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Sex trafficking is a prominent human rights issue that has been increasingly associated with the hosting of large-scale sport events. Despite insufficient evidence demonstrating a causal or correlative link, event stakeholders have implemented antitrafficking efforts in attempts to prevent and promote awareness of sex trafficking. Using Google Trends data to measure audiences' information-seeking behavior online and Twitter data as a proxy for antitrafficking efforts on social media, we employed a difference-in-differences approach to estimate the change in online demand for sex-trafficking information among the residents of Miami-Dade, the host city of Super Bowl LIV (54). Findings highlight an increase in the online demand for sex-trafficking information in the host city during and after the event. This increased demand attributed to the Super Bowl may offer support for host communities utilizing sport events to promote awareness of pressing social issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to determine factors associated with participation of community-dwelling older Australians (≥65 years) in the Exercise Right for Active Ageing program, consisting of 12 low- to moderate-intensity group exercise classes, delivered weekly, in person or online, by accredited exercise scientists and physiologists across Australia. Out of 6,949 participants recruited, 6,626 (95%) attended one or more classes and were included in the primary analysis, and 49% of participants attended all 12 classes. Factors associated with higher class attendance included participation in yoga/flexibility/mobility classes, attendance at a free trial class (adjusted incidence rate ratio [95% confidence interval]: 1.05 [1.03, 1.08]), and attending online classes (1.19 [1.11, 1.26]). Factors associated with lower class attendance included state of residence, living in inner regional areas (0.95 [0.93, 0.98]), and having two or more comorbidities (0.97 [0.95, 0.99]). High class attendance suggests that the Exercise Right for Active Ageing program was well received by older Australians, particularly in states less impacted by COVID-19 lockdowns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Authoritarian states are often vulnerable to naming and shaming for their human rights abuses. This paper shows that China uses its economic clout to influence United Nations (UN) member states overseeing its human rights reviews, shielding itself from severe criticisms within the UN system. I argue that paying for lenient reviews is possible, but its effectiveness depends on the extent to which reviewing states prioritize economic benefits over normative principles. Using text-based coding of over 90,000 UN Universal Periodic Review reports, I demonstrate that countries with strong economic ties to China through Chinese overseas development projects tend to offer more lenient reviews of China’s human rights record. This effect, however, is conditional: it is pronounced in “middle” countries whose stance on human rights norms is neither too aligned with nor too distant from China's. Another “distant” group, which is furthest from China’s human rights vision, is resistant to providing lenient reviews in return for economic favors. Contrary to the conventional belief that human rights monitoring mechanisms are deeply politicized, I find that the peer-review monitoring system does have normative resilience: that commitments to democratic values and human rights matter. There is a nuanced interplay between economic interests and norms in states’ interactions: authoritarian great powers using economic incentives in exchange for favorable human rights reviews do not always succeed in doing so.

The goal of this study was to extend the contemporary athlete activism literature by (a) exploring athlete activism beyond a strictly North American context and (b) examining how athlete activism at an organizational/institutional level (i.e., sport organization) may be framed differently than activist efforts at an individual level (i.e., athlete). By examining two examples of activism in German soccer, we show that the framing of both athlete-enacted and organization-enacted examples of activism highlighted the importance of speaking up when human rights are violated, called for the display of solidarity, and discussed the broader political implications for such protests. Additionally, framing of both examples of activism included voices of criticism regarding the sport organizations governing global sport. As calls for accountability of sport organizations suppressing athlete expression are becoming increasingly common in global sport, this study adds to a shifting focus of activism research targeting the sport institutions that often perpetuate the various injustices individual athletes call attention to. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

October 7, 2023 brought the Palestinian liberation struggle to the forefront of international politics. Western colonial and imperial powers, led by the US, immediately came to the defense of the [...]

Fourth World knowledge systems vary widely but in the contemporary international environment, nations may be seen as engaging neighboring nations, states and international institutions with differing capacities. Understanding the different [...]