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In-depth analysis and commentary on a variety of matters — political, economic, social, and cultural — important to progressive and radical thinking and activism. Against the Grain is co-produced and co-hosted by Sasha Lilley and C.S. Soong.
Innovation, grit, creativity, flexibility, choice — these words are ubiquitous in US society and yet, according to John Patrick Leary, they’re not neutral. Leary weighs in on the language of 21st century capitalism and how certain keywords are a slippery way to avoid calling thing what they are. Resources: John Patrick Leary, Keywords: The New … Continued
Walter Benjamin, a German-Jewish philosopher associated with the Frankfurt School, had a unique take on the origins and manifestations of violence in the world. James Martel discusses how Benjamin thought about the various forms of violence under capitalism, and whether he thought violence and coercion could be eradicated. Brad Evans and Terrell Carver, eds., Histories … Continued
What does Karl Marx’s masterwork Capital have in common with Dante’s Inferno? And more importantly, what can the book — which was partly written in debate with the socialist movements of its time — teach us today? William Clare Roberts reflects on Capital, Marx, and the importance of the idea of freedom for him. (Encore … Continued
In November 2013, an African American teenager set the skirt of an agender youth on fire. Sasha was badly burned; Richard was arrested. Dashka Slater’s account of the incident, the two students and their parents, and the criminal prosecution of Richard raises important questions about class, race, gender identity, and, not least, justice – what … Continued
The Environmental Protection Agency is tasked with safeguarding the public from toxic exposure. But Jonathan Latham, executive director of the Bioscience Research Project, says that The Poison Papers — an enormous trove of documents — indicate that the EPA and the chemical industry often work hand in hand to mislead us into thinking that toxic … Continued
Langston Hughes wore many hats: writer, poet, world traveler, racial justice advocate, and central figure of the Harlem Renaissance. He spoke at U.C. Berkeley about his life and ideas, and some of his letters were published in a book co-edited by MaryLouise Patterson. Patterson’s leftist parents, Louise Thompson Patterson and William (“Pat”) Patterson, were friends … Continued
For years, the fight against global warming was hampered by misinformation about whether climate change was real or not. But Jeremy Brecher argues that that’s no longer the main barrier. Instead he believes the biggest impediment to mass action from below is our sense that we can’t force elites to take action. The longtime environmental … Continued
Manu Samnotra discusses the ideas of Mohandas Gandhi and, in particular, what Gandhi thought about truth and how to attain it; self-discipline and how to practice it; political independence and how to achieve it; and modern civilization and how to act in relation to it. Samnotra defines, and describes the interconnections among, satyagraha (civil disobedience), … Continued
We live in an age of anxiety and crisis. And there is a long tradition of thought that liberal elites have drawn on during such moments to rescue civilization as they know it from collapse: what we would call Keynesianism today, but which Geoff Mann argues dates back to the French Revolution, centuries before the … Continued
There’s no question: global warming is here and causing serious harm. And we’re on course for much worse, especially as the signatories to the Paris Accord — the US aside — are not on track to meet even the insufficient targets it sets. How might that shape the politics of the future? And what … Continued
