When they vote in January’s primaries, leftists in France must choose entre la peste et la cholera. On 21 May 2002, millions of French people watched with surprise, anger, or disgust as the face of Jean-Marie Le Pen appeared on … Continue reading “What Is the French Left to Do?”
Online Features
From Face Down
Brian WhitenerThe Oakland-based press Timeless, Infinite Light has allowed us to publish an excerpt from Brian Whitener’s fantastic new book Face Down, which can be purchased here. From Face Down In the mid-1850s, a non-ethnically marked lady, Mother, and her partner … Continue reading “From Face Down“
Ballot Box as Klan Hood and the Rest of Us in the Wake of the Election of Donald Trump as 45th US President
Roshanak KheshtiI write not with the expertise of a political scientist or demographer, those emperors of data and partisan, capital ‘P’ politics whose new clothes—AKA ‘big data’-informed poll predictions—have only just been revealed to some (not others) as ruse. I write … Continue reading “Ballot Box as Klan Hood and the Rest of Us in the Wake of the Election of Donald Trump as 45th US President”
Antigone in St. Paul, Minnesota
Nicholas MirzoeffOn July 6, 2016, St. Anthony police shot Philando Castile during a traffic stop. The police thought his “wide-set nose” matched that of a robbery suspect. For Mr. Castile, this was the forty-sixth and last such stop he would endure … Continue reading “Antigone in St. Paul, Minnesota”
Songs for Our Times
Anna McCarthyWe asked Gus Stadler to recommend some Woody Guthrie songs. He did not fail us. ALL YOU FASCISTS BOUND TO LOSE THE JOLLY BANKER THIS LAND IS OUR LAND (with private property verse) BETTER WORLD A-COMIN’
From the Web Editor
Anna McCarthyNine days after Donald Trump is elected president of the United States, Social Text Online is relaunched. The timing couldn’t be better. Or worse. What to say in times like these, and so soon? Or even, how to phrase the … Continue reading “From the Web Editor”
FROM EUPHORIA
Shiv KotechaI. The Iron Horse II. The Taiwan Blue III. The Mint Bang III. The Sitting Bull IV. The Leather Eagle II. THE TAIWAN BLUE YOU DO NOT REMEMBER WHERE YOU WERE OR WHEN IT WAS THAT YOU FIRST FOUND IT … Continue reading “FROM EUPHORIA“
Labors in a Field
Aaron WinslowI push the sharp edges of the shovel into the scorched, dry dirt. The ground gives way and a stinking clump of earth slides out. I dig in the earth because I must tend to the plants, and I must … Continue reading “Labors in a Field”
Epistolary Romance on Love and Friendship
Diana HamiltonDear Shiv, You told me to write to you. It was kind of you to tell me to write. You were writing to me of heartbreaks and hangovers and whether we’ll ever love or write again, and how to replace … Continue reading “Epistolary Romance on Love and Friendship”
On Precarity and the Freedom from Security
Ana VujanovićWork Reviewed: Lorey, Isabell: State of Insecurity: Government of the Precarious New York & London: Verso, 2015. Editor’s Note: What does it mean to make a living, or a life for oneself, today? We live in a moment when corporations … Continue reading “On Precarity and the Freedom from Security”
In Conversation with Luke Willis Thompson
Tavia Nyong'oThe following is an edited transcript of an e-mail interview between the artist Luke Willis Thompson and Social Text editor Tavia Nyong’o that was conducted over the spring and summer of 2015, during and after the New Museum triennial, within … Continue reading “In Conversation with Luke Willis Thompson”
A Note on Race and the Left
Nikhil Pal SinghThis short essay was commissioned by Dissent Magazine, which after putting me through an arduous editorial exchange rejected it. (Draw your own conclusions). I attach the original essay here, slightly revised and welcome any comments. I hope to expand … Continue reading “A Note on Race and the Left”
Remembering Randy Martin
Social Text CollectiveIt is with great sadness that we open this page to commemorate the passing of our colleague and friend Randy Martin. Martin, who joined Social Text in 1983 and served as one of its co-editors from 2000-2006, was one of … Continue reading “Remembering Randy Martin”
The Affective Labor of Wikipedia: GamerGate, Harassment, and Peer Production.
Michael MandibergThe Wikipedia Arbitration Committee (ArbCom) just completed the process of sanctioning a number of editors over edits to the Gamergate controversy page. This has been a controversial decision, with many parties issuing statements, including the Wikimedia Foundation, two of the … Continue reading “The Affective Labor of Wikipedia: GamerGate, Harassment, and Peer Production.”
Nothing Unintentional
Nadia Abu El-HajThis post originally appeared on the London Review of Books Blog on July 29, 2014. The Palestinian body count in Gaza has passed 1000, with more than 5000 wounded. Over 70 per cent of the casualties are civilians, including more … Continue reading “Nothing Unintentional”