Latest news with #Akin
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
US marine veteran takes a stand against Trump: ‘He's tearing the country apart'
Earlier this year, Morgan Akin took down the American flag that had flown for decades outside his home in deep-red far northern California. It was a small gesture, one that did not echo through the halls of the US Capitol or make headlines. But for the 84-year-old Vietnam-era veteran and retired game warden, it represented a monumental shift, one his family immediately took note of. It was Akin's way of taking a stand in response to a country that had become increasingly unrecognizable to him. In the weeks before, masked officers arrested an international student who had co-authored a campus newspaper op-ed about Gaza in the street, the defense department temporarily removed Jackie Robinson's biography from its website, and the president planned to host a massive military parade to celebrate his birthday. 'The American flag won't fly again until things get straightened out down the line and administrations change,' said Akin, his Texas twang still strong even after decades in California as he lamented the state of the country and the growing dangers immigrants faced. 'They're not going to pick me off and take me to El Salvador.' Until this year, Akin had never participated in a protest. This year he and his wife have gone to three, taking to the streets alongside hundreds of others in their conservative community to demonstrate against the administration and cuts to the department of veteran's affairs and vital social programs. Older Americans such as Akin are among the most disapproving of Donald Trump's performance as president. An NPR/PBS News/Marist poll from April found that just 37% of the 'greatest/silent' generation, people born before 1947, approve of the job he's done as president. But Akin is a rarity given that a majority of US veterans typically vote Republican – about six in 10 said they supported Trump in 2024. Akin has always backed Democrats, something he attributes to growing up in segregated Texas and seeing southern states turn Republican during the civil rights era. He loved his home state but found it deeply prejudiced and never could shake his association with the Republican party and racism. He joined the Marine Corps at 17, where he said he learned that you had to get along to survive, regardless of one's background or religion. 'You all bled the same way,' he said. 'From that point my whole attitude changed about a lot of things. So I have been a Democrat [since] the first time I registered.' Akin spent nine years in the military, training recruits as a drill instructor and eventually left as a staff sergeant to attend college. After graduating Akin got a job as a game warden with the California department of fish and wildlife. He worked across the state, overseeing operations in the city and county of San Francisco, the Central Valley, and eventually the job brought Akin and his family to Shasta county, now a region of 180,000 people in the state's far north conservative heartland. They liked Shasta county enough that they decided they wanted to retire there. His wife adored the many trees while Akin, who grew up hunting and fishing, found plenty to do in the area. They've developed deep ties to Shasta over three decades and regularly volunteer as poll workers while Akin spent years working with a group of retired veterans. The couple, both staunch Democrats, have always been outnumbered by conservatives. Of the area's nearly 116,000 registered voters, 52% are registered Republican and just 21% are Democrats. That didn't bother Akin, he said, and for the most part never caused problems – although someone once threw a rock through the back window of his truck where he had placed an Obama sticker. Akin has made a point not to argue about politics with friends or people at his church, he said, but he also doesn't hide his views. In 2020 he put a Joe Biden sign in his front yard. Last year he placed a Kamala Harris sign there. People were usually courteous about that, Akin said, until 2024 when someone demanded he remove Harris's sign. He declined. Still, it's become difficult as Shasta county has grown more conservative, with a thriving far-right movement that has put the area on the map as a center of election denialism. The appointment of a Florida-based election skeptic to run the county elections office has made him consider whether he wants to continue to volunteer as a poll worker. The political upheaval locally has been concerning, but he has no plans to leave. 'If somebody says, 'Why don't you move out of Shasta and go somewhere else'. I said, 'When I move, I'm going to Igo, that's it. Nowhere else,'' Akin said with a laugh, referring to the veterans' cemetery in the nearby town of Igo. But there is a caustic feeling in the community, one exacerbated by the chaos of national politics. Akin has found himself watching TV constantly trying to keep up with it all. The attacks on the judiciary and attacks on immigrants have been particularly upsetting to him, Akin said, pointing to the arrest of Rümeysa Öztürk, who was detained on the street for her political speech by masked immigration agents. 'They don't want to be shown, which indicates to me, they know they're doing the wrong thing, but they're doing it anyway.' And many elements of his own life are at risk with the Trump administration's plans. As a veteran with a disability, he receives care from the local VA facilities, which he said offer some of the best VA services he's experienced. The mass layoffs planned within the system, canceled contracts and hiring freezes have imperiled patient care, according to internal documents obtained by the Guardian. Meanwhile, Akin's daughter works as a teacher for Head Start, a federal program that provides early childhood education for low-income families which the administration proposed cutting, though it has since reversed course. 'What happens to me is immaterial because I'm 84 years old. My lifespan is decreasing daily, so it's probably not going to have a big impact on me overall. But I have two children. I have three grandchildren. I've got now four great grandchildren,' he said. 'How is that impacting their future?' 'He's just tearing the country apart. The whole fabric of the country is just being ripped apart. The worst part is the people that are getting hurt – the migrants that came here in earnest.' He worries for disabled veterans in the future and the care they will receive. And he fears a day where the US government might use the military against citizens. Now Akin is focused on advocating how he can. He and his wife plan to keep protesting. Outside his home a US marines flag still flies, but now it waves alongside a Ukrainian flag. The American flag remains put away. 'I still get upset if I see someone flying it upside down. And my wife gets really upset when she sees an American flag with Trump's face on it,' he said. 'Because we've always been respectful of the flag. It's just much more toxic now.'
Zawya
16 hours ago
- Business
- Zawya
Akin grows investment management practice in Abu Dhabi with addition of Skye Smith
Dallas and Abu Dhabi – Akin announced today that Skye Smith has joined the firm as a partner in its investment management practice. Smith will begin in the Dallas office and relocate to Abu Dhabi in the coming months. Smith's addition reinforces the firm's commitment to growth in the Middle East and strengthens its position as a leading investment management advisor in the Abu Dhabi global market, where sovereign wealth funds manage approximately $1.7 trillion. Smith advises institutional investors, with a strong focus on sovereign wealth funds, on complex investments across private equity, venture capital, infrastructure, real estate and hedge funds. She regularly counsels these clients on primary commitments, co-investments, continuation vehicles, funds-of-one, GP stakes and other customized arrangements. Her practice also includes advising public and private pension plans, university endowments, funds of funds and multifamily offices. 'We are continuing to expand our investment management offerings in Abu Dhabi. The Middle East is a growing asset management market and an area of intense focus for Akin, serving our clients in their most sophisticated transactions,' said Akin co-chair Abid Qureshi. 'Skye brings significant experience working with sovereign wealth funds in Abu Dhabi, and we're pleased to welcome her to our team.' 'Skye is a highly regarded investment management lawyer with a longstanding client network in Abu Dhabi,' said Barbara Niederkofler, co-leader of Akin's investment management practice. Robert Griffin, an Akin investment management partner based in Abu Dhabi added, 'Skye brings deep knowledge of the fundraising opportunities and challenges in the UAE and she is a phenomenal addition to our investment management practice in the Abu Dhabi global market.' 'I am thrilled to join Akin and its premier investment management team,' said Smith. 'The firm has a growing platform in the UAE and Abu Dhabi in particular, advising some of the most prominent sovereign wealth funds, making this the ideal setting for my practice,' she added. Smith joins Akin from DLA Piper. Earlier this year, Akin announced that corporate partner Alexander Malahias and project finance partner Jennifer Riddle have joined the firm and will be based in Akin's Abu Dhabi office until the firm opens its new office in Riyadh later this year. The firm has also recently added investment management partner Wendy Dodson Gallegos in Chicago. About Akin's Investment Management Practice Akin's investment management practice, comprising over 100 lawyers, is a recognized leader in the representation of large institutional and entrepreneurial fund sponsors and managers in the formation across the private funds industry. The firm also serves as lead counsel to some of the world's premier investors and has helped them access opportunities in markets around the world. Through its representation of a broad range of investment managers and institutional investors, Akin has unique insight on emerging trends in the private equity, credit and hedge fund industries. This knowledge and experience are particularly valuable to clients as convergence across asset classes continues to play out in the marketplace. Akin is a leading international law firm with more than 900 lawyers in offices throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
CNBC
23-05-2025
- Business
- CNBC
How big European Union tariff could backfire on Trump, according to trade, freight experts
President Trump's social media tariffs threats against Apple and the European Union reflect a worrying issue for the markets and economy, according to trade experts and logistics experts: the negotiating process isn't going the way Trump wants. "Trump is not wrong that the EU has been less forthcoming than other countries, but the EU also has good reason to be reluctant to engage in this kind of exercise, and so they are at an impasse," said Josh Teitelbaum, senior counsel of Akin. "Trump's frustration reflects that underlying dynamic," he said. Apple, threatened by Trump on Friday with a 25% tariff on any iPhone not made in the U.S., is in a difficult spot, Akin said, as the broader investigation launched by the Trump administration on national security threats linked to key technology, and imports of semiconductors and derivative products, could put iPhones under its umbrella. "He has a mechanism to make good on this threat," Akin said. But with Europe, the tariff runs the risk of adding damage to a key trade relationship which had been showing signs of recovery. Ocean freight bookings tracked by SONAR show after a drop in bookings from the EU to the U.S., ocean freight bookings have steadily recovered. The fear is the new threat will slow down freight orders again. Andy Abbott, CEO of Atlantic Container Line, an ocean carrier that specializes in the Europe-to-US trade, said that has significant implications for core U.S. industrial operations. Unlike Asia, which is primarily a supplier of consumer products to the U.S., Europe is mostly a source of industrial products that help American manufacturers produce. "Europe was stable and steady," said Abbott. "A big tariff on European imports will backfire, making American products more expensive to produce," he said. Manufacturers have stressed to the Trump administration in talks that any tariffs need to take into account the cost of running and expanding operations in the U.S., and the administration's policy may run counter to the reshoring aim. In addition, U.S. exporters will suffer as a result of reduced trade. Container rates to Europe are only one-third of U.S. import container freight rates, so a reduction of European imports will raise U.S. export rates, adding more cost to American products overseas, Abbott said. "The EU is a significant trading partner, and a 50% tariff would potentially cause economic harm and the EU could retaliate, which would further escalate the economic harm," said Timothy Brightbill, partner at Wiley and co-chair of its international trade practice. "It's a dangerous situation." According to Dan Anthony, president at Trade Partnership Worldwide, the impact would vary across the U.S., but would be felt state to state. "Needless to say, a 50% tariff would be a huge, costly tax increase," Anthony wrote in a LinkedIn post. According to his organization's data, tariffs paid at the state level last year range from a low of 0.23% (Indiana) to a high of 2.36% (New Jersey) based on the types of products imported. "Implementing a 50% tariff represents an effective rate increase of 20-200x depending on the state," he said. Brightbill said the EU has a significant number of trade barriers, and this trade negotiation could provide an opportunity for both agricultural and digital trade. "There are many long-standing trade problems with the EU, for years and years, and I think that is why the administration wants the EU to come to the table," Brightbill said. But he added that doesn't ensure the EU responds in the way Trump is looking for. "There are a lot of countries and a lot of varying degrees of views on whether to negotiate in the first place, so, it will be very difficult to reach a consensus," he said.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Amrum' Review: Fatih Akin's German Coming-Of-Age Tale Set During Final Days Of WWII Is ‘Stand By Me' In Shadow Of Fading Nazi Regime
An official selection of the Cannes Film Festival in the Cannes Premieres section, Fatih Akin's poignant coming-of-age tale of a 12-year-old boy on a remote German island in the waning days of World War II and the defeat of his homeland's Nazi Party and Hitler, is a side of the war rarely seen in movies. Although the German competition entry in the main competition, Sound of Falling, has gotten all the attention and the hype for the country at this year's festival (it was just picked up by Mubi today), I would say this modest film is far more impressive and moving and should be taken seriously by the Germans when it comes time for a submission into the Oscar International Film race. Among others, Akin made the terrific arthouse hit In the Fade in 2017 and that is where I really took notice of his filmmaking acumen. However, this one is billed as a Hank Bohm Film Directed By Fatih Akin, a tip of the hat to the veteran director Bohm now in his 80s who had planned to make this film but had to drop out after completing his screenplay. His friend Akin came to the rescue, rewrote the script (they both share credit) and ended up directing. It is based somewhat on Bohm's own experience growing up on the remote North Sea German island Amrum, but is a fictional tale centered on Nanning (newcomer Jasper Billlerbeck), who lives with his pregnant mother Hiller (Laura Tonke), his siblings and aunt (Lisa Hagmeister) in a small house that seems to be the only one still flying the Nazi flag. More from Deadline Cannes Film Festival 2025: Read All Of Deadline's Movie Reviews Richard Linklater's 'Breathless' Homage 'Nouvelle Vague' Being Pursued By Multiple Buyers For Domestic 'Big Rock Burning,' Documentary On Devasting L.A. Wildfires, Being Shopped In Cannes It is nearing the end of World War II and Nazi Germany's quest to rule the world. Hitler is dead but these residents don't really get the actual truth of what happened, and at this point it doesn't matter as much as simply trying to survive with need for bread, food and other necessities. The main industry is growing potatoes and fishing, two things young Nanning helps with at the neighboring farm run by Tessa (Akin regular Diane Kruger in a small role) and with his grandpa Arjan (Lars Jessen) and uncles. We see him learning how to skin a rabbit and lure an unsuspecting seal to his death among other unsavory duties. He runs errands to try and get his mother, a Hitler apologist, bread, butter, sugar and other necessities all the while still wearing his Hitler Youth uniform, but not really engaged in the political aspects. We never see him project hate or toe the Nazi line. It is just something young boys were expected to wear. Actually, Nanning is a good kid, one who is bullied by older kids on Amrum and accused of not being a 'true Amrumer' since he was born elsewhere. His father, captured as a prisoner of war, is not around, and he has to take care of his mother expecting any day, and then later in the film with a new baby boy. She is typical of these Germans who were simply guided by their leader, and became gullible to the party line, and also bitter about the capture of her husband. Here is a teaser trailer: The film's focus is on these people who live far from the action, basically clueless to the Holocaust and other atrocities by Germany during the war that will now cast shame on the country. There are powerful scenes nonetheless such as when Nanning tries to get the local baker (Marek Harloff), a veteran, to give him what little sugar he still has left, but before he does he makes Nanning recite the Nazi Youth pledge, something Nanning only does when the baker refuses to give him the sugar. Another scene has Hillie with her two sons and the new baby begging the butcher (Dirk Bohling) to accept her German cash, but now with the official surrender of Germany, he will only accept American dollars and turns her away. Through it all Akin's cameras are capturning everything through Nanning's eyes, and the director says his influences are more along the lines of De Sica's The Bicycle Thief and Rob Reiner's Stand By Me. The war may have been very ugly, but Amrum is a beautiful place to grow up, seemingly a million miles away as life goes on, the future unsure, its inhabitants searching for some sort of happiness, and Nanning on the cusp of adolescence. Billerbeck has never acted before and won a blind audition, and you can see why he was chosen. This kid is a natural and his performance never hits a false note. Veteran German actress Tonke perfectly portrays the bitterness of the Third Reich defeat as she reluctantly burns Hitler's photo and takes down the flag. She was a stout supporter but it has all gone away. Cinematography by Karl Walter Lindenlaub captures the beauty of a place out of time. There is some similarity to the Oscar-winning The Zone of Interest which also focused on 'everyday' German life, but that one was set with Auschwitz in the background, smoke rising. In Amrum, the horror seems far far away. Considering the far right extremist Nazi party managed to get 12 million votes in the recent German elections, a film like Amrum serves as a reminder that this could happen again. The final shot is of an old man peacefully looking at the beautiful Amrum ocean, perhaps showing the calm before a new storm. Producers of the film distributed by Warner Bros Germany are Akin and Herman Weigel. Title: AmrumFestival: Cannes (Premiere)Director: Fatih AkinScreenwriters: Fatih Akin and Hank BohmCast: Jasper Billerbeck, Laura Tonke, Lise Hagmeister, Kian Koppke, Diane Kruger, Lars Jessen, Deflev Buck, Jan Georg Schutte, Matthias Schweighofer, Tjard Nissen, Dirk Bohling, Marek HarloffSales agent: Beta CinemaRunning time: 1 hr 33 mins Best of Deadline Every 'The Voice' Winner Since Season 1, Including 9 Team Blake Champions Everything We Know About 'Jurassic World: Rebirth' So Far 'Nine Perfect Strangers' Season 2 Release Schedule: When Do New Episodes Come Out?
Local Germany
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Local Germany
Far-right voters don't deserve empathy, says award-winning German director
Director Fatih Akin's new movie at the Cannes film festival is about a boy learning to love his Nazi-supporting parents. Not that the Turkish-German filmmaker -- who burst onto the scene with "Head-On" before winning a Golden Globe for "In the Fade" -- believes those he sees as their modern German equivalents are worthy of an ounce of empathy. "People are always saying we should try to understand these people who are voting AfD," Akin said, referring to the far-right Alternative for Germany party which has been accused of toying with Nazi rhetoric and nostalgia. "But why should we be understanding of people who don't want to understand us?" Akin asked. "I don't care what JD Vance (the US vice president, who infuriated German leaders by meeting the AfD) says... I will not give them empathy. No freedom for the enemies of freedom," he told AFP. Germany's spy agency classified the AfD as "extremist" earlier this month, allowing it to monitor the country's biggest opposition party. The AfD denounced the move as a "blow against democracy" and the agency suspended the move pending their appeal. But Vance also attacked the original decision. In Akin's new film "Amrum", set on the North Sea island of the same name off northern Germany in the last days of World War II, our hearts go out to a young boy who tries to save his mother -- a Nazi true believer -- as she spirals into depression at Germany's defeat and Hitler's death. Yet "there is no sympathy for the devil... in this graceful and profound drama", wrote Tomris Laffly, critic of the film bible Variety. Akin makes clear the film is a warning about the here and now, with AfD emerging as the most popular party in the German elections earlier this year. "In the 1990s, the Nazis were bald-headed guys with bomber jackets in the east," he told AFP. "Today they're all over the place -- your family, your friends, your neighbours. You're touching them." In the film, the Nazis are in a minority on the island just as they were when Hitler came to power in 1933, but they rule the roost. Advertisement 'Banality of evil' "Certain forces in Germany are trying to make Nazism as mainstream as possible now, to make it boring and normal," the director warned. Akin sees the same "banality of evil" in the AfD leaders like banker Alice Weidel. "She's boring, uncharismatic, unfriendly, always in a suit," he said. Akin draws out the emotional coldness and cruelty of Nazism in one heartbreaking scene in the film, drawn from the childhood memoir of his friend and mentor, the director Hark Bohm. After the boy goes through hell to please his mother, she pushes him away when he cries in her arms. "It is cry-babies like you that have lost us the war," she tells him. There is the same "frightening coldness" about Weidel and the German far right, Akin argued. It is that "lack of humanity" that haunts Hamburg-born Akin, the child of Turkish immigrants who has gone on to be the most critically acclaimed and successful German director under 70. "I am afraid that if 12 million people vote for the extreme right... does it mean that there are 12 million unfriendly people in Germany too?" he asked. Advertisement "Amrum", which stars the German-born Hollywood star Diane Kruger, has had glowing reviews in Cannes. Screen called it a "delicate, rather heartbreaking coming-of-age story... which shows the precision that can be achieved on a smaller canvas" with a family-friendly film. Bohm, 86, had wanted to film his own book himself but was too ill and handed the project to Akin, who dedicated the film to him, calling it a "Hark Bohm film by Fatih Akin".
