Articles

For too long, we have reduced our political plight in the Arab world to the figure of the authoritarian ruler: he falls, and dictatorship falls with him, supposedly clearing the way—automatically and effortlessly—for freedom, democracy, and justice. Yet our experiences, both past and recent, suggest that the reality is far more complex. A ruler may fall, a regime may change, enlightened (…)

Roger Huddle co-founded the group that helped defeat the fascists, while Geoff Brown was the Manchester organiser of the Anti Nazi League. Both spoke to Frankie Murden Frank Murden (FM): What was Britain like when you set up Rock Against Racism (RAR) in 1976? Roger Huddle (RH): There was a swell of racist filth following the expulsion of Asians from Malawi in east Africa. Many of them (…)

The key politico-historical significance of the victory on 25 July 2026, of the mass protests led by Indian youth is that the projected invincibility of Narendra Modi, the current Prime Minister of India, has been blown apart. Prime Minister Modi has been humiliated by the bravery, creativity, and ingenuity of the Indian youth protesters. The resignation of his education minister, (…)

It was with a heavy heart that we learnt of the passing away of MP, our dear friend and respected mentor. He was in a coma in July, but like a miracle, he came around, and on July 19, KK sent us the good news that “though he is not able to speak, he is understanding everything. Today I told him that his anthology is coming out soon… he responded with a loud ‘yes’.” We were so hopeful about his (…)

Can all the people be fooled all the time? Can a country with a population of a billion-and-a-half be dragged around like a corpse forever? It cannot. The Cockroaches are out and about. For the first time in years, it feels wonderful to be Indian. Just when hope seemed lost, they came. Young roaches riding in on the rain. The progeny of the unholy union between a judge and a joke. We (…)

Between the Legacy of Struggle and the Challenge of Renewal The crisis of the Left today is not merely a crisis of popularity, electoral performance, or organizational decline. It is, above all, a crisis of adaptation: a growing gap between its inherited frameworks and the realities of a rapidly changing world. Yesterday’s answers are no longer sufficient to explain today’s realities, let (…)

In early 2023, Quebec’s political class erupted in indignation over comments made by Amira Elghawaby, newly appointed by Ottawa as Special Representative on Combatting Islamophobia. Her offense was straightforward: she suggested that many Quebecers seemed disturbingly indifferent to the rise of anti-Muslim sentiment in the province. What followed was immediate, furious, and entirely (…)

The areas of Kashmir under Pakistani administration are supposed to have political autonomy, but that has long been a sham. The Pakistani authorities have responded to popular protests demanding real democracy with brutal repression. The Pakistan-administered territory of Jammu Kashmir (PaJK) is witnessing the most extensive confrontation between the masses and the Pakistani state in (…)

Norman G Finkelstein, OR Books, £24.99 Finkelstein’s work provides voluminous detail, fastidious cross-referencing of sources, exhaustive footnoting, and precision which is at times excruciating. It benefits from stark moral clarity: human life hangs in the balance. MORE than 20 years ago, Archbishop Desmond Tutu remarked that Israel would never achieve safety through oppression: “A (…)

Article dedicated to all peoples who live under dictatorship, and to those in democratic societies who may one day find themselves confronting it again. “He was depressed when he suddenly realized that everything had finally fallen into place in the world… everything except him… he alone no longer had a place.” Gabriel García Márquez, The Autumn of the Patriarch This is not merely a (…)