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Wed 7.18.07| Moving People

Millions who oppose the war in Iraq are apparently unwilling to become part of the antiwar movement. Why is this? What have antiwar groups been doing well, and how might their outreach efforts improve? Madeline Gardner has co-authored a pamphlet that proposes ways of attracting the broader public. Judith Le Blanc has many thoughts about strategy and organizing based on her work with UFPJ.

Tues 7.17.07| Psychologists & Torture; Battered Inmates

Nathaniel Raymond with PHR discusses recent and breaking revelations about the participation of psychologists in the development of torture and interrogation methods used in Iraq, Guantanamo, and elsewhere. Marisa Gonzalez and Carrie Hempel are working to help domestic violence survivors incarcerated for killing their abusive partners.

Mon 7.16.07| Liberty For Some

The right to be in and to use public space; the right not to be detained indefinitely without charge. How important are these rights, and how and why are they under attack? Jonathan Hafetz describes the status of habeas corpus rights in relation to Guantanamo detainees and others. Don Mitchell explains how some people are being banished arbitrarily from urban spaces that have been privatized.

Wed 7.11.07| Freethought and Whitman

Freethinkers have worked tirelessly to keep government out of religion and religion out of government. While many conservatives have denied or played down this nation's secularist tradition, Susan Jacoby is working hard to revive it; her book Freethinkers highlights prominent secularist movements and people in US history. And John O'Keefe discusses his one-man show based on a poem by a prominent freethinker named Walt Whitman.

Tues 7.10.07| Indian IT Workers, Chinese Babies

They come to the US: information technology workers from India, and adopted children from China. Payal Banerjee argues that US immigration policy and the exigencies of late capitalism have combined to make exploitation of Indian IT workers the norm. Sara Dorow illuminates racial and other notions that inform at least some adoptive parents' decisions to adopt from China.

Mon 7.09.07| Moving the Media

How can progressive ideas and experts be funneled into both the progressive media and the mainstream media more effectively? What can the Left learn from the Right's successful efforts to build a powerful media machine? Tracy Van Slyke discusses ways of improving the dissemination of progressive messages. And Tim Pozar comments on a Google/Earthlink proposal to build a free Wi-Fi system in San Francisco.

Tues 7.03.07| They All Converged

Over 10,000 people gathered in Atlanta last week for the first United States Social Forum. From the five days that featured 900 workshops and a convening of what's called the People's Movements Assembly, what emerged? Three of the attendees were Eduardo Soriano-Castillo with Jobs with Justice; Sabrina Adams, a recently politicized woman from New Orleans; and DeAnne Cuellar with the Texas Media Empowerment Project.

Mon 7.02.07| Is Microcredit the Answer?

The awarding of last year's Nobel Peace Prize to the Grameen Bank of Bangladesh and its founder has generated intense interest in a development tool called microcredit. Is microcredit, as some of its advocates claim, a key part of the solution to global poverty? Sam Daley-Harris directs the Microcredit Summit Campaign. Radical economist Robert Pollin has serious reservations about microcredit as it's currently practiced.

Wed 6.27.07| Lebanon, Arabs, Women

Israel launched a massive invasion of Lebanon last July. Kareem Shora discusses a new ADC report that documents the losses sustained by civilians and evaluates Israel's conduct in light of international law. And Nadine Naber highlights the complexities of growing up Arab American and female; she contends that an imagined Arab culture is often used to police daughters' behavior.

Tues 6.26.07| Abortive Silence

Two recently-released films, Waitress and Knocked Up, feature lead characters who discover they're pregnant. Neither film contains any discussion of abortion as an option. WIMN's Jennifer Pozner and Bitch Magazine's Andi Zeisler comment on what that says about reproductive rights and feminism in today's culture. And Amy Moy of Planned Parenthood explains the status of reproductive freedoms in the US.

Mon 6.25.07| A Humanist Socialism

Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez once spoke of a third way between capitalism and socialism. Now he speaks of building a new type of socialism, a humanist one. In Build It Now, Michael Lebowitz describes what a humanist socialism would look like and examines whether Chavez's Bolivarian Revolution represents a path toward that goal.

Wed 6.20.07| Black is Not Enough

Racism is alive and well, but that doesn't mean sexism, homophobia and other oppressions, including those being played out within people of color communities, can be ignored. Left Turn magazine brought together five queer black activists to discuss the intersections of race, gender and sexuality. Kenyon Farrow is a writer and activist who's done a lot of organizing around LGBTQ issues. Aishah Shahidah Simmons wrote and produced a documentary about rape called No!

Tues 6.19.07| Žižek Captured

He's been called "the Elvis of cultural theory" and a "one-person culture muncher." Slavoj Žižek, the eccentric and provocative philosopher from Slovenia, is now the subject of a film called, appropriately, Žižek! Director Astra Taylor discusses the film as well as some of her own ideas, about the 60's, their legacy, and the revival of Students for a Democratic Society.

Mon 6.18.07| The Privatization of Race

What are the racial dimensions of the neoliberal state? Is privatization a way of targeting people of color? And what's wrong with people desiring and working toward racially homogeneous neighborhoods and societies? Social theorist David Theo Goldberg has written widely about these and other matters.

Wed 6.13.07| Daisey & Channer

Themes of genius, megalomania and madness are addressed in Mike Daisey's new monologue Great Men of Genius, in which he profiles, often with rollicking humor, the lives of P.T. Barnum, Bertolt Brecht, L. Ron Hubbard and Nikola Tesla. And Jamaican-American writer Colin Channer's new novella The Girl with the Golden Shoes is a fable about escaping ignorance and earning respect.

Tues 6.12.07| Protest Puppetry

Puppets are no longer child's play. In fact, they haven't been the sole domain of children for centuries; puppets are a key part of a long tradition of satire, dissent, and militant activism. That tradition continues today, including at mass demonstrations around the globe. Puppeteers Morgan Andrews and K. Ruby discuss the rich history and turbulent current state of radical puppetry.

Mon 6.11.07| Toward a New Socialism

If socialism isn't on the lips of many or most people working for social change, and if today's Left looks disapprovingly at what happened in China and the USSR, then what case can be made for socialism as the best alternative to capitalism? Anatole Anton and Richard Schmitt are co-editors of Toward a New Socialism, which considers what a new socialism might look like and how it's being advanced.

Wed 6.06.07| Rebecca Solnit

A new collection of Rebecca Solnit's essays showcases her fascination with place, politics, and human behavior. A cultural historian and veteran activist, Solnit uses metaphor and analogy to suggest new ways of looking at and responding to the world around us. Her essays in Storming the Gates of Paradise examine, among other things, civil disobedience, nature photography, Silicon Valley, and the Indian Ocean tsunami.

Tues 6.05.07| Prashad (Part 2) & Taraneh Hemami

When nation after nation escaped colonialism in the twentieth century, they came together to form what Vijay Prashad calls the Third World project. Vijay Prashad's book The Darker Nations explains how that project was quelled. Prashad discusses his book in this second part of a two-part interview. And Taraneh Hemami has a new solo art exhibition entitled "Most Wanted."

Mon 6.04.07| Third World Strivings, Antiwar Stirrings

Imagine the collective jubilation when nations in Africa, Asia and Latin America broke free from colonialism. Now consider what's happened to the Third World and its secular, egalitarian agenda. In The Darker Nations, Vijay Prashad traces the origins, development, and what he calls the assassination of the Third World project. Also, Max Elbaum weighs in on the occupation of Iraq and the trajectory of the antiwar movement.

Wed 5.30.07| Water Ways

Activism around water often means saving a pristine water body, or fighting water privatization, or trying to halt mega-dam projects. But can't urban folk do concrete, meaningful things with their own water consumption? In what ways can household water be recycled, and water use reduced? Co-editor Cleo Woelfle-Erskine and Andrea del Moral have contributed to the new book Dam Nation.

Tues 5.29.07| Trade, Migrants, Critical Theory

US elites like free trade agreements. NAFTA took effect in 1994; CAFTA was ratified by Congress two years ago. Four more FTAs are now before Congress. But does the free trade model make sense? Laura Carlsen advocates a moratorium on FTAs; she also links trade policy to immigration. And Richard Lichtman talks about a doctoral program on critical theory, which was the focus of the radical Frankfurt School.

Mon 5.28.07| Oil Out of Africa

In its relentless search for energy security, the US is increasingly eyeing West Africa's abundant deposits of oil and natural gas. How it's going about securing those supplies, and how the so-called War on Terror factors into US policy formulation, is the subject of the new report "Convergent Interests." Co-authors Paul Lubeck and Michael Watts explain what's at stake. And Taylor Lincoln discusses how energy companies in the US secured huge taxpayer subsidies.

Wed 5.23.07| Our Own Worst Enemy?

Chalmers Johnson's Blowback predicted harsh reprisals in response to US imperial adventurism abroad. In a recent talk about his new book Nemesis, Johnson discusses the military-industrial-Congressional complex, considers the possibility of an attack on Iran, and wonders what's happened to accountability and oversight in the halls of government.

Tues 5.22.07| Spectacular Vernacular

Progressives appeal to reason; they try to use rational argument to persuade others to move to the left. Is there anything wrong with this? What place should spectacle and the imagination have in Left strategizing? In his new book Dream, Stephen Duncombe asserts that vibrant movements are possible only if people's desires and fantasies are acknowledged and addressed.

Mon 5.21.07| Evicted En Masse

Ethnic cleansing is such a loaded term. Has it happened, and is it happening now, to the Palestinians? In his new book, the Israeli historian Ilan Pappe argues that Israel's founding in 1948 was accompanied by a crime against humanity. The ideology behind the mass eviction of Palestinians, Pappe contends in a talk he gave in Amsterdam, continues to this day.

Wed 5.16.07| Enduring Occupation

What's it really like to live under occupation? How much of what we hear about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is fact, and how much is fiction? The film Occupation 101 combines historical analysis with on-the-ground coverage of daily injustices in Gaza and the West Bank. It also features commentary about settlement activity, the separation barrier, and US support for Israel.

Tues 5.15.07| David Harvey on Neoliberalism

Neoliberalism has left an indelible, smoldering mark on our world for the last thirty years. But what is neoliberalism and what drives it? How did an obscure set of economic theories come to take hold of the imaginations of elites around the world? Eminent Marxist geographer David Harvey talks about the origins, trajectory, and significance of neoliberalism.

Mon 5.14.07| Darkness Falls

What's happened to civility in this country, to community, meaningful work, and craft? Morris Berman thinks US civilization, with its "What's In It For Me?" ethic, is in irreversible decline. In Dark Ages America, he argues that many of today's social ills can be traced to the repeal of Bretton Woods and the rise of a technological paradigm.

Wed 5.09.07| Working, Spending

People in the US work long hours. And when they're not working, they're often shopping, which for many means going into debt. Juliet Schor's research has focused on trends in work, leisure, consumerism, and economic justice. Co-founder of the Center for a New American Dream, Schor is the featured expert in the film The Overspent American.

Tues 5.08.07| Meaning, Reality, Media

The media bombards us with images; what do those images really mean? When those in power tell us -- as they constantly do -- how to interpret certain events and images, should we believe what we're told? Cultural theorist Stuart Hall examines the relationship of meaning and reality, and what both have to do with power and the media, in the film Representation and the Media.

Mon 5.07.07| How Empire Works

According to James Laxer, empires come in different shapes and sizes. The Roman empire, for example, was critically dependent on slavery for its creation and maintenance. In Empire, Laxer identifies four types of empire, the four pillars of US power, and the vulnerabilities of today's American empire. He also comments on the incompatibility of empire and democracy.

Wed 5.02.07| Race to Succeed

The Puerto Rican baseball star Roberto Clemente endured racial prejudice and Jim Crow segregation to become one of the great competitors, and humanitarians, of his time. David Maraniss has authored a new biography. Urla Hill has curated an exhibition about the intersection of racial politics and sports at San Jose State. Larry Walls was on that school's track team in the late 1960s.

Tues 5.01.07| Monumental Mistake?

In May 1886, anarchists and workers were confronted by Chicago police; eight men were arrested in connection with a bomb-throwing incident. Nicolas Lampert discusses how the Haymarket Affair is remembered, and why monuments to the events have generated so much heat. Josh MacPhee is co-editor of Realizing The Impossible: Art Against Authority.

Mon 4.30.07| Nonprofit Blues

Progressive nonprofits dominate the left-liberal landscape. Should the fact that these groups are accountable to their funders -- often private foundations -- give us pause? And why are more and more people on the Left using the term "nonprofit industrial complex"? Violence prevention educator Paul Kivel and community activist Eric Tang contributed essays to The Revolution Will Not Be Funded.

Wed 4.25.07| Tortured Logic

According to Kristian Williams, torture plays a key role in the projection of state power. In American Methods, Williams describes the US government's use of torture -- in war, in prison, and by proxy. He also examines whether torture is an effective way to gather intelligence, and whether torture in certain limited circumstances is justified.

Tues 4.24.07| Abortion Wars

Who would kill an abortion provider? Why did a violent wing of the anti-abortion movement emerge in the 1990s? And how did Buffalo become, for a time, ground zero in this nation's culture wars? Eyal Press examines the abortion debate and how it affected his father, an abortion provider, in Absolute Convictions. Mary Schwartz founded the Buffalo chapter of NOW in 1969.

Mon 4.23.07| Vulnerable Workers

What's happened to work, and to workers, that's generated so much economic insecurity today? What should a leftist vision of work in the twenty-first century include? Guy Standing once directed the Socio-Economic Security Program of the International Labour Organization. He spoke at the recent Jobs and Justice conference in Vancouver, Canada.

Wed 4.18.07| Radio and the Counterculture

Radio's death has been predicted for decades, while its impact in shaping the culture and politics of this country has been enormous. Journalist Marc Fisher and pioneering deejay Bonnie Simmons talk about the radio icons that remade the medium (including night broadcaster Jean Shepherd, WBAI's Bob Fass and his free form radio, and the legendary underground station KSAN), how radio shaped the counterculture, and the backlash that followed.

Tues 4.17.07| COINTELPRO and the Left

In 1971 a radical group broke into an FBI field office in Pennsylvania. The documents that they released to the press confirmed the existence of what many on the left had suspected -- that the US government had created a domestic spying program to infiltrate and tear apart the left. Adi Gevins took a close look at COINTELPRO in the 1975 KPFA documentary “Me and My Shadow.”

Mon 4.16.07| KPFA's 58th Birthday

In 1949, KPFA Radio came on the air as the first listener-sponsored radio station in the world. Its mission was to foster cultural expression, investigate the causes of conflict, and engage in radio that contributes to a lasting understanding between nations and individuals. KPFA founder Lewis Hill and legendary public affairs director Elsa Knight Thompson are the focus of a documentary produced by the Pacifica Radio Archives.

Wed 4.11.07| The Drive to Dominate; Sport & Development

Where does the human propensity to subjugate other living things and plunder the natural world come from? Kirkpatrick Sale addresses this question, and urges an alternative rooted in the consciousness of Homo Erectus, in his book After Eden. Martha Saavedra discusses the uses of sport in relation to development and empowerment in the Global South.

Mon 4.09.07| Warring Impulses

Will Congress mandate a quick withdrawal from Iraq? What would a responsible withdrawal strategy look like? Rahul Mahajan discusses the Democrats' strategy, US ignorance, and the state of the antiwar movement. Carl Conetta has proposed a withdrawal strategy that replaces most US troops with a multinational force.

Wed 4.04.07| Poverty, Civic Works, Katrina

The Works Progress Administration was a massive public works project created by FDR in 1935. Should a similar initiative be launched to rebuild New Orleans? Scott Myers-Lipton has developed the Gulf Coast Civic Works Project; he's also written a book that examines attempts to address poverty in the US. Salena Acox visited the Gulf Coast as part of the Project's "Louisiana Winter."

Mon 4.02.07| Offshore Corruption; Toxics & Race

According to John Christensen, offshore tax havens enable elites to evade taxes, depriving the nations of origin of badly-needed revenues. He also discusses the complicity of multinational companies in this largely unregulated world of secret bank accounts and trusts. And Robin Saha co-authored a new environmental justice report entitled "Toxic Wastes and Race at Twenty: 1987-2007."

Wed 3.28.07| Direct Action

Die-ins, sit-ins, and other in-your-face protests generated media attention and arrests on the fourth anniversary of the Iraq invasion. Is direct action on the rise? How do participants in such actions gauge their success? Kate Raphael is a veteran activist and direct action advocate. Caitlin Esworthy helped organize actions against military shipments at the ports of Olympia and Tacoma. And David Meieran worked to blockade a robotics center in Pittsburgh.

Tues 3.27.07| Beyond Capitalism II

How can wealth be democratized and greater liberty be achieved? What political-economic models make sense as alternatives to the current system? In America Beyond Capitalism, Gar Alperovitz highlights new approaches and institutions that point in the direction of greater equality, liberty, and democracy. (Follow-up interview.)

Mon 3.26.07| Nunez and Lorca

In her latest novel The Last of Her Kind, Sigrid Nunez captures the passion, idealism and contradictions of the late 1960s. Meanwhile, the Shotgun Players are staging Blood Wedding, a play by the renowned Spanish writer Federico Garcia Lorca. It's directed by Evren Odcikin and choreographed by the flamenco artist Yaelisa.

Wed 3.21.07| When Food Goes Corporate

Wholesome food, sustainably grown and affordably priced. Is that so difficult? Are agribusiness firms, backed by federal policy and international dictates, preventing an ideal from becoming reality? The NFFC's George Naylor and Food First's Eric Holt-Gimenez discuss the 2007 Farm Bill, food sovereignty, the fate of family farms, and much more.

Tues 3.20.07| People Politics

What would a radical break from politics-as-usual look like? Activist and author Marina Sitrin suggests we look to Argentina for new and startling forms of grassroots power and collective action based on mutual aid, self-organization, and a rejection of hierarchy. She also discusses how and why the new social movements seek autonomy from the State.

Wed 3.14.07| Oil in Iraq, and Berkeley

Is Big Oil on the verge of a huge victory in Iraq? Does the proposed Iraq oil law represent a giveaway to oil megacorporations, or could it assert a meaningful level of state control over Iraq's vast reserves? Antonia Juhasz and Christian Parenti offer different perspectives. And activist Hillary Lehr states her objections to the recent $500 million biofuels research deal between UC Berkeley and BP.

Tues 3.13.07| Emma Goldman's Vision

What happened when the life of the fiery anarchist Emma Goldman intersected with anarchist revolution in Spain? David Porter discusses where Goldman stood, how her opinions evolved, and how the debates of her time still resonate within and among today's social movements. Barry Pateman discussed Goldman's life and ideas in a talk at AK Press.

Mon 3.12.07| Ghana's Kwame Nkrumah

Fifty years ago, Ghana broke free from its British colonizers and declared itself independent. Kwame Nkrumah was a key part of the anti-colonialist struggle; he eventually became Ghana's first president. Nkrumah delivered an important and prescient talk at the UN General Assembly in 1960. Tetteh Kofi describes Nkrumah's efforts to liberate Ghana.

Wed 3.07.07| The Right Direction?

Does the Democratic recapture of Congress spell the end of the reactionary agenda? UCLA historian Robert Brenner examines shifts in US political economy over the last 70 years and explains how a far-right agenda prevailed -- and will continue. According to Brenner, without pressure in the form of mass mobilization, the Democrats will do nothing to counter the rightward shift.

Tues 3.06.07| Female Quandaries

"Seriously conflicted inner terrain": that's how Laura Kipnis describes the female psyche at this moment in history. In The Female Thing, Kipnis explores the relationship between feminism and femininity, indicts what she calls the feminine-industrial complex, and enumerates obstacles to women achieving full emancipation -- obstacles that she asserts includes more than a few erected by women themselves.

Mon 3.05.07| SDS Redux

Students for a Democratic Society was a key part of New Left organizing in the 1960s. The new, revived SDS boasts hundreds of campus chapters. Senia Berragan and Michael Merriweather are part of the Brown and Wayne State chapters. Original SDS'er Mark Rudd, who helped lead the 1968 Columbia University protests, discusses efforts to assist SDS and shares his understanding of organizing.

Wed 2.28.07| Rights, War, Art

Steve Crawshaw shares what Human Rights Watch wants from the new UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon. Mark Johnson and artist Binh Danh describe an art exhibition about contemporary perceptions of the Vietnam War. And Janet Bishop is curator of an exhibition of women artists revisiting art history.

Tues 2.27.07| Oil Out of Africa

In its relentless search for energy security, the US is increasingly eyeing West Africa's abundant deposits of oil and natural gas. How it's going about securing those supplies, and how the so-called War on Terror factors into US policy formulation, is the subject of the new report "Convergent Interests." Co-authors Paul Lubeck and Michael Watts explain what's at stake. And Taylor Lincoln discusses how energy companies in the US secured huge taxpayer subsidies.

Mon 2.26.07| Black Revolt, Black Futures

Can one understand Black history without understanding violent revolt? Donn Worgs discusses the reality and fantasy, as expressed in cultural works like novels, films and music, of African American violent revolt. And Lisa Yaszek describes a genre called Afrofuturism and how it's reflected in the work of Ralph Ellison and W.E.B. Du Bois.

Wed 2.21.07| Exceptionalism & Capitalism

Cultural studies professor Ella Shohat thinks US exceptionalism is rooted in nationalist narcissism. She also compared US and French imperialism in a recent talk. And geographer Joel Wainwright discusses development's relationship to capitalism.

Tues 2.20.07| Pinter and Birnbaum

In The Birthday Party, playwright Harold Pinter explores themes of tradition, authority, and oppression. Tom Ross directs Aurora's current production. Steven Gale discusses Pinter's momentous contributions to theater over the past five decades. And Mickey Birnbaum talks about his new play Big Death & Little Death.

Wed 2.14.07| Raking the Muck

How could it be said, as it has been said, that the story of George Seldes is the story of the twentieth century? Because the eighty-year career of Seldes, an investigative journalist and muckracker extraordinaire, intersected with many of the century's most important events. George Seldes is the focus of the documentary film Tell the Truth and Run.

Tues 2.13.07| Can We Weather It?

Climate change means more than turning up the air conditioner. It will have enormous economic, social, cultural, and of course environmental impacts around the globe. Elizabeth Kolbert's Notes from a Global Catastrophe, and the new film The Great Warming, go a long way toward explaining what's at stake.

Mon 2.12.07| Myths About Race

We all know what race is -- or do we? We might think people have always been categorized into different races -- but have they? Widely-held understandings of race are put under a microscope, and race is explained as a social and political construction, in a three-part film entitled Race: The Power of An Illusion.

Wed 2.07.07| The Drive to Dominate

Where does the human propensity to subjugate other living things and plunder the natural world come from? Is it innate? Or can it be tied to momentous planetary events that made big-game hunting a fundamental part of human life? Kirkpatrick Sale makes this argument, and urges an alternative rooted in the consciousness of Homo Erectus, in his book After Eden.

Tues 2.06.07| Democracy Imperiled

Henry Giroux is passionate about democracy. And since democracy is connected to so many things, Giroux is passionate about many things -- notably education, the media, the politics of race, and challenging what he sees as a growing authoritarianism in the US. He addresses these and other issues in a new film.

Mon 2.05.07| Axis of Hope

Author and activist Tariq Ali claims that three Latin American leaders represent what he calls an "Axis of Hope." In his book Pirates of the Caribbean, Ali discusses Hugo Chavez, in terms both of his political agenda and of his relationship to Fidel Castro and Bolivian president Evo Morales.

Wed 1.31.07| What's in a Song?

It's the legendary anthem of the Left, an emotionally-charged song sung in dozens of languages around the globe. Adopted by radicals of all stripes, The Internationale has for generations been a rallying cry -- and much more. Peter Miller's film examines the song's meaning and history.

Tues 1.30.07| Reason v. Faith

What destroys curiosity, generates intolerance, and leads in various forms to the suffering and oppression of millions? Richard Dawkins has an answer: religion. The prominent evolutionary biologist, best-selling author, and outspoken atheist has made a film that criticizes religion as divisive and dangerous. It's entitled Root of All Evil?

Mon 1.29.07| Race & Ideology in Film

According to Earl Sheridan, race relations and racism have virtually ceased to be major themes in Black-oriented US films. He offers up some explanations and describes how African American cinema has evolved. Tony Kashani examines how movies propagate a dominant ideology -- and how social justice concerns sometimes get featured.

Wed 1.24.07| Women Changing Unions

For more than two decades, women in Latin American banana unions have been educating and asserting themselves, thereby transforming union activism, gender politics, and labor internationalism. Historian Dana Frank has documented all this in her book Bananeras. And Charity Ryerson of US/LEAP describes the targeting of trade unionists in Colombia.

Tues 1.23.07| Toxic Hard Labor

Discarded electronics are being recycled in prison, at UNICOR facilities. This, according to Gopal Dayaneni and Aaron Shuman, has momentous implications for human rights and environmental justice. They have co-authored the report Toxic Sweatshops. Freda Cobb, a former prison staffer, witnessed and has apparently been affected by UNICOR's operations.

Mon 1.22.07| Does Power = Domination?

Anarchists want an end to domination and coercion. But what about power? Is there any room in the anarchist worldview for power relations and assertions of power? Harold Barclay contends that certain forms of power can be forces for the good. And Les Waters discusses power and humor in The Pillowman, a play by Martin McDonagh at Berkeley Rep.

Wed 1.17.07| The Privatization of Race

What are the racial dimensions of the neoliberal state? Is privatization a way of targeting people of color? And what's wrong with people desiring and working toward racially homogeneous neighborhoods and societies? Social theorist David Theo Goldberg has written widely about these and other matters.

Tues 1.16.07| African Troubles, US Role

What drives US action, or inaction, in Africa? Eric Reeves describes what the US and other nations have failed to do in Darfur to address a continuing humanitarian disaster. Khalid Medani discusses recent US air strikes in Somalia, and why Ethiopia and the US intervened to overthrow an Islamist coalition that had taken Mogadishu.

Mon 1.15.07| Race to Communicate

In what ways does the news media represent, or misrepresent, race? Is structural racism highlighted, minimized, or ignored? Talking the Walk, edited by Hunter Cutting and Makani Themba-Nixon, both critiques the media and examines ways of reframing debate and challenging stereotypes. (Encore presentation.)

Wed 1.10.07| Tackling Inequities

Landless rural workers in Brazil have organized, mobilized, and taken over unoccupied land. Harry Vanden describes the MST as "arguably the largest and most powerful social movement in Latin America." And according to Clara Mantini-Briggs and Charles Briggs, residents of poor barrios in Venezuela, with the active support of Hugo Chavez's government, are helping to create community health programs.

Tues 1.09.07| Are Refugees Protected?

According to Jacob Stevens, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, by promoting containment in refugee camps and swift repatriation, has failed to protect refugees and safeguard their rights. Merrill Smith at the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants urges an end to the widespread warehousing of refugees.

Mon 1.08.07| Reform Politics; Salt Lake's "Rocky"

Many yearn for the return of the welfare state. John Manley contends that the welfare state originated out of fear -- ruling elites' fear of challenges to the capitalist status quo. He also weighs in on reform versus revolution. Sasha Abramsky finds hope for progressive politics in the person of Rocky Anderson, mayor of Salt Lake City.

Wed 1.03.07| Immigrant Worker Centers

In a world of low-wage decentralized work, in which union membership continues to decline and regulations and labor laws are ever-more eviscerated, what can such workers do who want to know their rights, organize themselves, and act collectively? Janice Fine and Patricia Loya discuss how worker centers provide one possible solution.

Tues 1.02.07| Life and Times of Jessica Mitford

She was a muckraker, communist, aristocrat, and Oakland resident. Jessica Mitford, also known as Decca Treuhaft, lived a larger-than-life existence and left a significant mark on investigative journalism in the US with such works as "The American Way of Death". Peter Y. Sussman and Conn Hallinan talk about her life, politics, and times.

Mon 1.01.07| David Harvey on Neoliberalism

Neoliberalism has left an indelible, smoldering mark on our world for the last thirty years. But what is neoliberalism and what drives it? How did an obscure set of economic theories come to take hold of the imaginations of elites around the world? Eminent Marxist geographer David Harvey talks about the origins, trajectory, and significance of neoliberalism. (Encore presentation.)

Wed 12.27.06| Fascism in the US -- or Not?

It's become common currency on much of the left that the Bush administration has been steering the US towards fascism. But how accurate is that conclusion? Radical writer Matthew Lyons argues that there are serious political consequences for leftists in getting it wrong -- such as backing the Democrats at all costs -- amd that conflating the authoritarian policies of the current government neither helps us to understand fascism or contemporary US politics.

Tues 12.26.06| Unions and Corruption

Are union corruption and mob infiltration the labor movement’s dirty secrets? Journalist and former labor organizer Robert Fitch debates SEIU organizer Gabe Kramer about whether corruption is one of the central causes for the decline of trade unionism in the U.S.

Mon 12.25.06| "Why I Became an Atheist"

She may be this country's most infamous nonbeliever -- once called "the most hated woman in America" by Life Magazine. Atheist Madalyn Murray O'Hair speaks about her successful fight to end prayer in public schools in this historic talk from 1965.

Wed 12.20.06| Spurring Struggle

How are people provoked to take up arms? Amilcar Cabral worked to get people in Africa to rise up against colonial rule. W.F. Santiago-Valles discusses Cabral and the broader project of developing a revolutionary consciousness. In Mark Jackson's new play The Forest War, a ruler manipulates his people into waging a war of aggression.

Tues 12.19.06| Corporate Swagger

The west African nation of Liberia is rich in natural resources. Multinational corporations want a piece of that enormous wealth. Patrick Alley discusses a one-sided agreement that Mittal Steel concluded with Liberia. Roxanne Lawson and Tim Newman describe what Firestone is doing to its Liberian workers and to the environment.

Mon 12.18.06| Chess's Broad Reach

Is chess just a game? Or has it been an invaluable tool, affecting and informing politics, morality, math, psychology, artificial intelligence, and much more? In The Immortal Game, David Shenk traces chess's staggering impact over the course of fourteen centuries. Berkeley Chess School founder Elizabeth Shaughnessy discusses what chess does for young people.

Wed 12.13.06| The Fringe Economy

Financially-strapped people are being preyed upon every day, by businesses in what's called the fringe economy. Howard Karger discusses how storefronts like payday lenders, often backed by huge corporations, encourage chronic borrowing that leads to costly long-term debt. Paul Leonard with the Center for Responsible Lending discusses a new report about the impact of payday lending -- and efforts to confront it.

Tues 12.12.06| Beyond Capitalism

How can wealth be democratized and greater liberty be achieved? What political-economic models make sense as alternatives to the current system? In America Beyond Capitalism, Gar Alperovitz highlights new approaches and institutions that point in the direction of greater equality, liberty, and democracy.

Mon 12.11.06| Asian Ups and Downs

In her new serio-comic solo performance "Wong Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," Kristina Wong examines mental illness and the Asian American experience. And Meizhu Lui of United for a Fair Economy has written about where Asians fit within the US racial hierarchy, both today and historically, in The Color of Wealth.

Wed 12.06.06| "Crimes" and Disabilities

Should women rely on police and the courts to protect them from violence? Julia Sudbury urges a recognition of race- and class-based ideologies that underpin incarceration. And Nirmala Erevelles examines what happens to people with disabilities and to non-disabled women in the Global South when neoliberal economic regimes are imposed.

Mon 12.04.06| Warming Down South

Global climate change is, well, global. Greenhouse gases generated in the US, the world's largest emitter, affect climatic patterns everywhere. A recent report by a coalition of UK-based groups examines climate change in the context of Latin America and the Caribbean. Antonio Hill with Oxfam GB and Saleemul Huq with IIED participated in the report's preparation.

Mon 11.27.06| Fascism's Specter

Is fascism a possibility in the US? Would it emerge out of Christian fundamentalism, neoconservative extremism, or something else? According to Gregory Meyerson and Michael Roberto, fascism is a plausible response of the US ruling class to present and potential crises in contemporary US capitalism -- crises that they believe have reached an acute stage.

Wed 11.22.06| Marriage Limited; Children Unlimited

Activist and writer Julie Enszer argues that efforts to ban same-sex marriage may be hastening the demise of straight marriage. And Kathryn Joyce discusses a reactionary Christian movement called Quiverfull, whose adherents see themselves as domestic warriors in the battle against birth control and feminism.

Tues 11.21.06| The North's P.O.V.

What was North Korea thinking when it tested a nuclear weapon last month, and what can we expect from the resumption of six-party talks? Korea Policy Institute's Seung Hye Suh, author John Feffer, and Kyung Jin Lee, who just returned from a visit to North Korea, discuss North Korea and US agendas, and life on the ground.

Mon 11.20.06| Exceptionalism & Capitalism

Cultural studies professor Ella Shohat thinks US exceptionalism is rooted in nationalist narcissism. She also compares US and French imperialism in a recent talk at a large conference of leftist scholars and activists, called Rethinking Marxism 2006. And geographer Joel Wainwright presented a paper on development's relationship to capitalism.

Wed 11.15.06| Color and Injustice

Has California's government moved to close racial disparities in health, wealth, and education? Menachem Krajcer co-authored a just-released racial equity report card for the Applied Research Center. And Elizabeth "Betita" Martinez discusses her essay about challenges to and strategies in building cross-racial solidarity.

Tues 11.14.06| Left Media; Agreeing Not to Rule

Ideas and strategies galore were recently shared at a huge conference of leftists in Massachusetts. Called Rethinking Marxism 2006, the conference featured a number of plenary sessions; at one called "The Power of the Left Media," media studies expert Sut Jhally spoke. And Christine (Cricket) Keating gave a talk about democracy and domination.

Mon 11.13.06| Žižek Captured

He's been called "the Elvis of cultural theory" and a "one-person culture muncher." Slavoj Žižek, the eccentric and provocative philosopher from Slovenia, is now the subject of a film called, appropriately, Žižek! Director Astra Taylor discusses the film as well as some of her own ideas, about the 60's, their legacy, and the revival of Students for a Democratic Society.

Wed 11.08.06| How to Rebuild?

Has New Orleans recovered from Katrina, and if not, what still needs to be done and how? Community activist LaToya Cantrell and urban planner Allen Eskew are deeply concerned with and involved in reconstruction efforts. And Larry Bensky comments on the resignation of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

Tues 11.07.06| China, India, and Disasters

If a sustainable global future can't be charted without the active participation of China and India, what should be and is being done? The Worldwatch Institute's Christopher Flavin discusses realities and possibilities in both countries -- and what role the US should play. And Zoe Chafe and Michael Renner describe how disasters can lead to peace-making opportunities.

Mon 11.06.06| Targeting the Navajo

Why has the US government relocated thousands of Navajo away from Black Mesa in northern Arizona? Is Peabody Coal Company involved in continuing human rights abuses there -- and how close is it to the Bush administration? Relocation resister Leonard Benally, activist Nicole Horseherder and human rights attorney Dennison Smith discuss what's happening.

Wed 11.01.06| Community Theater, City Politics

Community theater in perhaps the truest sense is being practiced by the Shotgun Players; their current production "Love is a Dream House in Lorin" addresses and includes their community, Berkeley's Lorin District. Playwright Marcus Gardley, artistic director Patrick Dooley and actor Tony Allen discuss the play. And Jane Kim of the San Francisco People's Organization talks about a report critical of San Francisco Mayor Newsom's policy choices.

Tues 10.31.06| Those Dam Projects

Big dams don't get built by themselves. They require massive infusions of cash -- which is often where the World Bank, the powerful multilateral financing agency, comes in. Peter Bosshard and Aviva Imhof at International Rivers Network discuss both the bank's activities and the impact of hydropower projects on people and ecosystems in places like Laos and Pakistan.

Mon 10.30.06| Medical Profiling

When poor people of color are blamed for an epidemic, little or nothing is done to address the structural causes of inequality that make those people more vulnerable. Charles Briggs has written a book about the racialization of cholera in Venezuela and what it means for public health worldwide. (Encore presentation.)

Wed 10.25.06| Liberalism and Empire

It’s become a truism that the foreign policy of the Bush administration breaks radically with the approach of its predecessor. Yet how accurate is that conclusion? Geographer Neil Smith talks about the history of liberalism, US hegemony and the invasion of Iraq, which he characterizes as the endgame of globalization. (Encore presentation.)

Tues 10.24.06| Unions and Corruption

While no serious radical critic would deny that the decline of US unions is linked to the wretched state of labor law in this country, is this enough of an explanation? Robert Fitch argues that union activists and labor scholars have turned a blind eye to a cancer that runs through American labor – union corruption. SEIU organizer Gabe Kramer decries instances of corruption in unions but argues that Fitch overstates his case.

Mon 10.23.06| US Economy in Danger?

While most of us don’t stay awake at night worrying about the US trade deficit and the strength of the dollar, maybe we should. Economist Jeff Faux talks about the potential for a crash of the dollar, if foreign investors decide to stop lending to the United States, and its consequences for the American economy.

Wed 10.18.06| Media Matters

In the film “Orwell Rolls in His Grave,” award-winning director Robert Kane Pappas takes a close and critical look at the media system in this country – the lobbies, the systemic skewing of coverage away from structural issues of class and racial inequality, the conflicts of interest, and the complicit government regulators. Michael Moore, Danny Schechter, Tony Benn, Mark Crispin Miller, and Charles Lewis discuss their concerns with the US media today.

Tues 10.17.06| Empire Down South

Are preemptive intervention, neocon-inspired imperialism, and right-wing Christian mobilization something new? Far from it, contends Greg Grandin; his new book shows how US empire was practiced and forged in Latin America well before 9/11, with horrific consequences for innumerable civilians. Grandin gave a talk at U.C. Berkeley on Sept. 25.

Mon 10.16.06| The Israel Lobby Debate

It’s one of the most contentious issues in American politics – does a lobby for the state of Israel significantly shape US foreign policy? A recent public debate titled “The Israel Lobby: Does It Have Too Much Influence on American Foreign Policy?” featured on one side, Shlomo Ben-Ami, Martin Indyk, Dennis Ross, and on the other, Rashid Khalidi, Tony Judt, and John Mearsheimer.

Wed 10.11.06| Why Societies Collapse

Is our society hurtling toward irreversible collapse? Can we learn any lessons from the past? Jared Diamond's book examines how and why certain past societies have succeeded or failed. He discusses three case studies presented in Collapse: the Greenland Norse; Japan of the Tokugawa era; and the Rwandan genocide.

Tues 10.10.06| Inconvenient -- and Devastating

Global warming, fueled (literally) by human hyperconsumption, is arguably no longer a disaster-in-the-making; the disaster is unfolding now, and it's leading to the extinction of huge numbers of species that could eventually include our own. The film An Inconvenient Truth examines what's happening, and how politicians and others are responding.

Mon 10.09.06| Christ as Myth

Any understanding of Western history would be impossible without acknowledging the crucial role that Christianity has played in shaping our societies and belief systems. But what is Christianity premised upon? In the film The God Who Wasn’t There, filmmaker and former evangelical Christian Brian Flemming takes a hard look at Christianity – its origins, mythology, and its uses in the hands of modern day religious leaders.

Wed 10.04.06| Fidel Castro

He’s one of the monumental figures of the twentieth century – demonized by the US government, which has tried to assassinate him numerous times, while lionized by radicals across the world. But who is Fidel Castro really? Filmmaker Estela Bravo's Fidel presents a fascinating history of the life and times of the Cuban leader.

Tues 10.03.06| Parenti on Culture and Power

Culture, according to Michael Parenti, is far from neutral. In his book The Culture Struggle, Parenti makes links between culture, privilege and inequity, and examines how culture perpetuates dominant social and political ideologies. He also weighs in on cultural relativism, the functions of racism, and what he calls hyper-individualism.

Mon 10.02.06| Brazil's Elections

Four years after Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was elected head of Brazil, much of the shine has worn off his presidency, beleaguered as he is by corruption scandals and disaffection from many on the Brazilian left. Economists Matias Vernengo and Mark Weisbrot talk about Lula's social policies and the prospects for renewed radicalism in Latin America's largest country.

Wed 9.27.06| Chicano/a Art/Politics

An exhibition at the de Young Museum highlights Chicano painting since the 1960s. Independent scholar Max Benavidez discusses key artists and collectives as well as the historical antecedents of Chicano art. U.C. Berkeley professor Laura Perez addresses the responsibilities of museums and the contributions of Chicana feminist and queer art.

Tues 9.26.06| Working for a Living

Activists, unions, and community groups have passed living wage policies in 140 cities and counties as a corrective to the stagnant federal minimum wage, which stands at a paltry $5.15 an hour. And, as economist Robert Pollin and activist Marty Bennett explain, their efforts have built up momentum that may soon bear more fruit this November.

Mon 9.25.06| Labor and Desire; Labor in China

If workers identify with the capitalist system, how likely are workers movements to confront that system effectively? Graham Cassano discusses what Thorstein Veblen argued in relation to nationalism, worker solidarity, and the politics of desire. And Robert Weil discusses the plight, and militancy, of workers and the Left in China.

Wed 9.20.06| Sickness and Wealth

Although the US spends the most on health care, the health of its population lags behind many other countries. Could this have more to do with factors relating to wealth and income than with individual behaviors like diet and exercise? Stephen Bezruchka ties population health to economic inequality; Tim Holtz discusses the reglobalization of malaria. (Encore presentation.)

Tues 9.19.06| Naked Imperialism

With the invasion and occupation of Iraq, has imperialism entered a new stage? What is imperialism's relationship to capitalism? And is an escalation of the US military commitment in Iraq inevitable, given the logic of intervention to date? John Bellamy Foster, a sociology professor at the University of Oregon, addresses these questions and many more in his new book Naked Imperialism.

Mon 9.18.06| Jones in DC; US in Africa

In his new short-story collection All Aunt Hagar's Children, acclaimed writer Edward P. Jones writes about African Americans in his hometown of Washington, DC. Half a world away, Africans in Darfur endure continuing genocide without, says Ann-Louise Colgan, adequate US intervention. She's authored an Africa Action report comparing the US responses to Rwanda and Darfur.

Wed 9.13.06| What Anarchism Promotes

Anarchism is a sophisticated set of often pacifist ideas and practices with a long history in the US. Much of that history is presented in two documentary films, Anarchism in America and Free Voice of Labor: The Jewish Anarchists. Filmmakers Steven Fischler and Joel Sucher discuss their project, which included interviewing Murray Bookchin.

Tues 9.12.06| Crude Behavior

Oil companies are making record profits. Are they doing their best to keep gas prices as low as possible? In a new Public Citizen report, Tyson Slocum asserts that the oil giants are manipulating markets and gouging consumers. He also supports California Prop 87. And Simeon Tegel of Amazon Watch describes what Chevron has done in Ecuador to communities and the environment.

Mon 9.11.06| A Fascist State?

Is the US becoming, or is it already, a fascist state? In Against the New Authoritarianism, veteran educator Henry Giroux identifies the central features of fascism and examines whether they are in evidence today. Among other things, he emphasizes ongoing attacks on public space and the militarization of domestic culture.

Wed 9.06.06| Good Laws, Good News

What if there was one place you could go to find the best progressive laws, practices and programs in the world? Matt Gonzalez and Dave Grenell are building that place, as we speak, online. In other good news, Bob Hoffman discusses the largest restoration ever in California of coastal wetlands, in an area called Bolsa Chica.

Tues 9.05.06| Courting Danger

Does a majority of the U.S. Supreme Court want to strip Congress of some of its authority to protect the environment? And in what ways are judges who think independently -- including those who render rulings limiting executive power -- being attacked? Law professor Andrew Koppelman, and attorneys Aziz Huq and James Sample of the Brennan Center, weigh in.

Mon 9.04.06| The Haitian Revolution

It was a cataclysmic event, the first and only successful slave revolution in the Americas. In 1791 brutally exploited slaves on a small Caribbean island rose up and eventually won emancipation. Their story, a legacy that has inspired and instructed people and nations for centuries, is told in Laurent Dubois's Avengers of the New World.

Wed 8.30.06| Bookchin on Ecology & Ideology

Murray Bookchin, the influential left-libertarian social theorist and self-described utopian, passed away on June 30. Best known for his book The Ecology of Freedom, Bookchin stressed decentralization and direct democracy in conjunction with a groundbreaking focus on ecology. Bookchin gave a speech in the 1970s entitled "Ecology and Ideology."

Tues 8.29.06| Science, Power, People

Does democratization make sense in the realm of scientific research and decisionmaking? To what extent are nonscientists participating in the production of scientific knowledge, and what is the nature of their contributions? Kelly Moore and Phil Brown have written about science and social movements in The New Political Sociology of Science.

Mon 8.28.06| Undercounting and Organizing

How accurate are the most important labor statistics tallied by the US government? John Schmitt argues that poor people and people of color are not fully counted, skewing the unemployment rate. And Jeannette Gabriel talks about the efforts of immigrant workers to take their protests to the next level, and about the strategy of building a mass strike movement.

Wed 8.23.06| Where is the Anti-War Movement?

While the American public is increasingly opposed to the occupation of Iraq, the anti-war movement seems to be faltering. Vijay Prashad, Iain Boal, and Chuck Munson make the connections between US empire and capital. They discuss where the anti-war movement is and where it should be headed.

Tues 8.22.06| Revisiting the Manifesto

It's been called history's most important political document and is the world's second best-selling book. The Communist Manifesto, written by Karl Marx and Frederick Engels in 1848 on the eve of revolution, has been rediscovered in recent years by Wall Street bankers and radical activists alike. Phil Gasper talks about his new annotated edition. (Full-length interview.)

Mon 8.21.06| Assessing Weatherman

They championed themselves as a fighting force against racism and empire, but left a controversial legacy in their wake. Activist Dan Berger talks about what lessons can be learned from the Weather Underground almost 30 years after its dissolution.

Wed 8.16.06| Brecht 50 Years On

This week marks the fiftieth anniversary of the death of Bertolt Brecht, the twentieth century’s most important dramatist. Brecht revolutionized the theatre by challenging audiences to move from individual passivity to critical self-reflection and collective action. A Pacifica documentary narrates Brecht's confrontation with HUAC, while Brecht scholars Eric Bentley and Bluma Goldstein illuminate the contours of his life and work.

Tues 8.15.06| The Afterlife of Trash

While most of us are quite aware of the products we want, whether clothing, books, electronics, or food, we think very little of where they end up when we’re done with them. Heather Rogers has spent three years tracing the political economy of garbage and talks about how capitalism as a system thrives on the production of trash. (Encore presentation.)

Mon 8.14.06| Organizing Service Workers

As manufacturing work continues to be replaced by service jobs, organizing low-wage service workers has become a central concern of the union movement. SEIU organizer Jim Straub contends that this issue must be addressed if the union movement is to survive and the US left is to be resuscitated.

Wed 8.09.06| Hezbollah and the Left

How should the left view Hezbollah? Is it a terrorist organization as the US government claims? Is it the face of anti-imperialism in the Middle East? Or is it more complex than that? Lebanese Marxist Gilbert Achcar and cultural anthropologist Lara Deeb discuss Hezbollah's rise at the expense of the left and the prospects for a renewed secular radical left in the region.

Tues 8.08.06| Hitler and California

In June 1999, an original copy of Hitler's Nuremberg Laws surfaced at the Huntington Library near Pasadena. In Bloodlines, Anthony Platt recounts what he discovered about, among other things, General George Patton, anti-Semitism and eugenics in both Germany and California, and presentations of history at museums.

Mon 8.07.06| Race to Communicate

In what ways does the news media represent, or misrepresent, race? Is structural racism highlighted, minimized, or ignored? Talking the Walk, edited by Hunter Cutting and Makani Themba-Nixon, both critiques the media and examines ways of reframing debate and challenging stereotypes.

Wed 8.02.06| Activism and Mental Health

In today's political climate, many activists feel despair or get depressed. According to Terry Kupers, a psychiatrist and activist, one's emotional well-being may be significantly affected by how one's activist ambitions play out. How should we understand these psychological effects -- and how well do the disciplines of psychology and psychiatry help us address them? (Encore presentation.)

Tues 8.01.06| Dark Currents

The property rights and wise use movements are mobilizing millions of people nationwide -- and one result is that the health of rivers and associated ecosystems is at risk. In his book Confluence, Nathaniel Tripp examines the political, cultural, and ideological trends that are obstructing efforts to defend natural spaces. He also describes how rivers work and how the recreation economy degrades them.

Mon 7.31.06| Justice DeLay'ed

Until recently, Tom DeLay, a pugnacious born-against Christian, was House Majority Leader and one of the most powerful Republicans in the country. Before being indicted and resigning from Congress, he almost singlehandedly reshaped the US Congress, and thereby national policy, by rewriting the political map of Texas. A film called The Big Buy relates what happened.

Wed 7.26.06| Military-Industrial Collusion

Eugene Jarecki's latest film Why We Fight considers the nature, causes and consequences of the US military-industrial complex. His documentary reveals the extent to which politicians are in bed with corporations that make weapons and perform military-related services, and what that means for this nation's willingness to go to war.

Tues 7.25.06| JFK Reexamined

A new book by Gareth Jenkins compares the myths surrounding John F. Kennedy with what Kennedy actually did with respect to militarism, Cuba, civil rights, Vietnam, and much more. Among other things, Jenkins contends in The John F. Kennedy Handbook that JFK did as much to create the dangers posed by the Cuban Missile Crisis as he did to defuse it.

Mon 7.24.06| Imagining Something Better

Hungry for more originality in what you read and see? Worried that creativity and rebellion are on the decline? In The Middle Mind, Curtis White criticizes dominant narratives for their banality and in some cases destructiveness, and calls for a revitalization of the imagination. (Encore presentation.)

Wed 7.19.06| AmBushed

Is democracy still alive in the US? Is the Left overly obsessed with George W. Bush? And how can the Left most effectively oppose and disrupt right-wing agendas? These and other questions dominate the pages of AmBushed: The Costs of Machtpolitik. Editor Dana Nelson focuses on presidentialism; contributor Melissa Orlie explores the politics of everyday life.

Tues 7.18.06| Robert F. Williams and Black Freedom

Robert F. Williams is a key but oft-neglected figure in the Black freedom movements of the 1950s and '60s. A one-time local NAACP leader, Williams spoke out about human rights, Black self-determination, and the importance of Black communities defending themselves against racist violence. The Freedom Archives has produced a documentary about his life and work.

Mon 7.17.06| Sustainable Cities

The traditional urban development paradigm is deeply flawed, contends Raquel Pinderhughes. In Alternative Urban Futures, she examines the many unsustainable ways in which cities are developed and managed. The urban studies professor also describes systems and approaches -- many already in place in one or more cities -- that are ecologically and socially responsible.

Wed 6.21.06| Missed Left Turn?

Latin American leftist governments have swept to power in recent years -- Hugo Chávez in Venezuela, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in Brazil, Néstor Kirchner in Argentina, Tabaré Vázquez in Uruguay, and Evo Morales in Bolivia. Matías Vernengo discusses whether these governments are living up to the social and economic promises they've made. And Claudio Albertani talks about the upcoming Mexican elections and the candidacy of Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

Tues 6.20.06| Tariq Ali's Life and Times

Tariq Ali is one of the world’s best known radicals, having led resistance to the Vietnam War in Britain in the 1960s and 70s and now spearheading opposition to the war in Iraq. The acclaimed author, public intellectual, and filmmaker talks about his politicization and activism, as detailed in his memoir Street-Fighting Years: An Autobiography of the Sixties.

Mon 6.19.06| NAFTA Postmortem

NAFTA went into effect over 12 years ago, creating a free trade zone spanning from the southern-most reaches of Mexico to the northern border of Canada. Economist Jeff Faux talks about what its consequences have been for the US, Mexico, and Canada and what it tells us about the global system under which we live.

Wed 6.14.06| Immigrant Worker Centers

In a world of low wage, decentralized work, in which union membership continues to decline and regulations and labor laws are ever-more eviscerated, what can such workers do who want to know their rights, organize themselves, and act collectively? Janice Fine and Patricia Loya discuss how worker centers provide one possible solution.

Tues 6.13.06| Medical Profiling

When poor people of color are blamed for an epidemic, little or nothing is done to address the structural causes of inequality that make those people more vulnerable. Charles Briggs has written a book about the racialization of cholera in Venezuela and what it means for public health worldwide.

Mon 6.12.06| Iraq and Vietnam

Last November US Marines killed 24 civilians in the western Iraqi town of Haditha. Pacifica Radio journalist Aaron Glantz and Iraqi student Salam Talib argue that Haditha is just the tip of the iceberg in an increasingly brutal occupation. And Glantz talks about the similarities and dissimilarities between Iraq and the US war in Vietnam.

Wed 6.07.06| Reimagining the Panthers

The Black Panthers weren't just gun-toting African-Americans. They included people doing community service, running for office, and creating art. An exhibition at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts focuses on the Panther rank and file; its co-curator is Rene de Guzman. Bill Jennings is the Panthers' unofficial historian. Participating artists include Amanda Williams of Soul Salon 10 and Sam Durant.

Tues 6.06.06| The Zapatista's Other Campaign

Over twelve years ago, an uprising erupted in the southern Mexican state of Chiapas on the day that NAFTA was to take effect. Activists Mary Ann Tenuto Sanchez and R.J. Maccani talk about the Zapatistas' latest effort to reshape Mexican politics and unite the left with their "Other Campaign," or Otra Campaña.

Mon 6.05.06| The Marx-Bakunin Conflict

Ann Robertson believes socialism is the best alternative to neoliberal capitalism. The philosophy lecturer at San Francisco State University has also compared the ideas of Karl Marx with those of Mikhail Bakunin, the nineteenth-century Russian anarchist, tracing the two men's differences to their divergent philosophical frameworks.

Wed 5.31.06| Exit Strategy: Out Now

Should the US troops in Iraq be withdrawn immediately, or should they be kept there until the situation stabilizes? In Iraq: The Logic of Withdrawal, the New York-based activist Anthony Arnove contends that nothing positive can result from a continued US presence, and argues for the immediate withdrawal of all US and allied troops.

Tues 5.30.06| 50th Anniversary of Howl

Allen Ginsburg's “Howl” is undoubtedly one of the most important poems in American history. Its publication in 1956 set off a firestorm of reaction, both positive and negative, eventually leading to the arrest of City Lights Books' Lawrence Ferlinghetti and an obscenity trial. In 1957 Ginsberg read the poem on KPFA’s airwaves and a documentary from the Pacifica Radio Archives illuminates the poem's history.

Mon 5.29.06| Unions and Evangelicals

Ohio used to be the stronghold of militant trade unionism in the US, a mecca of high paying jobs and one of the most solidly Democratic parts of the country. While leftists have been puzzling over why working class people in Kansas would vote against their economic interests, following Thomas Frank, union organizer Jim Straub talks about what ails Ohio, where evangelicals have supplanted trade unionists.

Wed 5.24.06| Up in Arms

Juliano Mer Khamis's film Arna's Children recounts how his mother Arna opened a theater for Palestinian children in Jenin, and follows what happens as Arna's students grow up to participate in the Palestinian resistance. Mariam Shahin has written a lavishly-illustrated guide to Palestine and its people.

Tues 5.23.06| Revisiting the Manifesto

It's been called history's most important political document and is the world's second best-selling book. The Communist Manifesto, written by Karl Marx and Frederick Engels in 1848 on the eve of revolution, has been rediscovered in recent years by Wall Street bankers and radical activists alike. Phil Gasper talks about his new annotated edition.

Mon 5.22.06| When a Tree Falls ...

In the process of telling a truly amazing -- and true -- story about a fantastically rare tree in British Columbia and the eccentric man who cut it down, John Vaillant recounts in lush detail much of the natural history of the Pacific Northwest, the people who live there, and the impact of human activity on the forests, and thereby on the planet.

Wed 5.17.06| The Promised-Land Paradigm

According to David Noble, the biblical story of the promised land is not just some religious narrative; it has also shaped many key social and economic notions, like those of the free market, free trade, and historical and technological progress. Noble, author of Beyond the Promised Land, finds hope in thinkers and activists who have contested this promised-land paradigm.

Tues 5.16.06| The Promise of Fungi

In a world where pollutants accumulate in the environment around us, our homes and our bodies, is there any way to protect ourselves and the environment? Paul Stamets thinks so. He believes one of the answers lies in an unexpected place – mushrooms.

Mon 5.15.06| Visualizing Class

While class is arguably the most fundamental force structuring our society, the working class itself is either made invisible or presented through a distorted lens. Nowhere is this as obvious as on television, as “Class Dismissed: How TV Frames the Working Class” points out. The film features radical thinkers such as Robin D.G. Kelley, Barbara Ehrenrich, Herman Gray, and Pepi Leistyna.

Wed 5.10.06| The Warring Impulse

Hamza Yusuf, prominent Muslim thinker and co-founder of the Zaytuna Institute, spoke recently at an event entitled "Does God Love War?" In his wide-ranging talk he discussed the phenomenon of projecting our negative qualities onto the "other," the insights Islam provides, and the violence-generating aspects of US culture.

Tues 5.09.06| Commercializing Medicine

Whether we are aware of it or not, the big drug companies shape the way that medicine is researched, the type of health care we receive, and which drugs get wide use and which don’t – regardless of their efficacy. “Money Talks: Profits Before Patient Safety" was produced by Kathleen Slattery-Moschkau, who for ten years was a sales representative for Bristol-Myers Squibb and Johnson & Johnson, pushing medications to doctors.

Mon 5.08.06| Gutting California's Infrastructure

What do traffic tickets, property taxes, and California's decaying infrastructure have in common? Sherry Gendelman, who teaches San Franciscans how to fight their traffic tickets, discusses the way traffic fines have skyrocketed to supplement depleted state coffers. And Lenny Goldberg talks about how commercial landowners have gotten an enormous windfall from Proposition 13, leading to the dramatic underfunding of California's public services.

Wed 5.03.06| Wetlands and Reefs

Environmentalists often emphasize statistics, causal relationships, and policy trends. Laurie Lawlor likes to experience things firsthand. Her careful year-round observations of a wetland on her property are recorded in This Tender Place. Reef Check's Craig Shuman discusses threats to coral and temperate reefs.

Tues 5.02.06| Afghanistan Bonanza

Endemic corruption and cronyism in the awarding of reconstruction contracts to US firms in Iraq has gotten a fair amount of coverage. Yet similar misdeeds in Afghanistan are less well known. Afghan American investigative journalist Fariba Nawa and CorpWatch's Pratap Chatterjee discuss a new report that sheds light on profiteering in Afghanistan.

Mon 5.01.06| Immigrant Workers and May Day

As foreign born workers and their allies spill into America's streets, striking and boycotting schools, what are the movement’s broader implications? How spontaneous is this upsurge and upon what preexisting alliances and organizing is it built? Paul Buhle, Gloria Hernandez, David Bacon, and Khalil Jacobs-Fantauzzi talk about the actions and the potential of this movement to reinvigorate the left and labor.

Wed 4.26.06| Chernobyl and US Nuclear Plants

It was the worst commercial nuclear disaster in history. Twenty years ago, Chernobyl's nuclear reactor melted down, releasing untold amounts of radioactive fallout onto Belarus, the Ukraine and Russia and over 40% of Europe. Yet currently the Bush administration is pushing nuclear power as a key so-called “green” energy. Paul Gunter and Jim Riccio question whether we have truly understood the legacy of Chernobyl.

Tues 4.25.06| Hardt on Power and Resistance

If transforming the world in the direction of equality and democracy is the aim, how do we go about achieving it? Michael Hardt, co-author of Multitude and, before that, Empire, explains his hypotheses about the changing nature of labor, and how that might feed into a political project for liberation that he calls the multitude.

Mon 4.24.06| William Morris & Arts and Crafts

Arts and Crafts was a design and architecture movement rooted in a late nineteenth-century critique of industrial society. Historian Peter Stansky discusses the life and ideas of movement founder William Morris, who turned to socialism in the 1870s. Curator Martin Chapman describes an exhibition on international Arts and Crafts at the de Young.

Wed 4.19.06| Sickness and Wealth

Although the US spends the most on health care, the health of its population lags behind many other countries. Could this have more to do with factors relating to wealth and income than with individual behaviors like diet and exercise? Stephen Bezruchka ties population health to economic inequality; Tim Holtz discusses the reglobalization of malaria.

Tues 4.18.06| Novelist Kiran Desai

Set in India and New York, Kiran Desai's new novel The Inheritance of Loss combines a lush narrative with astute social commentary, about class relations, migration, Westernization, and modern hypocrisies. And Amit Srivastava describes a campaign to hold Coca-Cola accountable for its operations in India.

Mon 4.17.06| The Economics of Immigration

As millions of immigrants protest in the streets, some progressives have voiced concerns that immigrants lower the wages of those who are already the worse off in the United States. But does the left have the full story on the economic impact of immigrants? Economists Nigel Harris and Julio Huato fill in the blanks.

Wed 4.12.06| Pacifica's Civil War

It was an epic battle for the left that galvanized tens of thousands of progressives around the US and the world, and led to the shutdown of the country’s first listener-sponsored radio station and the arrests of many of its workers and listeners. Was it an attempted takeover by corporate hijackers? Or was it part of a broader strategy to give Pacifica a national voice that was nonetheless bound to fail? Historian Matthew Lasar talks about his new book Uneasy Listening.

Tues 4.11.06| Labor Victory in France

France has been in the grips of a momentous wave of social protest, uniting young people and labor in a way that harks back to May 1968. Millions have gone out into the streets to protest a law that would make it easy to fire young workers. But yesterday Chirac backed off from the law -- a victory which, according to economist Rick Wolff, represents a larger triumph over the forces of neoliberalism.

Mon 4.10.06| Black Cultural Politics

Remember the civil rights and Black Power movements? In his book No Coward Soldiers, Waldo Martin considers how African American cultural innovations, in fields like music, dance and art, fed and were fed by these movements, and how Black culture and its emphasis on liberation influenced American culture more generally.

Wed 4.05.06| When Philosophers Fight

Great thinkers sometimes don't get along. Jean-Jacques Rousseau clashed with David Hume. Ludwig Wittgenstein quarreled with Karl Popper. David Edmonds and John Eidinow have written about both conflicts, both involving geniuses with difficult personalities. Their latest book is Rousseau's Dog.

Tues 4.04.06| Ethanol: For and Against

For most scientists, there is no question that greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels like petroleum are warming the globe. Yet is ethanol, or plant-based fuel, a viable, environmentally-sound alternative? Scientists Alexander Farrell and Tad Patzek and environmentalists Nathanael Greene and Mike Ewall debate the pros and cons of corn and cellulosic ethanol.

Mon 4.03.06| Women Within Spanish Anarchism

In the midst of the Spanish Civil War, a momentous social revolution took place, spearheaded in many places by anarchists and their allies. In Free Women of Spain, Martha Ackelsberg recounts the revolution as well as the role played by a group of women anarchists called Mujeres Libres.

Wed 3.29.06| Migrants Under Fire

There's a kind of war being waged on the US-Mexico border, and the victims are defenseless civilians. Jose Palafox connects the dots between anti-immigrant sentiment, border policy, and corporate globalization. Sanctuary movement co-founder John Fife, who now works for No More Deaths, describes efforts to prevent migrant deaths along the border.

Tues 3.28.06| The War at Home

What if the invasion and occupation of Iraq had as much to do with decimating the remaining gains of the American working class as dominating the Middle East? Radical historian Robert Brenner offers up a fresh perspective on the motives behind contemporary US bellicosity.

Mon 3.27.06| States of War

What is the relationship between the privatizing, free trade policies of neoliberalism and the overt interventionism of imperialism? How should we understand the forms of opposition to US empire, whether left manifestations like the anti-war and global justice movements on the one hand, and reactionary militant Islam on the other? The Retort Collective spoke about these issues at a symposium titled “States of War.”

Wed 3.22.06| David Harvey on Neoliberalism

Neoliberalism has left an indelible, smoldering mark on our world for the last thirty years. But what is neoliberalism and what drives it? How did an obscure set of economic theories come to take hold of the imaginations of elites around the world? Eminent Marxist geographer David Harvey talks about the origins, trajectory, and significance of neoliberalism.

Tues 3.21.06| Unraveling the Soviet Experiment

What was the nature of the Soviet system? Was it in fact socialist or something else? Did its failure illustrate the futility of attempts to envisage of life after capitalism or was the Soviet experience shaped by other factors specific to the former Tsarist Empire? Few people have examined these questions as closely as Moshe Lewin, former collective farm worker and eminent scholar of Soviet social history.

Mon 3.20.06| Iraq: From Occupation to Civil War

Three years after the invasion of Iraq, how much of the sectarian violence that has been roiling the country should be chalked up to longstanding confessional divisions -- and how much to the US occupation? Middle East scholar Stephen Zunes discusses the history of confessional and ethnic politics in Iraq.

Wed 3.15.06| Early Gender Inequality; Iran's Left

Did gender hierarchies exist in ancient societies? Bruce Lerro traces their emergence, explaining contributing factors as well as identifying stages of institutionalized male dominance. Kambiz Sakhai describes leftist groupings in Iran and reviews some of their agendas, activities and struggles over time.

Tues 3.14.06| Latin Women Resist, Persist

The written word can educate, inspire and provoke. It can also express resistance, an unwillingness to abide injustice and oppression. Jennifer Browdy de Hernandez is editor of Women Writing Resistance: Essays on Latin America and the Caribbean. Longtime feminist Margaret Randall's essay relates her experiences in revolutionary Cuba and Nicaragua.

Mon 3.13.06| Unions and Evangelicals

Ohio used to be the stronghold of militant trade unionism in the US, a mecca of high paying jobs and one of the most solidly Democratic parts of the country. While leftists have been puzzling over why working class people in Kansas would vote against their economic interests, following Thomas Frank, union organizer Jim Straub talks about what ails Ohio, where evangelicals have supplanted trade unionists.

Wed 3.08.06| The Legacy of Ida B. Wells

Born to slaves, Ida B. Wells was a muckraking journalist, a champion of women’s rights, a newspaper editor and publisher, and the most prominent foe of the lynching of African Americans in the vicious backlash that followed post-Civil War Reconstruction. Historian Paula Giddings talks about the enduring relevance of Wells' life and work.

Tues 3.07.06| Anniversary Retrospective

On our third anniversary, the program's producers present a special retrospective, a collection of some of the best analysis and commentary aired over the past year. Featured guests include Tariq Ali, Jane Fonda, Louise Erdrich, Alexander Cockburn, Tom Athanasiou, Jean Hardisty, Tanya Hernandez, Laura Kipnis, Sonali Kolhatkar, Barry Pateman and Michel Warschawski.

Mon 3.06.06| The Haitian Revolution

It was a cataclysmic event, the first and only successful slave revolution in the Americas. In 1791 brutally exploited slaves on a small Caribbean island rose up and eventually won emancipation. Their story, a legacy that has inspired and instructed people and nations for centuries, is told in Laurent Dubois's Avengers of the New World.

Wed 3.01.06| GIs Against the War

How much courage does it take to resist the war machine from within? Conscientious Objector Aidan Delgado served for a year as a US Army Reservist, first in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriya and later at the notorious prison in Abu Ghraib. He talks about why he opposes the US occupation and how the antiwar movement could more effectively reach out to soldiers.