Dear Reader,
This year, the Berkeley Political Review was able to earn more than $4,000 in donations from readers on and off campus. On the behalf of the entire organization, I would like to thank each and every donor for supporting the research based, long form, non-partisan political journalism that our publication strives to offer. Thank you for supporting political engagement and academic dialogue, particularly in the aftermath of the political rollercoaster that has been the 2016 American presidential election. In our special election issue, we highlighted some of the key issues of the election and the reverberations that the election would have on both the American population and global politics. With this issue, we urge readers to look beyond November 8th and explore the global political issues of the 21st century that are far more complex than any presidential election.
Of course, this can be difficult. After a harrowing political election cycle that has left much of the country howling in protest and bitterly divided, it is easy to run as far from the splitting ravine as possible, seeking solace in the safe comfort of Netflix or Buzzfeed. Yet there is no better time for Americans to roll up their sleeves and engage with one another. The misunderstandings and misinformation that have spread like a poison across this country can be cleared only with a concentrated effort by both sides to truly understand one another and the world they live in. Only by reading and listening to one another can we begin to heal a country that has been bitterly divided for all too long.
In the pages that follow, our writers certainly discuss the election. But they also uncover stories that lie beyond even the recesses of presidential politics. You will read about the hyper-sexualization of women in Bollywood, global sanctions on North Korea, and California’s Cap and Trade system. For the very first time, this issue also includes articles from “The Review”, a traditionally online-only short-form blog.
Student readers in particular have an obligation to remain politically aware, if not politically engaged. Whether you spend hours each day in a molecular biology lab, buried in the works of Aristotle, or typing out lines of code, American and international politics impact your education, your livelihood, and the community around you. Amongst the graduate and undergraduate students of this institution lie the future leaders of the world. They will come from the sciences, the mathematics, and the arts, and we at the Berkeley Political Review hope that despite these differing backgrounds, they will come informed, engaged, and empowered. If this is the future we seek, disengaging is not an option.
We hope you enjoy the Fall 2016 issue of the Berkeley Political Review.
Sincerely, Nitisha Baronia Editor-in-Chief Berkeley Political Review
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