KPFA - Against the Grain

Capitalism by its nature produces crises and, for the last century, states have responded by imposing austerity measures on the public. Governments claim it's a bitter but necessary medicine to set economies back on track. But economist Clara Mattei argues that austerity is actually a bludgeon to entrench elite power and repress workers' aspirations for a more egalitarian society. She looks at its origins — and that of modern economics — during the greatest existential threat to the Western capitalist order. Clara E. Mattei, The Capital Order: How Economists Invented Austerity and Paved the Way to Fascism University of Chicago Press, 2022 Forum for Real Economic Emancipation Photo credit of Athens protest: Kotsolis The post Austerity: Guardian of Capitalism appeared first on KPFA.

If sanctuary and asylum policies and practices don't do enough to protect immigrants, how is justice achieved? Ananya Roy's focus is on how poor and vulnerable migrants are viewed and treated, and on what migrant movements are doing in the face of border regimes, migrant crackdowns, and empty humanitarian rhetoric. Ananya Roy and Veronika Zablotsky, eds., Beyond Sanctuary: The Humanism of a World in Motion Duke University Press, 2025 Sanctuary Spaces: Reworlding Humanism UCLA Luskin Institute on Inequality and Democracy The post Beyond Sanctuary appeared first on KPFA.

While the Trump administration has pointedly targeted dissent at universities, sharp conflict between administrators, board members and many students, staff, and faculty have roiled colleges and universities for much longer. Economic sociologist Charlie Eaton reflects on how powerful financiers have transformed higher education well beyond elite institutions, while burdening students with high levels of debt. Charlie Eaton, Bankers in the Ivory Tower: The Troubling Rise of Financiers in US Higher Education University of Chicago Press, 2022 Photo by Tim Alex on Unsplash The post The Financialization of Higher Education appeared first on KPFA.

The right insists — and has tried to legislate — that male and female are hardwired opposites, with no overlap or variation. But as biological anthropologist Agustín Fuentes illustrates, science tells a different story. He shows how sex isn't either/or and discusses the complicated intersection of biology and culture, which are often termed sex and gender. (Full-length presentation.) Agustín Fuentes, Sex Is a Spectrum: The Biological Limits of the Binary Princeton University Press, 2025 The post The Biological Inadequacy of the Sex Binary appeared first on KPFA.

How is it that some of the most privileged people in the world — the multimillionaire and billionaire owners of tech and finance companies — are some of the most aggrieved? Journalist Jacob Silverman reflects on the titans of Silicon Valley's rightward turn, as well as the industry's financing and its past and present deep connections to the military. Jacob Silverman, Gilded Rage: Elon Musk and the Radicalization of Silicon Valley Bloomsbury, 2025 The post Silicon Valley's Turn to the Right appeared first on KPFA.

What made the rights activist Bayard Rustin, who among many other things organized the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, a compelling political figure? David Stein describes Rustin's political views, his strategic choices, and his focus on economic struggle. Honoring Rustin's legacy, Stein asserts, means drawing on his wisdom as well as learning from his errors. Michael G. Long, ed., Bayard Rustin: A Legacy of Protest and Politics NYU Press, 2025 The post Bayard Rustin, Movement Tactician appeared first on KPFA.

The genocide in Gaza has taken place in front of the eyes of the world with little consequence. Gilbert Achcar argues that the destruction of Gaza is a watershed moment in history, signalling the irretrievable collapse of the Western promise of the rule of law. He also discusses how the rise of the far right in Israel foreshadowed the ascendancy of the hard right in the West. Gilbert Achcar, Gaza Catastrophe: The Genocide in World-Historical Perspective UC Press, 2025 Photo credit: Jaber Jehad Badwan The post Israel, Genocide, and the Far Right appeared first on KPFA.

In his latest book, Lawrence Grossberg describes ways of thinking that have laid the foundation for the development of contemporary Western theory. Two of the thinkers he writes about are Friedrich Nietzsche, who “rejected the enlightenments,” and Stuart Hall, a pioneer in the field of cultural studies. (Encore presentation.) Lawrence Grossberg, On the Way to Theory Duke University Press, 2024 (Image on main page by Nick Youngson/Alpha Stock Images.) The post Nietzsche, Hall, and “Theory” appeared first on KPFA.

Why is the aging of populations framed as a crisis? What settler-colonial and capitalist logics are at work, and how are older people viewed and treated as a result? Sandy Grande delineates and critiques mainstream frameworks; she also advances a decolonial perspective that draws on indigenous attitudes toward elders and toward old age-associated conditions like dementia. (Encore presentation.) René Dietrich and Kerstin Knopf, eds., Biopolitics, Geopolitics, Life: Settler States and Indigenous Presence Duke University Press, 2023 Sandy Grande, ed., Red Pedagogy: Native American Social and Political Thought Rowman & Littlefield (Image on main page by Dwayne Reilander.) The post Aged Out? appeared first on KPFA.

A radio and web media project whose aim is to provide in-depth analysis and commentary on a variety of matters — political, economic, social and cultural — important to progressive and radical thinking and activism. The post Against the Grain – October 8, 2025 appeared first on KPFA.

Brandon Keim discusses his book “Meet the Neighbors: Animal Minds and Life in a More-than-Human World.” The post Fund Drive Special: Animal Minds and Life appeared first on KPFA.

Since the global financial crisis, and even more over the last five years, capitalism's popularity has fallen, while the fortunes of the capitalist class have risen steeply. Polls show that a majority of people under forty, of any political affiliation, view democratic socialism positively and capitalism negatively. Even a majority of Republican voters believe that our economic system favors corporations and the wealthy. Journalist John Cassidy discusses capitalism through the eyes of its critics. The post Fund Drive Special: Critiquing Capitalism appeared first on KPFA.

Prentis Hemphill discusses their book “What It Takes to Heal: How Transforming Ourselves Can Change the World.” The post Fund Drive Special: What It Takes to Heal appeared first on KPFA.

Jessica Mitford was a muckracking journalist and memoirist, radical activist and wit. Born to an English aristocratic family, she became a Communist and eloped with Winston Churchill's nephew to fight in the Spanish Civil war. Two of her sisters were infamous fascists and friends with Hitler. Jessica, known as Decca, moved to the United States, became a civil rights activist in Oakland, and helped transform American journalism from of the depths of the McCarthy era. Peter Sussman, editor of a collection of Mitford's letters, and the late radical journalist Conn Hallinan discuss Jessica Mitford's singular life and contributions. The post Fund Drive Special: The Life and Politics of Jessica Mitford appeared first on KPFA.

Mark Matousek discusses his book “Emerson, the Stoics, and Me: Timeless Wisdom for Living an Authentic Life.” The post Fund Drive Special: Emerson and the Stoics appeared first on KPFA.

The right insists — and has tried to legislate — that male and female are hardwired opposites, with no overlap or variation. But as biological anthropologist Agustín Fuentes illustrates, science tells a different story. He shows how sex isn't either/or and discusses the complicated intersection of biology and culture, which are often termed sex and gender. The post Fund Drive Special: The Biological Inadequacy of the Sex Binary appeared first on KPFA.

Brandon Keim discusses his book “Meet the Neighbors: Animal Minds and Life in a More-than-Human World.” The post Fund Drive Special: Animal Minds and Life appeared first on KPFA.

Over the last half century, diseases carried by insects — such as malaria and dengue, Zika and Lyme disease — have greatly increased. Sociologists Brent Kaup and Kelly Austin argue that the surge in vector-borne disease has been fueled by neoliberal capitalism, at times in unexpected ways, such as through loosened financial regulations governing mortgages and health insurance, as well as the gutting of health care. Brent Z. Kaup and Kelly F. Austin, The Pathogens of Finance: How Capitalism Breeds Vector-Borne Disease UC Press, 2025 The post Capitalism and Insect-Borne Diseases appeared first on KPFA.

Facial recognition cameras, tenant screening platforms, digital property management—many landlords use sophisticated technology to monitor and screen tenants. Erin McElroy weighs the impact of so-called proptech on prospective renters, on tenants' lives and well-being, and on people's ability to respond to and organize against landlord abuse. McElroy also talks about what they call Silicon Valley imperialism. Neda Atanasoski and Nassim Parvin, editors, Technocreep and the Politics of Things Not Seen Duke University Press, 2025 Erin McElroy, Silicon Valley Imperialism: Techno Fantasies and Frictions in Postsocialist Times Duke University Press, 2024 The post Landlord Tech appeared first on KPFA.

Blockbuster drugs are launched by the pharmaceuticals industry to great fanfare — with promises of treating intractable illness and often with a stratospheric price tag. Yet, despite the hype and cost, many of those drugs turn out to be less than useless. How is it that so many drugs that are vetted by the Food and Drug Administration escape real scrutiny? Jerry Avorn, one of the most cited scientists in medicine, discusses the deeply compromised state of drug production and government regulation, in thrall to a for-profit system. (Encore presentation.) Jerry Avorn, Rethinking Medications: Truth, Power, and the Drugs You Take Simon & Schuster, 2025 Alosa Health Center for Science in the Public Interest Worst Pills, Best Pills The post Medicines: Expensive, Poorly Tested, and Often Useless appeared first on KPFA.

The anti-abortion movement has deeply shaped our era, and not just because of the repeal of Roe v Wade. As scholar of the right Carol Mason argues, it also helped provide a gateway to the growth of the authoritarian right by normalizing violent rhetoric and political violence, while exporting ideas and tactics to the right abroad. She discusses the evolution of the antiabortion movement to the present. Carol Mason, From the Clinics to the Capitol: How Opposing Abortion Became Insurrectionary UC Press, 2025 The post Anti-Abortion: Gateway to the Far Right appeared first on KPFA.

The anti-abortion movement has deeply shaped our era, and not just because of the repeal of Roe v Wade. As scholar of the right Carol Mason argues, it also helped provide a gateway to the growth of the authoritarian right by normalizing violent rhetoric and political violence, while exporting ideas and tactics to the right abroad. She discusses the evolution of the antiabortion movement to the present. Carol Mason, From the Clinics to the Capitol: How Opposing Abortion Became Insurrectionary UC Press, 2025 The post Anti-Abortion: Gateway to the Far Right appeared first on KPFA.

U.S. imperialism has produced migration, sometimes to places you wouldn't expect. According to Emily Mitchell-Eaton, the Marshall Islands and Arkansas are both central to the workings of empire. The perceptions of longtime residents of demographically transformed cities like Springdale, Arkansas reflect geographical imaginaries that occlude the fact of U.S. empire. Emily Mitchell-Eaton, New Destinations of Empire: Mobilities, Racial Geographies, and Citizenship in the Transpacific United States University of Georgia Press, 2024 The post Imperial Migration appeared first on KPFA.

Is it possible to eat animal products ethically, as proponents of small-scale animal agriculture advocate? Or, as critical theorist John Sanbonmatsu argues, is consuming animals unjustifiable not just for reasons of disease and the climate emergency, but also because of the emotional complexity and intelligence of non-human animals? Sanbonmatsu makes the case for opposing and abolishing the animal economy in tandem with capitalism. John Sanbonmatsu, The Omnivore's Deception What We Get Wrong about Meat, Animals, and Ourselves NYU Press, 2025 John Sanbonmatsu, “With Bird Flu, the Chickens Have Come Home to Roost,” Counterpunch March 28, 2025 The post Capitalism, the Animal Economy, and Meat Eating appeared first on KPFA.

What is political theology, and where is this field of inquiry headed? Vincent Lloyd points to various connections between religion, power, and political discourse; he also considers the impact of feminist, Black, decolonial, and other perspectives on the field's trajectory. Alex Dubilet and Vincent Lloyd, eds., Political Theology Reimagined Duke University Press, 2025 Center for Political Theology The post Political Theology appeared first on KPFA.

In the decades leading up to the Civil War, enslaved people who traveled to freedom on foot did so mainly from Southern states that bordered free states. But those in the deep South didn't have that option and they often made their journey north by ship from the South's long coastline, with the help of free blacks, as well as white sailors. Historian Marcus Rediker sets the record straight, illuminating the ways that the culture of port cities and of free black communities helped the formerly enslaved make their way to freedom. Marcus Rediker, Freedom Ship: The Uncharted History of Escaping Slavery by Sea Viking, 2025 The post Escaping Over Water appeared first on KPFA.

While we're told by politicians that the ideas of Karl Marx are foreign and have no place in this country, history proves otherwise. Andrew Hartman shows that Marx and Marxism have had an a significant influence on the United States, from Marx's journalistic writings for the New York Daily Tribune, on the mass politics of the Socialist and Communist Parties and the Wobblies, on the most radical edge of the New Deal and the New Left, and finally with the return to Marx's ideas since the Global Financial Crisis. (Encore presentation.) Andrew Hartman, Karl Marx in America University of Chicago Press, 2025 The post American Marx appeared first on KPFA.

Classrooms are places where teaching happens. What if they were also places of healing and justice-seeking? Tessa Hicks Peterson describes educational approaches that foster well-being, empowerment, and critical thinking. She also emphasizes the need for trauma-informed pedagogical practices. Tessa Hicks Peterson, Liberating the Classroom: Healing and Justice in Higher Education Johns Hopkins University Press, 2025 The post Healing Higher Ed appeared first on KPFA.

For decades after World War Two, the defense industry polluted the desert near Tucson's Southside and poisoned the aquifer from which the largely Mexican American neighborhood got its drinking water. Sunaura Taylor, who was born there, reflects on lessons from the residents' struggle — and asks what a genuine remedy might look like. She discusses an environmentalism that recognizes that we all are or will become disabled — and fights not just for the able-bodied, but to extend care to all, including the rest of the natural world. (Encore presentation.) Sunaura Taylor, Disabled Ecologies: Lessons from a Wounded Desert UC Press, 2024 The post Environmentalism of the Injured appeared first on KPFA.

Film in the 20th century conjures up the glamor of the big screen, as well as the intimacy of family snapshots. According to film historian Alice Lovejoy, celluloid and its successors should also bring to mind war. She reflects on the history of film companies like Kodak in the making of the atom bomb, chemical warfare, and the legacy of radioactive fallout. Alice Lovejoy, Tales of Militant Chemistry: The Film Factory in a Century of War UC Press, 2025 The post Film Making and War Making appeared first on KPFA.

Jews and the left have been closely associated with each other for well over a century, both in Europe where the Nazis genocidally linked one with the other, and in the United States. Scholar Benjamin Balthaser considers the history of American Jews and the left, including in opposition to Jewish nationalism, arguing that the recent florescence of Jewish anti-Zionism is a return to a much longer tradition. Benjamin Balthaser, Citizens of the Whole World: Anti-Zionism and the Cultures of the American Jewish Left Verso, 2025 Photo credit: Bruce Emmerling The post American Jews and the Left appeared first on KPFA.

Many new and emerging smart technologies are characterized as creepy. What's the basis for these claims, and how should we respond to them? Neda Atanasoski and Nassim Parvin consider creepy technologies and their impact with an eye toward collective ethics, politics, and futures. They contest the notion that asserting privacy rights is the only way to address concerns associated with the proliferation of surveillance technologies. Neda Atanasoski and Nassim Parvin, editors, Technocreep and the Politics of Things Not Seen Duke University Press, 2025 The post Technocreep appeared first on KPFA.

White working class people are frequently dismissed by liberals as intractably racist — the purported bedrock of reaction in this country. While the support of working class whites has never been sufficient to explain the rise of Donald Trump, it's still worth asking what does it take to shift the politics of white workers brought up conservative and racist. Historian David Roediger's life has been spent grappling with such questions; yet his life itself has also answered them, given his own trajectory from racist small-town working class life to one of the founders of critical whiteness studies. David Roediger, An Ordinary White: My Antiracist Education Fordham University Press, 2025 The post The Making of an Antiracist and Anticapitalist appeared first on KPFA.

The Left has decried the privatization of services like water and electricity. Is it enough to return them to public ownership and control? According to David A. McDonald, the goal should be more equitable, democratic, and non-marketized forms of public services. He considers the role that so-called remunicipalization can play in environmental and social justice efforts. Gregory Albo and Stephen Maher, eds. Socialist Register 2025: Openings and Closures: Socialist Strategy at a Crossroads Municipal Services Project (Image on main page courtesy of the Municipal Services Project.) The post Making Services Public appeared first on KPFA.

Billions of dollars have been spent on Alzheimer's research over many decades, yet no effective treatment exists. Investigative journalist Charles Piller has revealed one reason for the impasse: pivotal scientific research into Alzheimer's disease — affirming the hypothesis that it's caused by sticky amyloid plaques in the brain — was based on manipulated images. (Encore presentation.) Resources: Charles Piller, Doctored: Fraud, Arrogance, and Tragedy in the Quest to Cure Alzheimer's One Signal, 2025 The post Manipulating Alzheimer's Research appeared first on KPFA.

The climate crisis no longer looms in the future, but has arrived in the form of deadly heat waves, enormous floods and wildfires, hurricanes, and droughts. It's clear that, along with fighting to slow climate change, we also need to protect ourselves and the most vulnerable around us from the devastating effects of global warming — especially as the Trump administration slashes existing safeguards. Science writer and broadcaster David Pogue discusses what we can do in an increasingly precarious world. (Full-length presentation.) David Pogue, How to Prepare for Climate Change: A Practical Guide for Surviving the Chaos Simon and Schuster, 2021 Image credit: Chris Gallagher The post Preparing for Climate Emergencies appeared first on KPFA.

It's both a precious resource and a dangerous pollutant, exponentially increasing crop yields, while fouling our waterways with blue-green algae. The element phosphorus has played a crucial role in agriculture and war, while its reserves are unevenly distributed, with much of the world's supply located in the occupied territories of Western Sahara. Writer Dan Egan discusses the double-edged nature of an element that is increasingly depleted and overused. (Encore presentation.) Resources: Dan Egan, The Devil's Element: Phosphorus and a World Out of Balance Norton, 2023 The post Phosphorus: Reaping the Harvest appeared first on KPFA.

When the system is stacked against you, when mainstream society sidelines you (or worse), where do you look for liberatory possibilities? Eve Dunbar describes how Ann Petry, author of the 1946 novel “The Street” as well as YA novels about Harriet Tubman and Tituba, insisted on satisfaction and not merely survival. Dunbar also talks about the value of what she calls monstrous work. Eve Dunbar, Monstrous Work and Radical Satisfaction: Black Women Writing under Segregation University of Minnesota Press, 2024 The post Radical Satisfaction appeared first on KPFA.

Many assume the majority of people living on the streets struggle with mental illness or just need jobs — and that homelessness is unfortunate, but intractable. Longtime advocate for the unhoused, Mary Brosnahan, argues that these are myths, and that much of what we assume about homelessness is wrong. She posits that at its root is the capitalist commodification of housing, illustrated in the past by Bronx landlords getting rid of low income tenants by burning their buildings to the ground to the systemic shortage of affordable housing today. (Encore presentation.) Resources: Mary Brosnahan, “They Just Need to Get a Job” 15 Myths on Homelessness Beacon Press, 2024 Invisible People Finland The post Getting Homelessness Wrong appeared first on KPFA.

Prentis Hemphill discusses their book “What It Takes to Heal: How Transforming Ourselves Can Change the World.” The post Against the Grain – July 30, 2025 appeared first on KPFA.

The climate crisis no longer looms in the future, but has arrived in the form of deadly heat waves, enormous floods and wildfires, hurricanes, and droughts. It's clear that, along with fighting to slow climate change, we also need to protect ourselves and the most vulnerable around us from the devastating effects of global warming — especially as the Trump administration slashes existing safeguards. Science writer and broadcaster David Pogue discusses what we can do in an increasingly precarious world. The post Fund Drive Special: Preparing Oneself for Climate Emergencies appeared first on KPFA.

Mark Matousek discusses his book “Emerson, the Stoics, and Me: Timeless Wisdom for Living an Authentic Life.” The post Fund Drive Special: Emerson and the Stoics appeared first on KPFA.

How was it that in less than two centuries the world's tallest trees, the majestic redwoods, were almost logged off the face of the earth? And this despite the efforts over many generations, starting in the late 19th century, to preserve them. Greg King, writer and forest activist, argues that one of the world's first greenwashing organizations – the Save the Redwoods League, founded by white supremacists – played a key role. He details the heroic struggle against the odds to defend these unique trees. The post Fund Drive Special: Fighting for the Redwoods appeared first on KPFA.

Daniel Fryer talks about his book “How to Cope with Almost Anything with Hypnotherapy: Simple Ideas to Enhance Your Wellbeing and Resilience.” The post Fund Drive Special: Self-Hypnosis & Hypnotherapy appeared first on KPFA.

Floods are the most destructive natural disaster and, thanks to a heating climate, the damages caused by floods are expected to worsen significantly. Flood mitigation of the past, such as levies and dams, has proved inadequate and often counterproductive by mis-allocating precious resources. Tim Palmer argues that it's time to start relocating our built environment out of the places with a high likelihood of flooding. (Encore presentation.) Tim Palmer, Seek Higher Ground: The Natural Solution to Our Urgent Flooding Crisis UC Press, 2024 Photograph credit: Mark Moran The post Mitigating Flooding appeared first on KPFA.

They fought to secure the vote for women. They used direct action, civil disobedience, and increasingly militant tactics to pursue their goals. Feyzi Ismail assesses the strategies and tactics of a group of British suffragettes with an eye toward building a more effective climate movement. Gregory Albo and Stephen Maher, eds. Socialist Register 2025: Openings and Closures: Socialist Strategy at a Crossroads The post Climate and Suffrage Struggles appeared first on KPFA.

Our lives are filled with innumerable choices, such as for the countless array of products for us to buy, assuming we can afford them. Our politics are often framed as a question of individual, not collective, choice such as the freedom to choose to have an abortion or the act of casting one's vote in secret, away from the eyes other others. Historian Sophia Rosenfeld argues that the notion that freedom means “the freedom to choose” has been central to modern Western society, but may be coming apart. (Encore presentation.) Sophia Rosenfeld, The Age of Choice: A History of Freedom in Modern Life Princeton University Press, 2025 The post Is Freedom a Choice? appeared first on KPFA.

Over the course of two decades, publications of the Industrial Workers of the World featured the influential writings of a hobo, transient worker, columnist, poet, and songwriter named T-Bone Slim. Owen Clayton talks about Slim's focus on workers' everyday lives under capitalism, his political stances, his use of humor, and his commitment to worker organizing. Owen Clayton and Iain McIntyre, eds., The Popular Wobbly: Selected Writings of T-Bone Slim University of Minnesota Press, 2025 Owen Clayton, Vagabonds, Tramps, and Hobos: The Literature and Culture of U.S. Transiency, 1890–1940 Cambridge University Press, 2023   The post Wobbly Extraordinaire appeared first on KPFA.

The federal minimum wage languishes at $7.25 an hour and has not been raised since 2009. Given the disproportionate number of workers of color who receive the minimum wage or less, legal scholar Ruben Garcia argues that the fight for racial justice has to include raising the minimum wage. (Encore presentation.) Ruben J. Garcia, Critical Wage Theory: Why Wage Justice Is Racial Justice UC Press, 2024 Photo credit: Fibonacci Blue The post Racial Justice Through Raising the Minimum Wage appeared first on KPFA.

What role did Irish Catholics play within the U.S. left? Were Irish radicals more interested in freedom from British rule or in anticapitalism? And what effect did religious beliefs have on Irish Americans' inclinations to break with the mainstream? David Emmons highlights Irish Americans' contributions to dissidence, progressivism, and radicalism in the United States. David Emmons, History's Erratics: Irish Catholic Dissidents and the Transformation of American Capitalism, 1870-1930 University of Illinois Press, 2024 The post Irish American Dissidents appeared first on KPFA.

As the environmental crisis worsens, not everyone is drawing the same lessons. On the far right, xenophobic and racist ideas are increasingly dressed up as means of protecting nature. And, as scholar Alexander Menrisky posits, contemporary American culture furnishes a wealth of material for the right, from the ubiquity of apocalyptic and misanthropic ideas to concerns with Wellness and bodily purity. Alexander Menrisky, Everyday Ecofascism: Crisis and Consumption in American Literature University of Minnesota Press, 2025 The post The Fodder of Eco-Fascism appeared first on KPFA.