On the 27th of September 2025 a huge amount of protests took place across Morocco, with observers even calling this the largest youth led social mobilisation in over a decade. A youthful, loosely led movement called “GenZ212” gathered hundreds of thousands of young Moroccans from many places like Tangier, Rabat, Agadir, and so many more. 

What could have triggered this national occurrence? 

Well, it was reported that eight different pregnant women died in a very short span in Agadir’s regional hospital, with the main contribution  to neglect and poor infrastructure; the movement then rallied around the slogan: ‘Stadiums are here, but where are the hospitals?” (Haouari).

And it runs deeper than this.

Young Moroccans have faced high unemployment, especially from all of the recent graduates. This limited social mobility and growing frustration with what young Moroccans see as governance that prioritizes prestige projects over everyday services (Moutii). 

The Stance of the Younger Generation

While GenZ212 has gathered Moroccans and takes a strong approach towards these protests, they are also harnessing technology.

Protests are across large social platforms like Discord, Tiktok, and Instagram. A reporter noted: “When a generation born in the digital age stops swapping memes and instead mobilizes en masse to declare ‘enough is enough,’ it warrants serious attention” (Ruck). 

This indeed does catch great attention because it would seem unlikely that such a younger group would be the ones standing up for such a serious time. 

Also, some younger rap artists have stood up for what is happening in Morocco, using their platforms to stand up for their country. This takes a dramatic turn, as the government goes from denying constant protests, and using lethal force and military tactics to respond to GenZ212’s uprising. 

Nevertheless, the protests have had some positive gains. For example, the Royal Gendarmerie announced a budget increase for health and education (reported to be a 16% increase) and new legislation aimed to encourage participation in politics, from both youth and women (Agbetiloye).

Although, it is still uncertain whether there will actually be change in Moroccan healthcare and education, or if it was just a false announcement that will further erode any trust the people of Morocco have for their government leaders. 

Stated by one analyst: “For a generation raised on promises of amelioration, the protests seem to be less about a breakdown of stability than they represent an erosion of faith in gradualism” (Zarhloule).

Voices that come from the streets:

• A youth participant - “Violence is exactly what we have to avoid” (Aublanc). 

• A protester, 27 years old, said - “Their reforms will take years” (Aublanc).  

The moment of truth: The protests that were launched on 27th ofSeptember 2025 are not just some other episode of unrest; they reflect a broader generational reckoning. With young Moroccans digitally connected, socially aware of what's happening, and impatient for change, they demand not only improved services but a recalibration of how their country chooses its path. 

The path set forward for Morocco is fraught. Will it be able to deliver tangible service - improvements? Will political reform follow? Will repression undermine hopes and deepen attention? 

As a Human Rights Watch reporter put it: “Morocco’s youth are voicing their dissent over the state of healthcare and education in the country. The government should heed protesters’ calls and replace repressive  tactics with public engagement and wide ranging reforms” (ZefZafi ).

For now, the streets across Morocco roar with a new voice, connected, impatient, and unafraid to ask the big question: Whose Morocco is currently being built, and for who? 

Works Cited

Adekunle Agbetiloye. “Morocco Plans $15 Billion Boost for Health and Education after Weeks of Youth Protests.” Business Insider Africa, 20 Oct. 2025, africa.businessinsider.com/local/markets/morocco-plans-dollar15-billion-boost-for-health-and-education-after-weeks-of-youth/7s7v461.

Aublanc, Alexandre and Simon Roger. “Morocco Rocked by Gen Z Uprising: “We Are the Youth, We Are Not Parasites.”” Le Monde.fr, Le Monde, 3 Oct. 2025, www.lemonde.fr/en/le-monde-africa/article/2025/10/03/morocco-rocked-by-gen-z-uprising-we-are-the-youth-we-are-not-parasites_6746051_124.html.

Eljechtimi, Ahmed. “Morocco to Boost Health, Education Spending to $15 Billion in 2026.” 

Reuters, 19 Oct. 2025, www.reuters.com/world/africa/morocco-boost-health-education-spending-15-bln-2026-2025-10-19/.

Haouari, Meissa “Morocco’s Youth Protests and the Limits of Its Governance Formula.” 

Middle East Council on Global Affairs, https://mecouncil.org/blog_posts/moroccos-youth-protests-and-the-limits-of-its-governance-formula/. Accessed 17 Dec. 2025.

Moutii, Mohamed. “Gen Z Takes the Streets: Morocco’s New Generation Demands Reform.” IREF Europe EN, 17 Dec. 2025, en.irefeurope.org/publications/online-articles/article/17-12-gen-z-takes-the-streets-moroccos-new-generation-demands-reform/. Accessed 7 Jan. 2026.

“Morocco: Protests Met with Repression, Violence.” Human Rights Watch, 15 Oct. 2025, www.hrw.org/news/2025/10/15/morocco-protests-met-with-repression-violence.

Metz, Sam, and Akram Oubachir. “Gen Z Protests Are Shaking Morocco. Here’s What to Know.” AP News, 4 Oct. 2025, apnews.com/article/morocco-gen-z-protests-king-explainer-106e99e49835fca17da9d1ee411b78f5.

Ruck, Isabel  “Morocco’s Gen Z Protests: A New Form of Opposition?” Arab Center Washington DC, 29 Oct. 2025, arabcenterdc.org/resource/moroccos-gen-z-protests-a-new-form-of-opposition/.

Zarhloule, Yasmine. “Understanding Morocco’s GenZ Uprising.” Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 24 Oct. 2025, carnegieendowment.org/middle-east/diwan/2025/10/moroccos-genz-uprising?lang=en.

ZefZafi , Nasser. “Morocco: Protests Met with Repression, Violence.” Human Rights Watch, 15 Oct. 2025, www.hrw.org/news/2025/10/15/morocco-protests-met-with-repression-violence.

Greenland, the largest island on earth, was discovered by Erik The Red in 982 Ad. Erik the Red was a Norwegian viking who was banished from his country and sailed east to find a new home discovering a rocky icy island with a harsh and cold climate, Greenland. Since its beginning Greenland had always been a civilization of people who were hard nosed and independent. However, the people ever since their colonization by the Danish in 1500 have never had this independence or the choice to reclaim it for themselves.

Danish Colonization

The Danes arrived in Greenland in the early 16th century with the goal of adding the island to their already existing neighbor colony of Iceland. They quickly took control of the island because of the low population of the few settlements existing on the island and claimed it as their territory. Denmark has never relinquished this control even as the island's population has grown over recent years, and the island  retained its unique cultural identity as a strong society due to their incredibly challenging environmental conditions being located near the North Pole. But even with recent rights granted to Greenland by Denmark allowing the island to govern itself, it is still ultimately a colony of Denmark. But the biggest threat to Greenlandic independence is not Denmark, it is the United States.

American Involvement

The United States involvement in Greenland has been most relevant in recent years with the pressure from president Donland Trump in both his first and now his second term in office; however, the nation has had interest in Denmark dating back to the mid 1800s. After the US bought Alaska from Russia, the country turned East and sought to purchase Greenland to establish another Arctic colony in the region, but the country was denied this sale by Denmark. Later in the early 1900s the US offered a swap of territories to Denmark in exchange for Greenland, the US would give Denmark its own territory of the Philippines, but yet again, the Danish denied the sale. But once WW2 began and the Danish found themselves on the borders of Nazi Germany and after a swift surrender to Germany, the United States quickly took control of Greenland for protection from Germany establishing a military outpost on the island. Once again a purchase was offered after the war concluded, but once again Denmark refused a sale. The issue of the US buying Denmark  began to fade out of relevance in the mind of the nation until the election of Donald Trump in 2016.

Donald Trump's Pressure

Once elected to office in 2016, Donald Trump expressed significant interest in the purchase of Greenland from Denmark because of its natural resources and its strategic location in the Arctic circle. Denmark repeatedly refused any sale despite adamant pressure placed on the nation by the US throughout president Trump's first term. Donland Trump would be reelected to office in 2024 and following his reelection, Trump made another state showing interest in the island, and as expected, Denmark denied the sale. But in early 2026, following the US capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, the US continued to attempt and use military force for its own gain by applying pressure to Denmark instead of economically with a sale but militarily.

The Dangers of an Escalation

Denmark and the United States are both members of the alliance Nato, an organization designed to protect its members from outside threats and if once a nation without the alliance is attacked all are meant to support them. Trump placing a military threat on Denmark threatens the unity of the alliance which is integral at a time in which nations like Ukraine are dependent on NATO for their defense in their ongoing war with Russia as NATO supplies Ukraine with military equipment and via sanctions on Russia. Trump towards the end of his previous term has mentioned the possibility of the United States leaving NATO due to his perception that the alliance members were not evenly supporting the alliance with the US and this escalation is a continuation of this issue. Ultimately, however, the detail most lost in this complex story is the perspective of the people of Greenland.

Greenland's Perspective 

In the past several years, several surveys of the people of Greenland have been administered to give voice to their. 85% of Greenlandic citizens are against US control while 51% want independence from Denmark. The island has autonomy from Denmark and the Danish government gave approval to Greenland to declare independence if a majority of its citizens were in favor. This referendum has not occurred yet as the island is currently still being threatened by the US and in another poll nearly 50% of Greenland citizens view the US as a threat to their society. The people of Greenland are relatively small in number due to its climate, but these people want their own society and their own control over their land and not to be a colony. With all of the political disputes occurring around their island, it is important to remember the perspective of the people who live there and remember that it is their land and it is their choice what happens to it.

Tensions Cooled

After about a month of tensions regarding Greenland and the U.S, NATO finally took a stern position on the United States aggression towards a member of the alliance and placed the threat of sanctions on the U.S Subsequently, the stock market plummeted and Donald Trump relaxed on the possibility of any military pressure. While political pressure is still being applied on Denmark by the U.S, it's clear that for now Greenland and its people are  safe  from being colonized once again.

Works Cited

Harvey, Lex. “The US Has Tried to Acquire Greenland before – and Failed.” CNN, 7 Jan. 2026, www.cnn.com/2026/01/07/politics/us-greenland-trump-denmark-history-hnk.

Ott, Haley, and Tucker Reals. “Why Does Trump Want Greenland to Be Part of the U.S.?” Cbsnews.com, 6 Jan. 2026, www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-greenland-why-does-he-want-denmark-territory-as-part-of-us/.

Ronald, Issy. “Why Does Trump Want Greenland and Why Is It so Important?” CNN, 6 Jan. 2026, www.cnn.com/2026/01/06/europe/why-trump-wants-greenland-importance-intl.

“85% of Greenlanders Don’t Want Their Island to Become Part of the U.S., Poll Finds.” Cbsnews.com, CBS News, 29 Jan. 2025, www.cbsnews.com/news/greenland-residents-reject-trump-idea-to-be-part-of-us-poll-shows/.

Haiti, the lowest income country in the Western Hemisphere, has endured decades of crises caused by both human actions and natural disasters (Council on Foreign Relations, 2023). A crisis that intensified with fuel shortages in 2018 has since spiraled into political instability, escalating violence, and the deadliest period in the country’s recent history (ACAPS, 2024). Today, roughly half of Haiti’s population requires humanitarian assistance (Coto, 2024; UNICEF, 2024).

Despite growing needs, international humanitarian funding has fallen short, worsening already dire conditions (World Food Programme, 2024b). Understanding how Haiti reached this point requires examining the political, economic, and social forces that have shaped the country over the past several years. The current emergency can be traced back to March 2018, when Venezuela stopped exporting oil to Haiti (Council on Foreign Relations, 2023). Soon after, the Haitian government eliminated fuel subsidies, triggering price increases of up to 50 percent and sparking widespread protests that often turned violent (ACAPS, 2024). By late 2019, the country entered a prolonged lockdown that severely restricted movement, disrupted humanitarian access, and deepened food insecurity (ACAPS, 2024).

The assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021 further destabilized the country, intensifying political uncertainty and accelerating the rise of armed groups, particularly in Port-au-Prince (Mandel, 2021). By 2023, the departure of Haiti’s last democratically elected officials created a power vacuum that allowed violence to spread nationwide (Council on Foreign Relations, 2023). By 2024, Haiti experienced its most violent year in recent history, with thousands killed and hundreds of thousands displaced, according to international estimates (Albert, 2024a; Albert, 2024b).

The severity of Haiti’s crisis is closely tied to long standing poverty. Nearly 60 percent of the population lives below the poverty line, a condition shaped by centuries of economic exploitation and instability (Council on Foreign Relations, 2023). After gaining independence from France in 1804, Haiti was forced to pay enormous reparations for diplomatic recognition, payments that drained the national budget for more than a century and required high interest foreign loans (Le Monde, 2022).

This prolonged cycle of debt weakened governance and economic development, leaving many Haitians without access to education, stable employment, or basic social services (Council on Foreign Relations, 2023). Poverty has been passed from one generation to the next, compounding the impact of today’s crisis. Hunger has reached unprecedented levels across the country. More than five million people face acute food insecurity, with thousands experiencing famine-like conditions (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations & World Food Programme, 2024; World Food Programme, 2024b). While recent violence and inflation have intensified the crisis, its roots stretch back decades.

Until the 1980s, Haiti was largely self-sufficient in food production. Trade liberalization policies in the 1990s dramatically reduced agricultural protections, flooding local markets with imported goods and devastating domestic farming (Council on Foreign Relations, 2023). Today, Haiti relies heavily on food imports, leaving it especially vulnerable to price shocks (FAO & WFP, 2024). Inflation has made basic meals unaffordable for many households, placing Haiti among the most food insecure countries in the world (Albert, 2024a). Ongoing violence has severely damaged infrastructure and public services. Homes, water systems, healthcare facilities, and sanitation networks have been repeatedly targeted (ACAPS, 2024). Nearly half the population lacks access to clean drinking water, and fewer than 40 percent of health facilities in Port-au-Prince remain operational (UNICEF, 2024). Shortages of medicine and medical supplies are common, and natural disasters would be catastrophic under these conditions (ACAPS, 2024).

Beyond physical destruction, the crisis has eroded social cohesion. Displacement has fractured communities, forcing families into unfamiliar areas without support systems or a sense of security (Albert, 2024b). With limited state capacity and few safety nets, many Haitians are left to navigate these hardships alone, pushing communities toward desperation (ACAPS, 2024). Despite the scale of suffering, humanitarian organizations working in Haiti emphasize that long term stability is still possible. Preventing future violence and supporting the most vulnerable are widely seen as essential to breaking cycles of instability (UNICEF, 2024). Without access to education, healthcare, and protection, younger generations risk inheriting violence as their only means of survival (Council on Foreign Relations, 2023).

Considering the depth and duration of Haiti’s crisis, there is still reason for hope. Haiti’s history is also a history of resilience, one that has survived exploitation, violence, neglect and countless other crises. Haiti has the potential to move beyond survival toward recovery. I believe that hope for Haiti’s future lies in empowering its people to rebuild their country on their own terms.  

Works Cited

ACAPS. (2024). “Haiti: Humanitarian access and displacement analysis.” https://www.acaps.org/en/countries/haiti 

Albert, J. H. (2024a, January 25). “Haiti hunger crisis worsens as violence disrupts” foodsupplies.Reuters.https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/haiti-hunger-crisis-worsens-violence-disrupts-food-supplies-2024-01-25/ 

Albert, J. H. (2024b, March 22). “Haiti violence displaces hundreds of thousands as gangs tighten grip.” Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/haiti-violence-displaces-hundreds-thousands-gangs-tighten-grip-2024-03-22/ 

Coto, D. (2024, April 4). “Nearly half of Haitians need humanitarian aid as violence surges.” Associated Press. https://apnews.com/article/haiti-violence-humanitarian-crisis-un-children-aid 

Council on Foreign Relations. (2023). Haiti’s troubled path to development. https://www.cfr.org/backgrounders/haitis-troubled-path-development 

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, & World Food Programme. (2024). “Haiti: Food security and instability analysis.” https://www.fightfoodcrises.net 

Le Monde. (2022, May 20). “The long shadow of Haiti’s independence debt.”

https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2022/05/20/the-long-shadow-of-haitis-independence-debt_5984299_4.html 

Mandel, J. (2021, July 7). “Haitian President Jovenel Moïse assassinated, deepening instability.” Reuters. 

https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/haitian-president-jovenel-moise-killed-home-2021-07-07/ 

United Nations Children’s Fund. (2024). “Haiti humanitarian situation report.”

https://www.unicef.org/emergencies/haiti-crisis 

World Food Programme. (2024a). “Funding shortfalls worsen hunger crisis in Haiti.”

https://www.wfp.org/news/haiti-brink-violence-cuts-capital-pushing-families-towards-starvation 

World Food Programme. (2024b). “Haiti emergency overview.”

https://www.wfp.org/countries/haiti