"A woman buried in a lead sarcophagus found in Nijmegen in 2001 may not have been a member of the wealthy elite of the ancient city on the northern border of the Roman Empire after all. She also died at least 100 years earlier than previously believed."
More controversy at this year's Eurovision: The Dutch contestant, Joost Klein will not be rehearsing again until "further notice" and it's unclear whether he will perform in the final as organizers the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) investigate an unexplained backstage incident. Klein had been part of the flag parade at the start of Friday's first rehearsal but then did not appear on stage for either of the day's rehearsals. Sky News says Klein's track, "Europapa," is a current favorite to win. Spain's state-owned broadcaster, RTVE has also hit at out the EBU, calling on it to respect "press and opinion." Here's more.
Police officers remove a pro-Palestinian protester outside the University of Amsterdam during a protest in #Amsterdam, Netherlands. REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw
Staff members of the University of Amsterdam express their horror at the the police violence unleashed on staff and students by Dutch police in response to Palestine solidarity encampments.
Here’s the full letter, in slightly more legible form:
"We, staff members of the University of Amsterdam, are horrified by the actions of its Executive Board. For three consecutive days, they have authorised extreme police violence towards their own staff and students, who were engaged in non-violent protest on campus against UvA’s complicity in the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Today [= 8 May], once again, we witnessed our University Board, together with the Mayor, ordering unprecedented levels of violence on its students, staff, and the boarder public in the centre of Amsterdam. Riot police bulldozed protest areas, brought in police dogs, and beat, pepper-sprayed, and arrested people. Those engaging in the peaceful support march or standing by the sidelines were also aggressively beaten, pepper-sprayed, and shoved to the ground."
"The Board has displayed utter bad faith in entering into negotiations with students and staff. They had already made the decision to violently evict while negotiations were still ongoing. Despite publicly calling for dialogue, they refused to negotiate with students and staff negotiators, dismissing their plea to hold off on eviction and continue negotiations in the morning. We are shocked by the absolute disregard, disrespect and general unwillingness of the Board towards its students and staff."
"The Board will defend its actions by claiming it was protecting university buildings and facilities. It will claim that they were trying to protect the safety of university life. But whose safety is the Board protecting? The actions taken by the Dutch police in response to the Gaza Solidarity camps have made a mockery of concerns about safety on campus."
"The actions by the Board are reprehensible, absolutely unacceptable and we condemn them in the strongest possible terms. In response, we call on all employees to congregate outside the Roetereilandcampus on Monday, 13th May at 11.00 am. The walk-out will be followed by a staff meeting to discuss popular demands about reinstating the right to demonstrate and cutting ties with Israeli and international institutions that violate human rights."
"We underscore that the University of Amsterdam does not consist of its Board. It is students and staff who are the heart and soul of this university. Denying this fact has resulted in a severe breach and breaking of trust between the Board, and staff and students who work for the university and give it its right to exist."
If you're in the Amsterdam region, consider joining the workers in support of Palestine 🍉🍉🍉 block at the Workers' Day March, starting at 2pm at Museumplein
Dutch landscapes have lost insect-pollinated plants over the past 87 years
This study implies that Dutch landscapes are losing insect-pollinated plant species, which is likely due, at least in part, to the decline in pollination services. Our results of quantifying the decline in insect-pollinated plants support the necessity and urgency of taking conservation initiatives.
Othering, peaking, populism and moral panics: The reactionary strategies of organised transphobia
Fran Amery and Aurelien Mondon
This article shows that organised transphobia is promoted using similar strategies and politics as the wider reactionary movement which has become increasingly mainstream. In particular, we outline the transphobic process of ‘othering’ based on moral panics, which seeks to construct, homogenise and exaggerate a threat and to naturalise it in the bodies and existence of the ‘Other’. Reactionary politics rely on authoritarian tendencies and strategies which aim to remove the rights of certain communities, and as such threaten wider demands for equal rights. They claim to speak on behalf of ‘the people’, in this case often (certain) women, against an elite which seeks to grant unfair rights and privileges to a mostly silent and silenced minority, even though said rights are precarious and limited, and power is rarely on their side. Rather than a bottom-up movement in defence of women, what we refer to as ‘organised transphobia’ is a top-down movement that relies on prominent platforms and privileged access to shaping public discourse to divert attention away from the real struggle most women and LGBTQ+ people are facing conjointly.