Foreword: From the President & Editor-in-Chief

Foreword:

From the President & Editor-in-Chief

By Anika Bajpai & Asha Patt

Dear Readers,

The Cornell Diplomat was founded in August 2018 as a magazine dedicated to sharing student perspectives on global challenges. Since its founding, we have brought together talented writers, editors and artists to explore different angles, places, and positions not highlighted in main- stream discourse. Our past issues have considered such subjects as regime stability, the politicization of gender, the geopolitics of resources, and the influence of borders in Regime (In)Stability, The Gender Issue, Rethinking Resources, and Borders.

Our fifth issue, Civil Disobedience, explores the nuances of popular political movements. In a year marked by sickness and instability, we’ve watched our peers at home and across the world take to the streets to demand change. From the people of Belarus protesting their government to the brave actions of Bobi Wine and his supporters in Uganda to the international racial justice movement, grass-roots efforts to shift the status quo are erupting across the globe. Our goal is not merely to report on these movements, but to answer the larger questions surrounding civil disobedience: what determines the short-term and long-term success of movements? How do technology and social media change popular participation in protests? What role do international actors play in domestic conflict? And, how has the COVID-19 pandemic changed civil disobedience?

These are not easy questions to answer. This is precisely why we chose to explore them in this semester’s issue. Despite not being able to meet in person, our second, and, hopefully, last, semester on Zoom has been a remarkable achievement thanks to the dedication of our members. Our founders left us large shoes to fill, and we have worked hard to seamlessly transition to a new generation of leadership. The Diplomat has been an invaluable addition to our life at Cornell, and we hope to share that experience with other students in the coming years. We could not be more proud of our staff’s work this semester, and we are thrilled to publish our fifth issue: Civil Disobedience. We hope you enjoy!

Anika Bajpai and Asha Patt

Illustration by Oscar Martinez