Lacuna Magazine
@lacunamagazine.bsky.social
Human rights and social justice magazine featuring creative writing, journalism and photojournalism from around the world. Based at the Centre for Human Rights in Practice. Pitches welcome www.lacuna.org.uk
Institutions such as PASS are addressing several anxieties which have been brewing across young people in the UK, many of which are now threatening to become full-blown crises.
September 2, 2026 at 11:36 AM
Institutions such as PASS are addressing several anxieties which have been brewing across young people in the UK, many of which are now threatening to become full-blown crises.
Many of the issues Walters-Nisbett saw Black children encountering when she started teaching 25 years ago are still present today: from children being stereotyped as troublemakers, to the outcomes of Black Caribbean children lagging those of their peers in secondary school.
September 2, 2026 at 11:36 AM
Many of the issues Walters-Nisbett saw Black children encountering when she started teaching 25 years ago are still present today: from children being stereotyped as troublemakers, to the outcomes of Black Caribbean children lagging those of their peers in secondary school.
Beneath Mariama's journey lie memories of a childhood she needed to escape but has not yet found the words to speak about. Her story is one among thousands of unaccompanied minors who survived one of the world’s deadliest migration routes from the West African coast to Spain’s Canary Islands.
July 30, 2026 at 11:12 AM
Beneath Mariama's journey lie memories of a childhood she needed to escape but has not yet found the words to speak about. Her story is one among thousands of unaccompanied minors who survived one of the world’s deadliest migration routes from the West African coast to Spain’s Canary Islands.
Her father, who she describes as her ‘hero’ paid a smuggler approximately 60,000 Gambian dalasi — roughly £615 to take her to the Canary Islands. Every day, bodies disappear into the Atlantic — children, teenagers, men and women, swallowed by one of the world’s deadliest migration routes.
July 30, 2026 at 11:12 AM
Her father, who she describes as her ‘hero’ paid a smuggler approximately 60,000 Gambian dalasi — roughly £615 to take her to the Canary Islands. Every day, bodies disappear into the Atlantic — children, teenagers, men and women, swallowed by one of the world’s deadliest migration routes.
Mariama had left her home country, The Gambia, aged 16, crossed into Senegal, and boarded a wooden fishing boat carrying 182 people. It was her first time at sea. “People on the boat kept noticing me, that little girl there. But I was not scared,” she says.
July 30, 2026 at 11:12 AM
Mariama had left her home country, The Gambia, aged 16, crossed into Senegal, and boarded a wooden fishing boat carrying 182 people. It was her first time at sea. “People on the boat kept noticing me, that little girl there. But I was not scared,” she says.
Concerns about the erosion of the Palestinian identity in school curriculums also exist, with nearly 90% of all students across the region now following the Israeli syllabus.
July 15, 2026 at 9:38 AM
Concerns about the erosion of the Palestinian identity in school curriculums also exist, with nearly 90% of all students across the region now following the Israeli syllabus.
Dozens of schools run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) have been sealed off over the years, on the grounds that they were “inciting against Israel”
July 15, 2026 at 9:38 AM
Dozens of schools run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) have been sealed off over the years, on the grounds that they were “inciting against Israel”
Last year, the Israeli army launched a huge military operation in the northern West Bank, known as Iron Wall, resulting in one of the largest ever displacements of Palestinians. Around 12,000 children were forced out of refugee camps, and over 4,000 were left without access to education.
July 15, 2026 at 9:38 AM
Last year, the Israeli army launched a huge military operation in the northern West Bank, known as Iron Wall, resulting in one of the largest ever displacements of Palestinians. Around 12,000 children were forced out of refugee camps, and over 4,000 were left without access to education.
While the occupation forces impose blockades, intimidate and detain people at random, Israeli settlers arguably pose an equally – if not more – insidious threat to students, especially those living in isolated, rural regions.
July 15, 2026 at 9:38 AM
While the occupation forces impose blockades, intimidate and detain people at random, Israeli settlers arguably pose an equally – if not more – insidious threat to students, especially those living in isolated, rural regions.
Ahmad Haje, 17-year-old student from Burqa, is one of over 780,000 pupils in the West Bank fighting for their right to learn.
July 15, 2026 at 9:38 AM
Ahmad Haje, 17-year-old student from Burqa, is one of over 780,000 pupils in the West Bank fighting for their right to learn.
Since the war in Gaza began, the West Bank has been increasingly overlooked by international media, despite facing one of the largest displacement crises since 1979, leaving thousands of children out of school.
July 15, 2026 at 9:38 AM
Since the war in Gaza began, the West Bank has been increasingly overlooked by international media, despite facing one of the largest displacement crises since 1979, leaving thousands of children out of school.
Across India, authorities have been raiding and demolishing Muslim Bangladeshi migrant communities, making bulldozers one of the most visible symbols of state authority in the country.
June 25, 2026 at 11:33 AM
Across India, authorities have been raiding and demolishing Muslim Bangladeshi migrant communities, making bulldozers one of the most visible symbols of state authority in the country.
Bengali Vas wasn’t the first Muslim Bangladeshi migrant community to be reduced to rubble, and critics have questioned the legality and morality of such forced demolitions.
June 25, 2026 at 11:33 AM
Bengali Vas wasn’t the first Muslim Bangladeshi migrant community to be reduced to rubble, and critics have questioned the legality and morality of such forced demolitions.
“I have always believed that Agnes fought for her life that day — and now her fighting spirit continues through us.”
June 11, 2026 at 8:39 AM
“I have always believed that Agnes fought for her life that day — and now her fighting spirit continues through us.”
The life of her niece, Esther, has become defined by Agnes's death — a grief bound up in this enduring military presence. Already as a teenager, she had taken on the fight for justice, refusing to let the case disappear.
June 11, 2026 at 8:39 AM
The life of her niece, Esther, has become defined by Agnes's death — a grief bound up in this enduring military presence. Already as a teenager, she had taken on the fight for justice, refusing to let the case disappear.
“I feel like I’m inside a movie,” says Shatha, a refugee from Yemen. “War was my normal life so I’m now in a peaceful place.” Here, I feel safe, I feel like I can be myself. It’s where I feel welcome.”
May 7, 2026 at 8:22 AM
“I feel like I’m inside a movie,” says Shatha, a refugee from Yemen. “War was my normal life so I’m now in a peaceful place.” Here, I feel safe, I feel like I can be myself. It’s where I feel welcome.”
In Rothesay, on the Isle of Bute, she met the Fasi family, also from Syria. They run a local barber’s shop, a patisserie, and a beauty salon. One of the sons, Yahya, is a football coach with St Mirren football club, based in Paisley.
May 7, 2026 at 8:22 AM
In Rothesay, on the Isle of Bute, she met the Fasi family, also from Syria. They run a local barber’s shop, a patisserie, and a beauty salon. One of the sons, Yahya, is a football coach with St Mirren football club, based in Paisley.
In Stornoway, on the Isle of Lewis, she pictured teenager Abdullah Al Nakeeb on the beach with his brothers, Majid, aged 11, and two-year-old, Yazan, who was born in Scotland – boys from a Syrian family that arrived on the Hebridean island in 2017.
May 7, 2026 at 8:22 AM
In Stornoway, on the Isle of Lewis, she pictured teenager Abdullah Al Nakeeb on the beach with his brothers, Majid, aged 11, and two-year-old, Yazan, who was born in Scotland – boys from a Syrian family that arrived on the Hebridean island in 2017.
The psychological impact of these indefinite imprisonments is indisputable, with the United Nations Special Rapporteur on torture finding that “distress, depression and anxiety are severe for prisoners and their families.”
April 16, 2026 at 12:17 PM
The psychological impact of these indefinite imprisonments is indisputable, with the United Nations Special Rapporteur on torture finding that “distress, depression and anxiety are severe for prisoners and their families.”
Taylor Atkinson was one of thousands imprisoned under the IPP scheme. In 2010, he was sentenced to 3 years and 265 days in prison for aggravated burglary, but Taylor was detained indefinitely.
April 16, 2026 at 12:17 PM
Taylor Atkinson was one of thousands imprisoned under the IPP scheme. In 2010, he was sentenced to 3 years and 265 days in prison for aggravated burglary, but Taylor was detained indefinitely.
In March of 2024, the Alassar family began a fundraiser to raise money to cross the border into Egypt. Jenin took to social media to promote the campaign, titled “Help Aser and his family evacuate Gaza.”
April 2, 2026 at 10:45 AM
In March of 2024, the Alassar family began a fundraiser to raise money to cross the border into Egypt. Jenin took to social media to promote the campaign, titled “Help Aser and his family evacuate Gaza.”
Jenin’s brother, Aser is autistic and does not speak. Since October 2023, Israel’s genocide in the Gaza Strip has shattered the sense of normalcy for the Alassar family, but especially for Aser.
April 2, 2026 at 10:45 AM
Jenin’s brother, Aser is autistic and does not speak. Since October 2023, Israel’s genocide in the Gaza Strip has shattered the sense of normalcy for the Alassar family, but especially for Aser.
In March of 2024, the Alassar family began a fundraiser to raise money to cross the border into Egypt. Jenin took to social media to promote the campaign, titled “Help Aser and his family evacuate Gaza.”
April 2, 2026 at 10:41 AM
In March of 2024, the Alassar family began a fundraiser to raise money to cross the border into Egypt. Jenin took to social media to promote the campaign, titled “Help Aser and his family evacuate Gaza.”
Jenin’s brother, Aser is autistic and does not speak. Since October 2023, Israel’s genocide in the Gaza Strip has shattered the sense of normalcy for the Alassar family, but especially for Aser.
April 2, 2026 at 10:41 AM
Jenin’s brother, Aser is autistic and does not speak. Since October 2023, Israel’s genocide in the Gaza Strip has shattered the sense of normalcy for the Alassar family, but especially for Aser.
A report seeking to understand respect in the Kenyan context found that obedience, submission to authority and humility are among the most commonly understood signifiers of respect among Kenyans. So, for law students, speaking out is often equated with disrespect or career suicide.
March 12, 2026 at 11:35 AM
A report seeking to understand respect in the Kenyan context found that obedience, submission to authority and humility are among the most commonly understood signifiers of respect among Kenyans. So, for law students, speaking out is often equated with disrespect or career suicide.