар. Задние парктроники. Вложений никаких не требует. В машине не курили, не сорили. Центральный замок, подушки безопасности (Airbag), ABS, иммобилайзер, сигнализация, галогенные фары, усилитель руля, эл. стеклоподъемники, бортовой компьютер, кондиционер, климат-контроль, круиз-контроль, задние парктроники, подогрев сидений, омыватели фар, подогрев зеркал, электропакет, мультируль, мультимедиа, магнитола, акустика, CD, тонирование стекол.

телефоны: 093-0075667, 050-3892259

Ваша реклама в сети seLLines

Майбутнім мешканцям пропонуються варіанти від однієї до трьох кімнат, в тому числі дворівневі апартаменти з власною терасою. Площа приміщень складає від 32,21 до 122м².

Будинки зводяться за монолітно-каркасною технологією із заповненням зовнішніх і міжквартирних стін керамічною цеглою. Для утеплення використовується мінеральна вата, фасади будуть облицьовані декоративною штукатуркою, а також керамогранітом на перших поверхах, де розмістяться комерційні приміщення. Основний акцент в оригінальному зовнішньому вигляді будинків зроблений на правильні геометричні форми та контрастне поєднання світлих і темних кольорів.

Публічний простір спроектований згідно з концепцією «двір без машин», завдяки чому перебування на прибудинковій території буде комфортним і безпечним. Для автомобілів передбачені одно- та дворівневі підземні паркінги з системою відеоспостереження, а гостьові стоянки винесені за межі дворів.

Будинки розташовані таким чином, щоб утворити затишні та зелені внутрішні двори з дитячими і спортивними майданчиками, зонами відпочинку. Проектом також передбачене будівництво власного дитячого садка, торговельного центру, басейну та тренажерного залу. Крім того, через весь комплекс проходитиме широкий пішохідний променад з фонтаном, зеленими насадженнями та добре освітленими велосипедними доріжками.

У квартирах будуть встановлені металеві протиударні протизламні вхідні двері, енергозберігаючі металопластикові вікна, а також сталеві радіатори. Крім того, квартири будуть обладнані системою розумного будинку CLAP, яка допоможе економити до 40% на комунальних платежах, забезпечить надійний захист житла і комфорт новоселів. Ексклюзивна система від самого початку передбачена як невід’ємна частина квартири, окремо доплачувати за неї мешканцям не доведеться. Також планується обладнання кожної квартири теплолічильником з можливістю дистанційного зняття показників.

Більше інформації на сайті забудовника

Ваша реклама в мережі seLLines

Amid a stunning vista of desert mountains, a Bedouin woman, Umm Yasser, paused to point out a local plant, and she began to explain how it was used in medicine to the group of foreign tourists she was guiding.

Umm Yasser is breaking new ground among the deeply conservative Bedouin of Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. Women among the Bedouin almost never work outside the home, and even more rarely do they interact with outsiders. But Umm Yasser is one of four women from the community who for the first time are working as tour guides.

“It is against our culture, but women need jobs,” the 47-year-old Umm Yasser said. “People will make fun of us, but I don’t care. I’m a strong woman.”

They are part of Sinai Trail, a unique project in which local Bedouin tribes came together aiming to develop their own tourism. Founded in 2015, the project has set up a 550-kilometer (330-mile) trail through the remote mountains of the peninsula, a42-day trek through the lands of eight different tribes, each of which contributes guides. The project has been successful in bringing some income to the tribes, who often complain of being left out of the major tourism development of the southern Sinai, home to beach resorts and desert safaris.

Until now, all the project’s guides were men. Ben Hoffler, the British co-founder of the Sinai Trail, felt it was not enough. “How can we be credible calling this the ‘Sinai Trail’ if the women aren’t involved?”

But even after years of trying by Hoffler, almost all the tribes still reject women guides. Only one of the smallest, oldest and poorest tribes, the Hamada, accepted the idea.

There are some conditions. The tourists can only be women, and the tours can’t go overnight. Each day before the sun sets, the group returns to the Hamada’s home village in Wadi Sahu, a narrow desert valley. The organizers also urge the tourists to photograph the guides only when they are wearing a full veil over the face that covers even the eyes with mesh.

Umm Yasser was the first to join. She said she started hiking when she was a child and knows the mountains and the valley by heart. She convinced the families of three other women to allow them to work as guides.

Their tribe is a poor one, living in small concrete houses strung along the Wadi Sahu. Electricity runs no more than five hours a night and there is no running water. It is isolated deep in the mountains of south Sinai, far from the tourism centers in Sinai along the Red Sea coast or near the famed Saint Catherine’s Monastery. The men often leave the village to find work, either at resorts or in mines further south.

“We need money to help support our families for basic necessities,” Umm Yasser said. “We need blankets, clothes for the children, washing machines, fridges, books for school.”

The Sinai Trail came together in some of the hardest years for tourism. It was launched as an Islamic State group-linked insurgency intensified in the northern part of Sinai and a year after a Russian passenger plane crashed, killing all 224 passengers on board in a likely militant bombing. The violence has stayed far from southern Sinai, where tourist resorts are located — but the industry has had to push hard to win tourists back.

On a recent tour joined by the Associated Press, 16 female tourists — from Korea, New Zealand, Europe, Lebanon and Egypt — were led by Umm Yasser and the other three women guides, Umm Soliman, Aicha, and Selima, through the rugged landscape in and around Wadi Sahu.

“I think south Sinai is safe especially when you are in the care of Bedouins. … This is where I feel at home. Every corner there is scenery and another beautiful view,” said Marion Salwegter, a 68-year-old Dutch woman who travels to southern Sinai every year alone to escape the winters in Holland.

During the two-day tour, the group hiked across an endlessly broad landscape of mountain peaks and valleys of dry riverbeds. While male Bedouin guides range far from home, the women tend to move closer, with an exceptionally rich knowledge of the surrounding mountains. The guides talked about the local plants and herbs, the history and legends of the area and pointed out the borders of the area’s tribes.

In the evening, the group returned to the Hamada tribe’s village. The women sat on the floor of Umm Yasser’s home and the tourists asked the guide about life in the village, marriage and divorce.

Umm Yasser is skeptical other Bedouin women will join her as a guide or in working in general any time soon. But, she said, “There is no shame in working. This is what I believe in, and it makes me strong.”

Some attitudes are changing. Mohammed Salman, an elderly man from the Aligat tribe, said he thought the guides project was a great step for women. “If a woman wants to work, she should be able to have the right to,” he said. “Many men say no, a woman’s place is at home. But I’m sick of this ideology. She’s a human being.”

Younger Bedouin girls tagged along with the group and talked about wanting to be female guides in the future.

“This trip is going down in history and will be talked about,” said Julie Paterson, a facilitator for Sinai Trail who often works with Bedouin women. “It might also go into Bedouin oral history.”

 
…

From: MeNeedIt

Amid a stunning vista of desert mountains, a Bedouin woman, Umm Yasser, paused to point out a local plant, and she began to explain how it was used in medicine to the group of foreign tourists she was guiding.

Umm Yasser is breaking new ground among the deeply conservative Bedouin of Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. Women among the Bedouin almost never work outside the home, and even more rarely do they interact with outsiders. But Umm Yasser is one of four women from the community who for the first time are working as tour guides.

“It is against our culture, but women need jobs,” the 47-year-old Umm Yasser said. “People will make fun of us, but I don’t care. I’m a strong woman.”

They are part of Sinai Trail, a unique project in which local Bedouin tribes came together aiming to develop their own tourism. Founded in 2015, the project has set up a 550-kilometer (330-mile) trail through the remote mountains of the peninsula, a42-day trek through the lands of eight different tribes, each of which contributes guides. The project has been successful in bringing some income to the tribes, who often complain of being left out of the major tourism development of the southern Sinai, home to beach resorts and desert safaris.

Until now, all the project’s guides were men. Ben Hoffler, the British co-founder of the Sinai Trail, felt it was not enough. “How can we be credible calling this the ‘Sinai Trail’ if the women aren’t involved?”

But even after years of trying by Hoffler, almost all the tribes still reject women guides. Only one of the smallest, oldest and poorest tribes, the Hamada, accepted the idea.

There are some conditions. The tourists can only be women, and the tours can’t go overnight. Each day before the sun sets, the group returns to the Hamada’s home village in Wadi Sahu, a narrow desert valley. The organizers also urge the tourists to photograph the guides only when they are wearing a full veil over the face that covers even the eyes with mesh.

Umm Yasser was the first to join. She said she started hiking when she was a child and knows the mountains and the valley by heart. She convinced the families of three other women to allow them to work as guides.

Their tribe is a poor one, living in small concrete houses strung along the Wadi Sahu. Electricity runs no more than five hours a night and there is no running water. It is isolated deep in the mountains of south Sinai, far from the tourism centers in Sinai along the Red Sea coast or near the famed Saint Catherine’s Monastery. The men often leave the village to find work, either at resorts or in mines further south.

“We need money to help support our families for basic necessities,” Umm Yasser said. “We need blankets, clothes for the children, washing machines, fridges, books for school.”

The Sinai Trail came together in some of the hardest years for tourism. It was launched as an Islamic State group-linked insurgency intensified in the northern part of Sinai and a year after a Russian passenger plane crashed, killing all 224 passengers on board in a likely militant bombing. The violence has stayed far from southern Sinai, where tourist resorts are located — but the industry has had to push hard to win tourists back.

On a recent tour joined by the Associated Press, 16 female tourists — from Korea, New Zealand, Europe, Lebanon and Egypt — were led by Umm Yasser and the other three women guides, Umm Soliman, Aicha, and Selima, through the rugged landscape in and around Wadi Sahu.

“I think south Sinai is safe especially when you are in the care of Bedouins. … This is where I feel at home. Every corner there is scenery and another beautiful view,” said Marion Salwegter, a 68-year-old Dutch woman who travels to southern Sinai every year alone to escape the winters in Holland.

During the two-day tour, the group hiked across an endlessly broad landscape of mountain peaks and valleys of dry riverbeds. While male Bedouin guides range far from home, the women tend to move closer, with an exceptionally rich knowledge of the surrounding mountains. The guides talked about the local plants and herbs, the history and legends of the area and pointed out the borders of the area’s tribes.

In the evening, the group returned to the Hamada tribe’s village. The women sat on the floor of Umm Yasser’s home and the tourists asked the guide about life in the village, marriage and divorce.

Umm Yasser is skeptical other Bedouin women will join her as a guide or in working in general any time soon. But, she said, “There is no shame in working. This is what I believe in, and it makes me strong.”

Some attitudes are changing. Mohammed Salman, an elderly man from the Aligat tribe, said he thought the guides project was a great step for women. “If a woman wants to work, she should be able to have the right to,” he said. “Many men say no, a woman’s place is at home. But I’m sick of this ideology. She’s a human being.”

Younger Bedouin girls tagged along with the group and talked about wanting to be female guides in the future.

“This trip is going down in history and will be talked about,” said Julie Paterson, a facilitator for Sinai Trail who often works with Bedouin women. “It might also go into Bedouin oral history.”

 
…

From: MeNeedIt

Small, independent bookstores in neighborhoods across the United States are places to discover new books and make new friendships. But about 20 years ago they were rapidly closing because of competition from big box chain bookstores and on-line book sales. Then about 10 years ago something remarkable happened as indie bookstores came back to life, many thriving and growing every year.

At One More Page Books in Arlington, Virginia, a suburb of Washington, DC, customer Cheryl Moore likes the personalized service that she does not get at large corporate-owned bookstores.

“I think they pay attention to the kinds of books people like to read. They have book clubs, so I don’t think it’s a place where people just buy books, but make friends here.”

Kate Oberdorfer browses through the unusual assortment of books that range from mystery novels and cookbooks, to biographies of famous people.

“It’s a great hole in the wall store where you can find independent titles,” she said.

Oberdorfer chats about a couple of books with Lelia Nebeker, the book buyer for the store that opened eight years ago in the upscale neighborhood.

“I do think it’s a special place for people to come,” said Nebeker, who lives nearby. “When people come in and share their experiences about a book or an author, it can foster a sense of community where people can meet other people who share their interests,” she explained.

After almost withering away, indie bookstores grew by 35 percent between 2009 and 2015. And according to the American Booksellers Association, sales at the more than 2,400 bookstores in the United States rose about 5 percent over the past year. Among them is Hooray for Books, a children’s bookstore that started 11 years ago in Alexandria, Virginia. Owner Ellen Klein thinks part of her success has been providing a wide variety of books to the diverse neighborhood.

“In this community we have a lot of mixed race families,” she said, “and so we’re trying to serve them as well, and it’s wonderful seeing more books with mixed race characters.” 

As customer Sarah Reidl scans the shelves of children’s books she said, “You just can’t really browse on the Internet. I like to be able to browse and look for things in person that catch my eye.”

For people who are passionate about reading, independent bookstores sometimes become a home away from home.

Kristen Maier from Missouri often comes to Hooray for Books when she is in the Washington area for work. She doesn’t think electronic books can replace the feeling of physically holding a book.

“If you don’t have a nice book to pass down to your grandkids or their grandkids, you just kind of lose that sense of history and tradition for your family.”

But to survive, today’s indie bookstores know they have to sell more than books. One More Page also draws in customers with bottles of wine and chocolate they can take home along with a book.

“We are a place where you can come for events, you can meet authors, get books signed, and buy books you might not necessarily stumble upon on your own,” said Nebeker.

Including by local author Ed Aymar, who is talking before a packed house about his latest thriller The Unrepentant. A singer also performs songs that relate to the story. 

“Usually, authors are just reading out loud,” he said. “Something like this gives a different perspective and provides more entertainment for the audience.”

Angie Kim, another local author, came to support Aymar.

“I’ve been here for 5 events just in the last couple of months,” she said. “I think it’s just a wonderful way to show the bookstore that we care about spaces like this and that we want them to continue.”

“We’re going to keep doing what we do well, and hope that our community loves having us around enough to support us,” Nebeker added.
…

From: MeNeedIt

Small, independent bookstores in neighborhoods across the United States are places to discover new books and make new friendships. But about 20 years ago they were rapidly closing because of competition from big box chain bookstores and on-line book sales. Then about 10 years ago something remarkable happened as indie bookstores came back to life, many thriving and growing every year.

At One More Page Books in Arlington, Virginia, a suburb of Washington, DC, customer Cheryl Moore likes the personalized service that she does not get at large corporate-owned bookstores.

“I think they pay attention to the kinds of books people like to read. They have book clubs, so I don’t think it’s a place where people just buy books, but make friends here.”

Kate Oberdorfer browses through the unusual assortment of books that range from mystery novels and cookbooks, to biographies of famous people.

“It’s a great hole in the wall store where you can find independent titles,” she said.

Oberdorfer chats about a couple of books with Lelia Nebeker, the book buyer for the store that opened eight years ago in the upscale neighborhood.

“I do think it’s a special place for people to come,” said Nebeker, who lives nearby. “When people come in and share their experiences about a book or an author, it can foster a sense of community where people can meet other people who share their interests,” she explained.

After almost withering away, indie bookstores grew by 35 percent between 2009 and 2015. And according to the American Booksellers Association, sales at the more than 2,400 bookstores in the United States rose about 5 percent over the past year. Among them is Hooray for Books, a children’s bookstore that started 11 years ago in Alexandria, Virginia. Owner Ellen Klein thinks part of her success has been providing a wide variety of books to the diverse neighborhood.

“In this community we have a lot of mixed race families,” she said, “and so we’re trying to serve them as well, and it’s wonderful seeing more books with mixed race characters.” 

As customer Sarah Reidl scans the shelves of children’s books she said, “You just can’t really browse on the Internet. I like to be able to browse and look for things in person that catch my eye.”

For people who are passionate about reading, independent bookstores sometimes become a home away from home.

Kristen Maier from Missouri often comes to Hooray for Books when she is in the Washington area for work. She doesn’t think electronic books can replace the feeling of physically holding a book.

“If you don’t have a nice book to pass down to your grandkids or their grandkids, you just kind of lose that sense of history and tradition for your family.”

But to survive, today’s indie bookstores know they have to sell more than books. One More Page also draws in customers with bottles of wine and chocolate they can take home along with a book.

“We are a place where you can come for events, you can meet authors, get books signed, and buy books you might not necessarily stumble upon on your own,” said Nebeker.

Including by local author Ed Aymar, who is talking before a packed house about his latest thriller The Unrepentant. A singer also performs songs that relate to the story. 

“Usually, authors are just reading out loud,” he said. “Something like this gives a different perspective and provides more entertainment for the audience.”

Angie Kim, another local author, came to support Aymar.

“I’ve been here for 5 events just in the last couple of months,” she said. “I think it’s just a wonderful way to show the bookstore that we care about spaces like this and that we want them to continue.”

“We’re going to keep doing what we do well, and hope that our community loves having us around enough to support us,” Nebeker added.
…

From: MeNeedIt

Twenty-year-old Sana Tajik managed to convince her parents to allow her to follow her childhood dreams and become a singer, but she realizes the dangers of being a woman, let alone a woman entertainer, in tribal northwest Pakistan.

The Pashtun singer grew up in Lower Dir, once a Taliban stronghold of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where performing arts were widely considered to be un-Islamic. She realized early on that violence against female artists was common.

In 2018, five female singers were killed in the northwest and in March this year, a popular Pashtun stage singer and actress was shot and killed near Peshawar, allegedly by her husband.

But two years ago, Tajik’s family moved from their ancestral village to the state capital Peshawar where she managed to convince her parents to allow her to sing.

“At first, there were a lot of objections, from family, as well as people in our village. But now, with the passing of time, and after seeing my videos and songs, things have become normal again,” Tajik told Reuters at her home.

She has released her songs over social media and said she already had a fan following in Pashto-speaking areas of Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan. Her second song, “Halaka Charta Ye,” which means “Oh boy, where are you?,” was a great hit.

“I was extremely happy because so many people were listening to my songs and liked them. My passion for music increased further, and I decided to make more and more songs and videos,” she said.

Despite her success, Tajik says she often feels nervous about security because the Taliban’s influence in the region can still be felt. During the 1996-2001 Taliban regime in Afghanistan, music was considered the handiwork of the devil, particularly if the artist was a woman.

Pakistan’s port city of Karachi is home to an estimated 7 million Pashtuns, the largest urban Pashtun population in the world, including 50,000 registered Afghan refugees. Even though it’s the other end of the country, Sana Tajik’s music is known, though not accepted by all.

“If this lady sang hymns and devotional songs, that would have been better. It would have sent a good message to the Pashtun people,” said resident Iqbal Swati.

“Instead, she is wearing half-sleeved clothes while singing; this is not at all nice. This is not our culture.”

Tajik’s music teacher, Safdar Ali Qalandri, said he often warns her of the dangers ahead.

“One, she is a female. And secondly, this is Peshawar, where, as you know, extreme ‘purdah’ (covering of women) is observed. Taking up singing while living in this society is extremely tough.”
…

From: MeNeedIt

The Hungarian State Opera has asked the nearly all-white cast for its production of “Porgy and Bess” to self-identify as African American.

The Hungarian performers were asked to sign a statement declaring that “African-American origin and identity is an inseparable part of my identity” and made being in “Porgy and Bess” “a special joy,” Hungary’s index.hu news site reported.

Hungarian broadcaster ATV reported Tuesday that 15 of 28 cast members signed the statement. One man in the State Opera production is from Guinea-Bissau in west Africa and another’s father is from there. 

The State Opera’s casting of the seminal folk opera set in the American south ran into trouble with George and Ira Gershwin’s estates. The brothers and collaborator DuBose Heyward created “Porgy and Bess” for black performers, and the Gershwin estates say only black performers may appear in it now. 

The Hungarian show “is not permitted in its current form and contradicts the work’s staging requirements,” a statement from the rights holders says on the opera’s website. Asking cast members to identify as African American appears to be the opera’s way around the dispute.

‘No public registry of skin color’

Opera director Szilvester Okovacs told ATV that since Hungary doesn’t record the race of individuals, he preferred to ask the cast.

“There is no public registry of skin color in Hungary … and I can’t really say about the cast if it meets or not the requirement, so I’d rather ask them,” Okovacs said.

The State Opera’s “Porgy and Bess” premiered in January 2018 and is performed in English, with Hungarian and English subtitles. Seven more performances are planned in 2019.

It moves the setting from Charleston, South Carolina, to a refugee camp in an airplane hangar. A commentary for the classicalhive.com website said it was “not ‘Porgy and Bess.”‘

“It is their own narrative set to the music of ‘Porgy and Bess.’ Which is a mess and misses the point completely,” the website said.
…

From: MeNeedIt

The Hungarian State Opera has asked the nearly all-white cast for its production of “Porgy and Bess” to self-identify as African American.

The Hungarian performers were asked to sign a statement declaring that “African-American origin and identity is an inseparable part of my identity” and made being in “Porgy and Bess” “a special joy,” Hungary’s index.hu news site reported.

Hungarian broadcaster ATV reported Tuesday that 15 of 28 cast members signed the statement. One man in the State Opera production is from Guinea-Bissau in west Africa and another’s father is from there. 

The State Opera’s casting of the seminal folk opera set in the American south ran into trouble with George and Ira Gershwin’s estates. The brothers and collaborator DuBose Heyward created “Porgy and Bess” for black performers, and the Gershwin estates say only black performers may appear in it now. 

The Hungarian show “is not permitted in its current form and contradicts the work’s staging requirements,” a statement from the rights holders says on the opera’s website. Asking cast members to identify as African American appears to be the opera’s way around the dispute.

‘No public registry of skin color’

Opera director Szilvester Okovacs told ATV that since Hungary doesn’t record the race of individuals, he preferred to ask the cast.

“There is no public registry of skin color in Hungary … and I can’t really say about the cast if it meets or not the requirement, so I’d rather ask them,” Okovacs said.

The State Opera’s “Porgy and Bess” premiered in January 2018 and is performed in English, with Hungarian and English subtitles. Seven more performances are planned in 2019.

It moves the setting from Charleston, South Carolina, to a refugee camp in an airplane hangar. A commentary for the classicalhive.com website said it was “not ‘Porgy and Bess.”‘

“It is their own narrative set to the music of ‘Porgy and Bess.’ Which is a mess and misses the point completely,” the website said.
…

From: MeNeedIt