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Long Read

A British police officer wearing a blue shirt, yellow vest and protective goggles holds up a Taser at a shooting range.

Analysis: A Brief History of the Taser, the ‘Less-Lethal’ Police Weapon That Keeps Killing People

Sandeep Sandhu

A police officer is finally standing trial for the death of footballer Dalian Atkinson, who died after being tased for six times longer than standard practice. The case has reignited debate around the police’s most controversial weapon and the company that produces it, writes Sandeep Sandhu.

Demonstrators take part in a Black Lives Matter protest in London on 12 July 2020.

The Left Won’t Win the 2020s by Clinging to the Corpse of the Labour Party

Jonas Marvin

James Schneider's undying Labourism, expressed in his recent series How We Win, obscures an important truth: the next left surge will take place against the state, not within it.

People bury the bodies of Covid-19 victims at a graveyard in New Delhi, India, April 2021. Ninian Reid/Flickr

You’re On Your Own, Kids: How the Indian State Abandoned Its People to Covid-19

Aruna Chandrasekhar

India is in the grip of a horrific second wave – and prime minister Narendra Modi has blood on his hands. Whether it’s Covid-19 or the climate crisis, it's vital that solidarity remains with the Indian people and not with their government, writes Aruna Chandrasekhar from Mumbai.

Keir Starmer walks through Whitehall

We Already Know Starmer’s Labour Ends in Tears – Just Look at the West of England

Aaron Bastani

Rulebook-burning, a leftist purge plus a mayoral candidate nobody wants to campaign for have produced disaffection and despondency. We don't need a crystal ball to see what the future holds for Keir Starmer - it's happening right now in Bristol.

A row of police officers wearing covid masks

Who Dreamt Up the Police Bill? The Police, Of Course

Sam Knights

The police, crime, sentencing and courts bill didn't come from nowhere. It is the result of years of lobbying by the police, helped by an authoritarian state, rightwing press and pliant opposition. Sam Knights takes a closer look at how it came into being.

An illustration of Britney Spears holding up a hammer and sickle

Money Can’t Free Britney – But a Strike Could

Eleanor Penny

The pop star inhabits a gilded version of the same cage that traps all wage labourers. She also has the same tools to escape, writes Eleanor Penny.

Keir Starmer is a Long-Time Servant of the British Security State

Oliver Eagleton

Labour under Keir Starmer has taken a troubling flag-waving turn. But while his patriot act may in part be driven by political expediency, Starmer’s loyalty to the British security state has historically been strikingly consistent, writes Oliver Eagleton.

Whatever Happened to the UK Youth Climate Strikes?

Clare Hymer

Two years ago, young people across the UK walked out of school in the first of a wave of 'climate strikes'. But despite its rapid and extraordinary growth, the youth strike movement's future was in jeopardy even prior to the pandemic. Clare Hymer reports.

Analysis: No, Benefit Claimants Still Aren’t Exploiting the System

Josh Gabert-Doyon

The digitisation of Universal Credit is reinforcing old prejudices about benefit fraud, fuelling a new moral panic. Josh Gabert Doyon explains what's actually going on.

Arctic Turbulence: Why Indigenous Communities Are Fighting Wind Farms

S Reid-Collins

Construction is continuing on the Øyfjellet Wind Park, which is set to become Norway's largest onshore wind farm. But the site runs right through the Jillen-Njaarke reindeer herding district, leading the Indigenous South Saami people to enter a battle for existence.

An Amazon picker between stacks.

How Do We Solve a Problem Like Amazon?

Craig Gent

Amazon isn’t the type of problem that can simply be fixed, writes Craig Gent. In order to take on one of the defining companies of our era, we need to make Amazon's punishing work process our business.

crowd crossing street

The West is Dying – of Narcissism

Arun Kundnani

Conservatives often frame demographic change as western cultures 'committing suicide'. The left must challenge this, writes Arun Kundnani, because as individuals and as peoples, we can only grow through our encounters with others; in pursuing a purification of the west, conservatives foster the very cultural death they claim to fear.

America is a Gerontocracy – and Until That Changes, Its Problems Will Only Get Worse

Aaron Bastani

There’s an inarguable trend in US politics: leaders and legislators are getting older. But far from a marginal concern limited to a single nation, the consequences of rule by the elderly are potentially catastrophic, argues Aaron Bastani.

tin of mackerel with fork inside it

Forget Tory Food Tips: Everyone Deserves Delicious Big Dinners

Eleanor Penny

The Tories' meal plans scorn the idea that everyone is entitled to the basic human joy of food. We must insist on the necessity of pleasure, writes Eleanor Penny.

With Joe Biden, There’s Still a Case for Climate Optimism

Daniel Aldana Cohen

Despite his refusal to back the Green New Deal, in the event that Joe Biden becomes president, a focused and disciplined effort from social movements and their allies could see real advances towards a greener horizon, argues Daniel Aldana Cohen in an in-depth piece.

Analysis: What Would Jesus Do? Cancel the Rent

Francis Brewer

The UK is facing a massive, and avoidable, debt crisis. Throughout history, the cancellation of debts has been used as a safety valve against social and economic collapse - and now's the time to reopen it. If it’s good enough for Christ, argues writer and activist Francis Brewer, it’s good enough for us.

International: How a Revolution Really Feels: Rojava 8 Years On

Matt Broomfield

How does it feel to seek new ways to live? On the eighth anniversary of the Rojava revolution, journalist and activist Matt Broomfield - who has been living and working in North and East Syria for the last two years - explains.

Turbulence in Macron’s France: A Recent History

Nicolas Jara-Joly and Thierry Labica

Between his hated pension reforms, handling of the pandemic, open disdain for the democratic process and frequent recourse to police repression, Emmanuel Macron's teflon sheen has well and truly worn off. Nicolas Jara-Joly and Theirry Labica survey 'La Macronie' so far and look ahead to 2022's presidential election.

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