It’s no secret that civic education in middle school has virtually disappeared in this 21st century as STEM has taken precedence. It is a secret though that there are still thousands of middle school teachers across the country who are investing their time, talents and energy to cultivate 21st century citizens in the classroom and beyond. This should be a secret no more. That is why, on October 18, the Frank Islam Institute for 21st Century Citizenship (FII), in collaboration with … [Read more...]
Articles
Frank blogs regularly for the Huffington Post and writes occasional columns and articles for publications such as the International Business Times and The Economic Times of India.
Frank writes on a wide variety of topics that are critical to shaping the future of America and the American dream and to making the United States and the world a better place. These include: Business; education; poverty and inequality; politics and public policy; immigration; manufacturing; innovation; leadership; citizenship; and social commentary.
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Growing the Indian economy would need bold reforms
Before returning to New Delhi recently after attending the annual IMF-World fall meeting, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman provided an upbeat perspective on the Indian economy. She asserted that its fundamentals are strong and attributed the majority of the problems ailing the Indian economy to a global slowdown. In the same time period, the World Bank announced that India had jumped 14 spots from 77th to 63rd on its Ease of Doing Business ranking. Together, these indicators might … [Read more...]
Why the US-China trade war has not helped India | Analysis
The long-standing trade disputes between the United States (US) and China turned into a full-blown war last year, with each country slapping tit-for-tat tariffs on goods imported from the other. Predictably, economic hostilities between the world’s two largest economies rattled global markets. However, a few countries in China’s neighbourhood saw opportunities in the trade war between the two giants, with India being one of them. Several economists and analysts predicted that India … [Read more...]
Thoughts on job creation in Pakistan
Pakistan is in a tough recessional period. Job creation is essential to ending this recession. This is why many citizens were surprised when Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawwad Chaudhry asked the people not to look to the government for jobs stating that it is the private sector’s responsibility to provide employment. If this must be the case, the questions become how many jobs must be created and what can the public and private sector do in partnership to ensure the … [Read more...]
MAKE TRADE, NOT WAR
…trade wars are good, and easy to win. That was part of a Donald Trump tweet on March 2, 2018. As usual, the President was wrong on both counts. With this tweet he was either displaying his ignorance, which is transcendent. Or once again making false or misleading claims, which the Washington Post reports that as of October 13, he had done nearly 13,500 times in the 993 days he has been in office. Whichever, the consequences of Trump’s trade wars … [Read more...]
The USA : A Republic If You Can Keep It
A republic, if you can keep it. This is reported to be Benjamin Franklin’s answer to a lady who asked him as he departed from Independence Hall at the end of the Constitutional Convention, “Well, Doctor, what have we got — a republic or a monarchy?” Franklin’s response has been used occasionally during Donald Trump’s tenure as President. It is being invoked more frequently now, as Trump’s recent monarchial-type mutterings and meanderings surrounding his invitation to Ukraine to … [Read more...]
Our Not So United Nations
In the period between September 17 and September 30, most of the 193 U.N. member state countries convened in a General Assembly of the United Nations. At the Assembly, they engaged in discussion, dialogue and debate on a wide range of topics such as development, peace and security, and international law. Since it was established, the U.N. has achieved major success on a number of fronts but the results in peace-keeping and conflict resolution have been mixed. Given this, it is … [Read more...]
Modi’s US visit: But is it Mission Accomplished?
Modi''s US visit: But is it Mission Accomplished? Prime Minister Narendra Modi has returned home to India from his six-day visit to the US to reach out to the Indian American community, buttress US-India trade relations, speak in a number of forums, hold meetings with country and business leaders to reassure to encourage and promote investment in India. And do all of this while avoiding or minimizing speaking about Kashmir. Based upon the results, it must be concluded that the … [Read more...]
India needs a unifying nationalism
In his Independence Day speech on August 15 this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi proclaimed, "One nation, one constitution -- this spirit has become a reality and India is proud of it." Prime Minister Modi is correct when he says that "one nation, one constitution" should be the goal for the Indian democracy. He may not be so correct, however, when he states "this spirit has become a reality." Achieving the goal of "one nation" requires a unifying … [Read more...]
Remarks by Frank F. Islam at the concluding ceremony of DCSAFF : September 22, 2019
Thank you, Sanjay for that great introduction! Thank you, Manoj and Geeta, for your leadership. Both of you provide the example and set the standard. Both of you are difference makers. You have done a terrific job in founding and sustaining it. Let us give them a big round of applause. This is the fifth DC South Asian Film Festival (DCSAFF) closing ceremony in which I have participated. Thank you Manoj and Geeta for inviting me to deliver the closing remarks again. It’s wonderful to be … [Read more...]