Many Leaders Make Hate Acceptable
Hate is spreading like an oil stain over the Earth. Hate is even further encouraged by populists who purport to speak in the name of the people. Populist politicians try to obtain the support of the electorate by all means without worrying about the viability of their proposals. They invariably rage against the 'elite'.
Ever since Trump took office, the number of reports of racist violence, murder and death in the US has increased exponentially. There is a "rising tide of violent crime", according to figures from the FBI, with Las Vegas and Charlottesville as recent examples. More and more people feel that their radical ideas are legitimized by Trump.
The number of hate crimes in England and Wales has increased by 29%, according to home office statistics. While racial hatred lies behind most of the crimes, there has been an increase in all forms of hate crime -- abuse and attacks aimed at people with disabilities have increased by more than 50%. .bbc.com/news/uk-41648865
In many European countries, a climate of intolerance prevails and continues to grow. This is partly due to the rise of Muslim fundamentalists and neo-Nazism in Europe, which has caused a significant increase in anti-Semitic violence, but also in general xenophobia and other forms of hatred, mostly aimed against minorities.
Democracy under pressure
In Turkey, democracy has now left the streets of Istanbul, leaving little more than a shadow of its former self. Human rights activists are being prosecuted. In an ongoing case against Amnesty International, the human rights organization was labeled a 'terrorist organization'. Ridiculous, of course. ErdoÄŸan used to do a lot of good things for Turkey, and he has certainly modernized his country and made it economically strong, but that time is long gone. For a full report: .amnesty.nl/landen/turkije
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