Each spring in New York City, Left Forum gathers intellectuals and activists from around the world to address the burning issues of our times. The theme for 2010 is “The Center Cannot Hold: Rekindling the Radical Imagination.” Find out more information, propose a panel, or register for the forum here.
Online Features
Seeing Haiti
Tariq JazeelThere’s so much to think about, take in, and give right now in the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake that perhaps a lone blog entry like this isn’t at all suitable.
Digital Activism
Ashley DawsonActivists are increasingly turning to online resources to help bring about progressive, grassroots-empowering social change. I recently learned of two interesting initiatives to build awareness of the possibilities for networked activism.
Justice for Don Belton
Tavia Nyong'oDon Belton, a professor of English at Indiana University, was tragically killed by an assailant who, many in his local queer community are concerned, may seek to use a variant of the notorious “gay panic” defense. They are also concerned that hateful, racist, and homophobic remarks have been circulating on messaging boards under articles about Don’s murder.
The Internet as Playground and Factory
Tavia Nyong'oThose who missed this — or who couldn’t take it all in — can now read organizer Trebor Scholz’s detailed and informative “post-mortem conference mashup.”
The Continuity of US Imperial Discourse
Ashley DawsonPresident Obama recently gave two speeches that should be seen as signposts of contemporary U.S. empire. Their continuity with American exceptionalist rhetoric of the past is striking, underlining the extent to which Obama is trapped within the paradigms of the past.
Listening at the End of the Twentieth Century
Gustavus Stadler
Reviewed: Tim Lawrence, Hold On to Your Dreams: Arthur Russell and the Downtown Music Scene, 1973-1992 (Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2009). David Suisman, Selling Sounds: The Commercial Revolution in American Music (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2009). I began reading these two … Continue reading “Listening at the End of the Twentieth Century”
Eat the rich!
Ashley DawsonNew York governor David Paterson has just announced that he will be withholding $750 million in scheduled payments to schools and local governments across the state in response to the state’s fiscal problems. According to an article in the NYT
Santarchy is Coming to Town
Micki McGee
No one could stop the red tide that flooded across New York, Washington, Los Angeles, and San Francisco yesterday. Santacon took hold of the streets in these and other cities across the globe. With anarchist roots in the San Francisco … Continue reading “Santarchy is Coming to Town”
A Teaching (I) and (II)
Tavia Nyong'o“So many scholars read anxiously, with a hope not to learn, not to be discomposed by learning. They fish in indexes looking for confirmation of not being trumped, they skim the surface hoping that no phrase catches them. The aversion … Continue reading “A Teaching (I) and (II)”
Postcard from Amsterdam: 2006
Anna McCarthy
Time's Up?
Tavia Nyong'oAfter world leaders gathered in Copenhagen to manage climate change from above, activists and demonstrators around the world struggle to hold them accountable. Ashley Dawson introduces a new forum on climate politics.
'We Get More Ambitious:' An Interview with Wu Ming
Ashley DawsonIntroduction: The Wu Ming Foundation is a collective of four self-described “guerrilla novelists” based in Bologna, Italy. The collective was born in 1994, when hundreds of European and South American artists, activists, and pranksters hijacked the name of a Black … Continue reading “'We Get More Ambitious:' An Interview with Wu Ming”
Class war
Ashley DawsonThe Governor of New York State has called for a cut of $53 million to the City University of New York system. This comes after a $68 million cut to CUNY last year, and a 15% tuition hike for CUNY … Continue reading “Class war”
10 Year WTO/Seattle Protest Anniversary
Biella ColemanWe are right around the corner from the tenth anniversary of the street protests that erupted on the streets of Seattle. To commemorate this anniversary, there are a slew of talks, screening, and events around the country. In NYC on … Continue reading “10 Year WTO/Seattle Protest Anniversary”