Sarah Eleazar

Student of sociocultural anthropology at UT Austin

[Sarah Eleazar @SarahEleazar]

I visited the neighborhoods with my parents. Needless to say it was an emotional experience, and this article is a labor of love.

Jaranwala residents had little to begin with — the violent mob took away their hope too https://t.co/yYBGuq0sHN

[Ilhan Niaz @IlhanNiaz]

I’ve spent over two decades studying the Pakistani state. But words fail to describe how malevolent, low-IQ, & beholden to vested interests, the administration is.

The people trying to stop solar power adoption in Pakistan are all university educated professionals. Check their CVs and you will find many with foreign qualifications & fancy fellowships.

When they retire some will produce silly self-exonerating memoirs.

And while they were in government for decades two questions never occurred to them:

1. What is in the national interest and public interest of Pakistan?

2. How can we help Pakistan achieve these constructive objectives?

At a time of global energy crisis, Pakistan needs to move even more rapidly towards solarisation. Instead, the administration is trying to impede solarisation and now they are going after not just the ‘bourgeoisie’ or ‘rich’ solar net metering folks, but others as well.

[Mériame @Msemen2020]

🇻🇦🇩🇿 To every Christian supporting Israel's "right" to colonize Palestinian land :

Today in Algeria, a nation that endured 132 years of French colonization and genocide, Pope Leo XIV said :

“Our presence here pays tribute to the spirit of a people who fought for their independence, dignity and sovereignty. […]
God desires peace for every nation : a peace that is not merely the absence of conflict, but an expression of justice and dignity.”

Colonization is a crime, whether in
Algeria yesterday or in Palestine today.

Peace without justice is hypocrisy.

What part of this don’t you understand?

[Sarah Eleazar @SarahEleazar]

Thank you for drawing attention to toxic waste from India in the rivers. The toxins don’t seep into our groundwater after crossing the border but exist throughout trans boundary aquifer. The already contaminated groundwater we consume is shared with India as is our air & futures

[Sarah Eleazar @SarahEleazar]

Such a wonderful and important article! I’d like to add that it’s not only the geography that provides Pakistan water security, water itself has proven to be unmanageable with ginormous consequences for tampering throughout our history.

[Daanish Mustafa 🇵🇸 دانش مُصطفیٰ @Daanibhai]

My article in @Himalistan

‘India halting water flows into Pakistan . . . was not founded in science or in any understanding of hydrology or geography – and it still is not.’

Pakistan loses nothing from India’s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty https://t.co/FW92vOTCBv

[Bhoomika Joshi @bhoomikajoshi]

And Sanober Umar highlighted the precarity of urban citizenship among Muslims in Lucknow. In the second panel @akkhan81 examined the politics of blasphemy and the recrafting of religiosity with reference to the Tablighi Jamaat in Pakistan.

[Bhoomika Joshi @bhoomikajoshi]

At the @ACSAMadison 2024, some of the contributors to the @culanth #hotspots on ‘Majoritarian Politics in South Asia’ (2021) convened to revisit their essays and thoughts in a double panel. The issue was edited by @r_gov11, @Mubbashir_R and @bhoomikajoshi https://t.co/3tobT50MlE

[Sarah Eleazar @SarahEleazar]

@AmmarRashidT Sending condolences, love and strength to you and your family, comrade.

[S @fitrahjournal]

No one’s ready for this conversation but having done my time in the Gulf, I couldn’t think of a worse place to live. It’s amazing hearing the adhaan, earning tax free money and being closer to the equator. Just not when it’s at the cost of witnessing migrant workers (1/5)

[Abid Hussain @abidhussayn]

Arshad Nadeem will begin his hunt for an elusive #Olympics medal at 3pm PST.

On a sweltering day late June, I spent sometime with him to learn what makes him the athlete he is, and more importantly, the person he is. This is his story.

For @AJEnglish @AJE_Sport.

https://t.co/3ovHEISn3A

[ArafatMazhar 🤖 @ArafatMazhar]

6 basic things wrong with blasphemy law 295C

[The Pakistan Experience @ThePakistanExp1]

Kids stealing shoes after a Christian man accused of blasphemy was lynched by a mob - this is where the powers that be have brought Pakistan.

A lot of things that we talk about regularly on The Pakistan Experience seem abstract to a lot of people but this clip perfectly encapsulates everything wrong about Pakistan; extremism, extreme poverty, weaponization of religion and promotion of violence.

We talk about the Pakistani identity being conflated with the Islamic Identity to create an exclusionary identity that otherizes everyone - how that affects us tangibly is that the ‘other’ is seen as the enemy. Religious minorities are demonized and attacked in Pakistan because they are seen as the evil other enemy destroying Pakistan.

We talk about how the Establishment created outfits like TLP to promote an extremist version of religion to create chaos and derail democracy in Pakistan. No Islamic scholar will ever say Islam allows for mob lynching but such violence and extremism was linked with Islam to exploit the sentiments of the masses to achieve their political ends.

We talk about elite capture and abject poverty, we fight back against people who think Islam is the problem. Let’s assume these children are only driven by illusions of hoors and paradise - why are they stealing shoes after lynching the man? Surely they know stealing is not Islamic?

The elite status quo has kept the masses uneducated and exploits them for cheap labour and resources, they are then fed violence, extremism and jehadism, for which our elite gets American dollars and Petrodollars, they are then told they are not poor because of the elite but because the Hindus, Ahmadis and the Yahudi lobby are stealing from them, this ‘other’ is the enemy, the only inevitable outcome of such a toxic mixture of ideas is violence.

Combine that with the masses being shown episodes of Ertugrul every night and glorifying the killing of Non-Muslims and their political leaders telling them the West hates Islam and ideas of crusades, end of times, Ghazwa e hind, great religious wars, you are who your heroes are, if you’re going to glorify violence then kids will be inspired to commit violence.

We like to blame the jahalat on the awaam, look at the ages of the people in this video, look at videos of 6-7 year olds who were hanging a doll saying that is “Asia Bibi” - do we blame these children or the society that is feeding these ideas to their youth?

To the Establishment that gave TLP 24/7 coverage because it helped their agendas?

To the political leaders who use Islamic touch politics and demonize the ‘other’ for their populism?

Do we blame the religious YouTubers who make millions every month selling you conspiracy theories and pray on your fear by telling you how the “west” is destroying Pakistan?

Jab inkay khud Kay bachay west mai parhtay hain
Establishment Kay bachay bahar rehtay hain
Political leaders Kay bachay bhi bahar rehtay hain

Aur ghareeb Kay bachay ye kartay hain
Ye bhulay bhatkay bhookay bachay
Ye insan ko jala kar jootay churatay hain

Ye Bana dia hay in nay Pakistan ko
Aur inki Sirf Dubai mai hee 11 billion dollars ki properties hain

[Megan Menchaca @meganmmenchaca]

NEW: @UTAustin’s Faculty Council passed a new resolution this morning on the "responses to on-campus protests."

62% voted yes, 21% voted no and 17% abstained.

It calls for more transparency from UT over the decision to call in Texas DPS and amnesty for UT-affiliated protesters.

[Mohammad Ali Talpur @mmatalpur]

#StudentsAndRightToProtest
Read this enlightening piece by Respected @SarahEleazar
Footprints: Students, not security threats https://t.co/qLFfOeMzVF

[Sarah Eleazar @SarahEleazar]

@mmatalpur Thank you for sharing comrade. 🙏 Hope you are well.

[Progressive Students’ Collective @PSCollective_]

A member of the Prog­ressive Students Colle­ctive (PSC) shouted this statement, interrupting the German ambassador’s ad­d­­ress on human rights at the Asma Jahangir Confe­rence org­a­nised in Lahore last week.
By @SarahEleazar

#FreePalestine #psc
https://t.co/GAK4OdnC2n

[Cassandra has issues @PoltclCassandra]

There's no drinking water in Sargodha. The acidic water from the ground & gutter has led to skin and eyes infections. We can hardly wash our faces let alone shower or cook. Please help us.

[AAUP-AFT at UT Austin @aaup_utAustin]

After the police left, the students reclaimed their campus and gathered together for the planned peaceful teach-in. The massive police presence and arrest of dozens of students was so unnecessary.

[Sarah Eleazar @SarahEleazar]

These folks have made an incredibly brave video on why the very use of blasphemy law is misuse of the law. Kudos to you all and please watch this and educate those need it.

#talkabout295c

https://t.co/jWQgSgXWxA

[Sarah Eleazar @SarahEleazar]

After the Bahawalpur church attack, the Musharraf led government announced police protection for church services. With the caveat: if you turn against the govt, we will withdraw protections. Police protection didn't stop Youhanabad or All Saints Church attack but protests stopped

[Sarah Eleazar @SarahEleazar]

demand abolition of the law anymore and why asking for its abolition had become the same as committing blasphemy. Turns out that religious minorities in Pakistan were demanding abolition of this law up until the first terrorist attacks on churches in 2001.

[Sarah Eleazar @SarahEleazar]

The first protest I ever went to was in 1998 after Bishop John Joseph shot himself in protest against the blasphemy law, and I remember the streets rang with shouts of "ay c-yaan b-yaan band karo" (end 295-c and 295-b). In 2015, I asked Bishop Samuel Azariah why christians didnt