An Alternative Narrative of the World

Broken Lives of Fukushima by Damir Sagolj

(via)

As he visited the area around Japan’s stricken Fukushima nuclear plant last month, photographer Damir Sagolj saw towns and villages that had been abandoned and met people whose lives had been irrevocably changed by the disaster of March 11, 2011. 

Inside the exclusion zone around the plant, Sagolj found a scene he likened to “a silent horror movie.” But amidst the carnage and the deserted houses he found one man who had defied the order to leave.

Keigo Sakamoto, a farmer and former caregiver for the mentally disabled, is considered a lunatic by some and a hero by others, Sagolj says. Sakamoto refused to evacuate, stayed inside the zone and made animals his mission. He ventured into empty towns and villages and collected a veritable Noah’s Ark of animals — dogs, cats, rabbits, chickens, even marmots — abandoned by former owners when they left.

"There are no neighbours," says Sakamoto. "I’m the only one here but I’m here to stay." Of his 21 dogs, only two are friendly to man. One is called Atom, a super-cute white mutt, named because it was born just before the nuclear disaster struck.

Sakamoto lives with more than 500 animals in his mountain ranch near Naraha, in a scene Sagolj says is more reminiscent of experimental theater than modern Japan. With donations and support from outside Fukushima, he lives with his animals of which many were abandoned by previous owners as they left the exclusion zone. 

Rio’s Anarchists Rioted in Support of Teachers

The idea of anarchists rioting their angry hearts out on behalf of schoolteachers is a pretty weird one, but that’s exactly what happened in Rio on Monday. Educators working in the city’s municipal school system have been on strike since August 8, demanding improved career options and salaries. In response, Mayor Eduardo Paes formed a commission to discuss how to deal with the demands of the teachers, who said they’d remain on strike until the government announced their plans on October 1.

The city’s proposal was, of course, crap, and would only have benefited around seven percent of the city’s teachers. So, the day the bill was up for a vote, the teachers met at city hall—where the ballot was taking place behind closed doors—and tried to smash their way into the building.

Things got out of hand. In footage that made its way onto the internet afterward, riot police were seen attacking old ladies. Other cops were caught planting incriminating evidence. One member of Rio’s notoriously volatile law enforcement squad took to Facebook to post a picture of a broken police stick, with the caption “foi mal, fessor” (or “too bad, teach”).

The media, sympathizers on social networks, and the anarchist black blocs have not forgiven the mistakes the cops made that day, so a pro-teacher rally was called for this Monday. Setting off from Rio Branco Avenue in downtown Rio, an estimated 50,000 people made their way back to city hall. Again, protesters tried to break their way into the building and again the whole thing ended up in a huge violent confrontation with Rio police. Protesters used sticks, stones, and Molotov cocktails. Police used tear gas and rubber bullets. Though the march had started peacefully, by the time the dust had settled one officer was seriously injured, tens of thousands of dollars worth of damage was done, and 18 protesters were arrested.

And some buses were on fire. In Brazil, the buses always get it bad.

Weirdly, the city hall—which, along with local banks and consulates, bore the brunt of the damage—was undefended at the time the protest march reached it. This has sparked conspiratorial rumors that the city wanted the protesters to do as much damage as possible in order to get public opinion back on their side.

For now, the teachers remain on strike and it’s likely they’ll be back on to the streets sometime soon.

Solicited, then rejected by The New York Times - Quickly share before it’s taken down. 

Blumenthal’s documentary on the treatment of Africans in Israel.