The Polis Project
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NY-based digital magazine documenting communities in resistance at the intersection of politics, art & culture. 501(c)(3)
Watch the complete conversation here:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiXj...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiXj...
Technologies Of Genocide X Abdullahi Halakhe
YouTube video by THE POLIS PROJECT
www.youtube.com
November 14, 2025 at 1:06 PM
Watch the complete conversation here:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiXj...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiXj...
“My job is not to give despair a chance...Revolutions are hard, but revolutions must happen. We need countries that build people, not just flags and passports.”
November 14, 2025 at 1:06 PM
“My job is not to give despair a chance...Revolutions are hard, but revolutions must happen. We need countries that build people, not just flags and passports.”
By the end, the conversation returned to where many conversations reside: history as a site of liberation. Despite a grim accounting of violence and exploitation, we refused fatalism. We rarely end with radical hope—this time we did.
November 14, 2025 at 1:06 PM
By the end, the conversation returned to where many conversations reside: history as a site of liberation. Despite a grim accounting of violence and exploitation, we refused fatalism. We rarely end with radical hope—this time we did.
The technologies of extraction and control in places like DRC are not contained within national borders but rather travel globally, as they are tested in one conflict zone and then deployed elsewhere. The same is true for knowledge. The refusal to forget suffering is a form of resisting.
November 14, 2025 at 1:06 PM
The technologies of extraction and control in places like DRC are not contained within national borders but rather travel globally, as they are tested in one conflict zone and then deployed elsewhere. The same is true for knowledge. The refusal to forget suffering is a form of resisting.
Similarly, Qatar brokered the recent peace agreement between Rwanda and the DRC, which includes a minerals-for-security deal that links economic access to resources with security cooperation. Private security providers is playing a key role in protecting Silicon Valley-backed mining interests.
November 14, 2025 at 1:06 PM
Similarly, Qatar brokered the recent peace agreement between Rwanda and the DRC, which includes a minerals-for-security deal that links economic access to resources with security cooperation. Private security providers is playing a key role in protecting Silicon Valley-backed mining interests.
“The biggest malign actor in the region is the UAE.” From “gold leaving Sudan” and “militias recycled from one war to the next,” the Gulf states play an influential role in shaping extraction and violence. "Lift the bonnet and you see a rotten system built on Sudanese blood.”
November 14, 2025 at 1:06 PM
“The biggest malign actor in the region is the UAE.” From “gold leaving Sudan” and “militias recycled from one war to the next,” the Gulf states play an influential role in shaping extraction and violence. "Lift the bonnet and you see a rotten system built on Sudanese blood.”
Rwanda plays a pivotal role in the exploitation of minerals in eastern DRC. The M23 controls large territories rich in coltan, gold, and cobalt. Rwanda’s official exports of minerals far exceed what the country can produce domestically: “Exports are listed that geology cannot justify.”
November 14, 2025 at 1:06 PM
Rwanda plays a pivotal role in the exploitation of minerals in eastern DRC. The M23 controls large territories rich in coltan, gold, and cobalt. Rwanda’s official exports of minerals far exceed what the country can produce domestically: “Exports are listed that geology cannot justify.”
DRC’s latest cycle of mass violence is inexplicably linked to the Rwandan genocide and its aftermath. The genocide also provided Rwanda a political shield to assert a “right to self-defense” that justifies backing of proxies like the M23 rebel group in DRC.
November 14, 2025 at 1:06 PM
DRC’s latest cycle of mass violence is inexplicably linked to the Rwandan genocide and its aftermath. The genocide also provided Rwanda a political shield to assert a “right to self-defense” that justifies backing of proxies like the M23 rebel group in DRC.
DRC has witnessed multiple cycles of mass and genocidal violence for over a hundred years. DRC’s minerals are extracted at the cost of human lives. Halakhe notes: “For a very long time, exploration and exploitation have gone hand in hand in Congo.”
November 14, 2025 at 1:06 PM
DRC has witnessed multiple cycles of mass and genocidal violence for over a hundred years. DRC’s minerals are extracted at the cost of human lives. Halakhe notes: “For a very long time, exploration and exploitation have gone hand in hand in Congo.”
Technologies of Genocide began as a way to make sense of the present moment when genocidal violence are unleashed not only on the Palestinian people, but are also reproduced and replicated across the world. As we turn our attention to the DRC, it is essential to acknowledge the genocide in Sudan.
November 14, 2025 at 1:06 PM
Technologies of Genocide began as a way to make sense of the present moment when genocidal violence are unleashed not only on the Palestinian people, but are also reproduced and replicated across the world. As we turn our attention to the DRC, it is essential to acknowledge the genocide in Sudan.
Read 'Patterns of Erasure: How India’s Mosques and Islamic Shrines are Systematically Targeted' by Nikita Jain and Nayla Khwaja: thepolisproject.com/read/india-m...
How India’s Mosques Are Systematically Targeted
The demolition or contestation of Islamic structures through legal mechanisms or public mobilisation is often done to reclaim ‘Hindu heritage’.
thepolisproject.com
November 14, 2025 at 11:24 AM
Read 'Patterns of Erasure: How India’s Mosques and Islamic Shrines are Systematically Targeted' by Nikita Jain and Nayla Khwaja: thepolisproject.com/read/india-m...
The deliberate erasure of such sacred spaces fragments the community’s religious collective memory. The systematic targeting of mosques and mazars is about memory. The Hindutva project accelerates the erasure of Muslims in an effort to rewrite the nation’s past to secure its majoritarian future.
November 14, 2025 at 11:24 AM
The deliberate erasure of such sacred spaces fragments the community’s religious collective memory. The systematic targeting of mosques and mazars is about memory. The Hindutva project accelerates the erasure of Muslims in an effort to rewrite the nation’s past to secure its majoritarian future.
The fate of mazars and dargahs are worse, demolished by vigilantes or “anti-encroachment drives”. A demolition drive in Delhi between 2023 and 2024 razed more than 15 dargahs. While, the Uttarakhand government bulldozed more than 300 mazars. Historian Rana Safvi calls this an “erasure of history”.
November 14, 2025 at 11:24 AM
The fate of mazars and dargahs are worse, demolished by vigilantes or “anti-encroachment drives”. A demolition drive in Delhi between 2023 and 2024 razed more than 15 dargahs. While, the Uttarakhand government bulldozed more than 300 mazars. Historian Rana Safvi calls this an “erasure of history”.
An analysis of 25 targeted mosques across the country shows that 13 are ASI-protected sites, and one is a historically significant but non-protected structure. According to a Waqf volunteer, 38 mosques and religious structures in Delhi alone have been targeted in legal or administrative proceedings.
November 14, 2025 at 11:24 AM
An analysis of 25 targeted mosques across the country shows that 13 are ASI-protected sites, and one is a historically significant but non-protected structure. According to a Waqf volunteer, 38 mosques and religious structures in Delhi alone have been targeted in legal or administrative proceedings.
According to official documents till early 2025, 58 mosques were under dispute. Supreme Court Advocate Ali Zaidi said that the loophole left by former Chief Justice DY Chandrachud is being used by these groups to file civil suits and make these sites disputed property.
November 14, 2025 at 11:24 AM
According to official documents till early 2025, 58 mosques were under dispute. Supreme Court Advocate Ali Zaidi said that the loophole left by former Chief Justice DY Chandrachud is being used by these groups to file civil suits and make these sites disputed property.
In 2022, during the hearing of the Gyanvapi Mosque petition, former Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, orally observed that Sections 3 and 4 of the Places of Worship Act, 1991, do not prohibit the “ascertainment of religious character” of any place of worship. This had serious repercussions.
November 14, 2025 at 11:24 AM
In 2022, during the hearing of the Gyanvapi Mosque petition, former Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, orally observed that Sections 3 and 4 of the Places of Worship Act, 1991, do not prohibit the “ascertainment of religious character” of any place of worship. This had serious repercussions.
What is lost are places of traditions and cultural gatherings. In Delhi, the Mandi House mazar, which was demolished by civic authorities in April 2023, was where the theatre scene buzzed. Now, instead, there is a piece of modern architecture blending the space into generic urban scenery.
November 14, 2025 at 11:24 AM
What is lost are places of traditions and cultural gatherings. In Delhi, the Mandi House mazar, which was demolished by civic authorities in April 2023, was where the theatre scene buzzed. Now, instead, there is a piece of modern architecture blending the space into generic urban scenery.
Why are Mughal-built structures especially under target? Ghazala Jamil, Assistant Professor at the Centre for the Study of Law and Governance in Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University, says:
“The Mughal Empire is more visible in India’s public culture than earlier Muslim dynasties."
“The Mughal Empire is more visible in India’s public culture than earlier Muslim dynasties."
November 14, 2025 at 11:24 AM
Why are Mughal-built structures especially under target? Ghazala Jamil, Assistant Professor at the Centre for the Study of Law and Governance in Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University, says:
“The Mughal Empire is more visible in India’s public culture than earlier Muslim dynasties."
“The Mughal Empire is more visible in India’s public culture than earlier Muslim dynasties."
The pattern of demanding erasures of mosques based on contested history can be traced back to the Ram Janambhoomi movement, led by late BJP bigwig LK Advani. The campaign sought to generate support for a proposed Ram Temple at the site of the Babri Mosque.
November 14, 2025 at 11:24 AM
The pattern of demanding erasures of mosques based on contested history can be traced back to the Ram Janambhoomi movement, led by late BJP bigwig LK Advani. The campaign sought to generate support for a proposed Ram Temple at the site of the Babri Mosque.
The deliberate demolition of these Islamic structures by invoking legal mechanisms, public mobilisation, or state machinery is often done under the garb of reclaiming ‘Hindu heritage’. In August, a Hindu right-wing group partly destroyed a mausoleum in Uttar Pradesh’s Fatehpur.
November 14, 2025 at 11:24 AM
The deliberate demolition of these Islamic structures by invoking legal mechanisms, public mobilisation, or state machinery is often done under the garb of reclaiming ‘Hindu heritage’. In August, a Hindu right-wing group partly destroyed a mausoleum in Uttar Pradesh’s Fatehpur.
Read 'Language as a Home, Not a Ladder: Vinod Kumar Shukla’s Resistance in Remaining Where He Belongs' by Poulomi Das: thepolisproject.com/read/vinod-k...
Vinod Kumar Shukla’s Quiet Resistance
Vinod Kumar Shukla boasts a distinguished oeuvre—he has written numerous volumes of poetry, several short stories, and dabbled even in children’s literature.
thepolisproject.com
November 14, 2025 at 11:15 AM
Read 'Language as a Home, Not a Ladder: Vinod Kumar Shukla’s Resistance in Remaining Where He Belongs' by Poulomi Das: thepolisproject.com/read/vinod-k...
Today, translation is not just a mode of access: it is also an act of reclamation, returning to global literature the textures and rhythms that English alone cannot hold. Perhaps that is Shukla’s greatest legacy: to show that even in translation, language can remain a home, not a departure.
November 14, 2025 at 11:15 AM
Today, translation is not just a mode of access: it is also an act of reclamation, returning to global literature the textures and rhythms that English alone cannot hold. Perhaps that is Shukla’s greatest legacy: to show that even in translation, language can remain a home, not a departure.
Similarly, the protagonists who populate his novels are invisible citizens—working-class, disenfranchized—eking out a living away from centers of power, living out each day as it comes. There’s compassion in his words for the forgotten, but never melodrama or trite existential ruminations.
November 14, 2025 at 11:15 AM
Similarly, the protagonists who populate his novels are invisible citizens—working-class, disenfranchized—eking out a living away from centers of power, living out each day as it comes. There’s compassion in his words for the forgotten, but never melodrama or trite existential ruminations.