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Acclaimed program of ideas, 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.
Who is standing up to environmental plunder, land grabbing, and crony capitalism? On a southern Philippines island, indigenous people, migrant settlers, and NGOs have combined forces to resist the extractivist activities of commercial interests and political elites. Many environmental defenders, reports Wolfram Dressler, have been murdered by illegal operatives and hired hitmen. Critical Asian Studies … Continued
Great powers rise and fall. But when their power wanes, as Britain’s did in the early 20th century and the U.S. is arguably waning now, who shoulders the costs of their decline? Is it elites or those on the bottom? Sociologist Richard Lachmann discusses what the past can tell us about the future of empires … Continued
What views did Gandhi hold about education and human development? Was the importance he attached to manual skills-building and vocational training justified? And what role did the Mahatma’s conceptions of nonviolence and truth play in his pedagogy? Purushottama Bilimoria has written extensively about Gandhian thought and practice. Purushottama Bilimoria, ed., History of Indian Philosophy Routledge, … Continued
While the Trump Administration’s policy of separating children from their parents at the US-Mexico border drew intense condemnation, the practice has been going on in this country for centuries. Historian Laura Briggs argues that it has been part of strategy of counterinsurgency, as during the anti-communist wars in Latin America, in which rebellious populations are … Continued
Demands for police reform that emphasize accountability, transparency, respect for civil liberties, or the restructuring of police agencies miss the point. So argues Mark Neocleous, who lays out what he calls a critical theory of police power, linking it to the war power, vagrancy legislation, and the exigencies of capital. Social Justice Mark Neocleous, A … Continued
Racism is finally getting the attention it deserves, including the violence that people of color experience at the hands of the police. But can contemporary racism be understood outside of capitalism? Historian Touré Reed argues against artificially separating race from class — what he terms race reductionism. (Encore presentation.) Resources: Touré F. Reed, Toward Freedom … Continued
What has capitalism done to and with time? How does it regulate and discipline workers from the standpoint of time? And what would a principled struggle to take back time — to reappropriate it — look like? Engaging with the ideas of Marx, E. P. Thompson, and others, Bryan D. Palmer reflects on work, life, … Continued
Covid has exposed the precarious health of working class people and people of color in this country. And the climate disaster is laying bare the vulnerability of so many around the world on a changing planet. What’s the connection? Political economist Raj Patel and physician Rupa Marya argue that capitalism, with its roots in colonialism, … Continued
Is policing in the U.S. primarily about catching criminals, maintaining order, or brutalizing African Americans? Ben Brucato locates the origins of U.S. police in the early slave patrols, patrols whose mandate was to uphold white racial domination over Blacks. He argues that the institutions of police and of race were created in tandem. Social Justice … Continued
Donald Trump infamously targeted immigrants — and many rejoiced when he left office. But, as historian Elliott Young points out, the criminalization of immigrants has been a bipartisan affair, going back 140 years. He discusses the intersection of mass incarceration and the detention of immigrants. Resources: Elliott Young, Forever Prisoners: How the United States Made … Continued
