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Based on an initiative by Richard Branson and Peter Gabriel, Nelson Mandela announced the formation of The Elders in July 2007 in Johannesburg on the occasion of his 89th birthday. Members of The Elders are: Martti Ahtisaari, Kofi Annan, Ela Bhatt, Lakhdar Brahimi, Gro Brundtland, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Jimmy Carter, Graça Machel, Mary Robinson and Desmond Tutu (Chair).

The Elders are a group of global leaders, brought together by Nelson Mandela, who use their collective experience and influence to promote peace, justice and human rights worldwide.

They include the former holders of some of the world’s most important and demanding posts, and individuals with an extraordinary track record on peace-making, reconciliation and social change.

Independent of government and no longer holding public office, the Elders are helping tackle some of the world’s most intractable problems, through both private advocacy and public work.

The Elders work strategically, focusing on areas...

Matt Groening’s long-running animated sitcom The Simpsons is known for its satirical humor, social commentary, and memorable characters. Initially premiered in 1989, it follows the lives of the dysfunctional Simpson family in the fictional town of Springfield. While the series remains an iconic part of Television history and has since become a cultural phenomenon, it has faced its share of controversy and critique.

The Simpsons

And the same was the case for the episode titled Blame It on Lisa, which follows the family on a trip to Brazil to visit an orphan whom Lisa is sponsoring. However, the series depicts the Simpson family encountering various misadventures in Rio, leading to criticism for a skewed and inaccurate depiction of Brazil.

The Simpsons Episode That Incited Outrage Across the Entire Nation of Brazil

The Season 13 episode of The Simpsons, Blame It on Lisa follows the Simpson family traveling to Brazil after they...

The following article contains discussions of suicide and sexual assault.

From revealing a beloved character to an impostor to getting sued for its false depiction of a nation’s culture, sometimes The Simpsons went too far. The Simpsons began as a series of shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show, but it quickly graduated to its own half-hour slot. Since it premiered in 1989, The Simpsons has been a renowned staple of pop culture. The Simpsons doesn’t court as much controversy as more adult-oriented shows like South Park and Family Guy, but it’s caused its fair share of offense over the years.

Some storylines on The Simpsons have been a little too dark to be funny, like Bart being abused and mistreated on a French exchange trip or Homer driving his new co-worker to insanity. A couple of details have detracted from the characters’ likability, like Homer being indirectly responsible for Maude Flanders’ death.

Exclusive: Brazilian filmmaker Fernando Grostein Andrade, a social justice and Lbgtq activist in his home nation, has made a documentary Breaking Myths, attacking the policies of Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro.

The film will be released online on September 16, and Andrade hopes to influence the upcoming elections in the south American country, taking place on October 2.

Andrade is based in California, and says he cannot return to Brazil, after receiving death threats and social media bullying for speaking out publicly against the president and his actions on LGBTQ rights, the Amazonian rainforest and other issues. Andrade believes his film might be critical in calling Bolsonaro, whom he calls “the Trump of Brazil”, from being re-elected.

Andrade previously came to global attention with his documentary Breaking the Taboo, a film exploring alternative solutions to the war on drugs, approaching it as a healthcare issue. The doc, which featured interviews with heads of state like Jimmy Carter,...

The Elders today called on global leaders and citizens alike to root their response to the Covid-19 pandemic in humanitarian principles and solidarity to save lives, defend rights and protect the most vulnerable groups in society.

The following is a statement from The Elders:

The pandemic poses an unprecedented challenge for governments, heads of state and international institutions. As former leaders, we acknowledge the fearsomely complex political, moral and economic decisions those currently in office will have to take over the coming weeks and months.

We endorse the call of the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board for at least Us$ 8 billion to be immediately injected into critical funding gaps to support the Who’s emergency response, vaccine development, timely distribution of medical supplies and other critical measures.

The G7 statement of 16 March 2020 marks a welcome first step, with leaders pledging to do “whatever is necessary to ensure a strong global response...

Richard Branson was part of a team that included Russell Brand, Julian Assange and former President of Brazil Fernando Henrique Cardoso in the first ever live global debate on ending the war on drugs this week.

Branson does not believe the current war on drugs is effective, and wants to find ways of more effectively combating drug use and drug related crime.

“We spent over two hours debating with those against ending the war on drugs, led by the remarkably erudite former governor of New York Eliot Spitzer,” he blogged following the debate. "Our side, led by Geoffrey Robertson QC, put forward a strong case for reforming outdated drug laws and, as the Global Drug Commission has recommended, trying new approaches to tackling the problems.

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