Analysis: The British Empire Wasn’t Just About Race
by Kojo Koram
Young people are waking up to the fact that the British empire was not just about identity and race, but about poverty and wealth, democracy and control, writes Kojo Koram.
Tag: british empire
The Bastani Factor: What the British Really Did to India
From famine to deindustrialisation and paying for the world’s largest army, there were no advantages in being part of the British Empire. Aaron Bastani on what the British really did to India.
Interview: The Brutish Museums W/ Dan Hicks
Britain’s museums are filled with objects from around the world which were stolen. Should they be given back? And what would a ‘decolonised’ museum actually look like? Aaron Bastani is joined by Professor Dan Hicks to discuss his new book “The Brutish Museums”.
Analysis: ‘Spycops’ Are a Quintessentially British Institution – As the Empire Well Knows
by Eleanor Penny
Liberal commentators have been dismayed at the breezy waving of the 'spycops' bill through parliament, in what they claim is a rupture with the British democratic tradition. Yet as Eleanor Penny points out, the blades of state power now trained on domestic dissent were first sharpened in the empire.
Opinion: To Tackle the Right’s ‘Culture War’, the Left Needs to Build New Forms of Solidarity
by David Wearing
The reasons for widespread despair on the left are no mystery: the success of the right's 'culture war', and the loss of the Labour leadership. David Wearing argues workplace and community organising, and political education, can help us build the forms of solidarity we need to fight back.
Opinion: It’s Not Just Brexiteers Who Deal in British Exceptionalism – Centrists Do Too
by Aaron Bastani
Liberal centrists are quick to accuse right-wing Brexiteers of being prone to nostalgia and exceptionalism. But by appealing to a mythical past where Britain was an open, tolerant country, centrists show they're not actually all that different, argues Aaron Bastani.
The Bastani Factor: Insurgent Empire With Priyamvada Gopal
While anti-colonialism was driven by those in the global south, it was often in conversation with the imperial core. Aaron Bastani talks to Priya Gopal about her book ‘Insurgent Empire’ and the relationship between anti-colonial resistance and British dissent.
Opinion: No, Britain Hasn’t Been a ‘Force for Good’ in the World
by Aaron Bastani
Last week at a protest in Poole in defence of a statue, a woman held a sign that read ‘British history matters’. Aaron Bastani argues she's right - and it’s about time we started teaching it.
Opinion: Colston Should Have Stayed at the Bottom of the Harbour
by Ameya Tripathi
After decades of BAME communities democratically campaigning for the removal of the statue of Edward Colston to no avail, its quick and quiet retrieval by Bristol council exposes the establishment for the apologists they truly are, argues Ameya Tripathi.
Opinion: Ignore the Cries of ‘Vandalism’ – Tearing Down the Colston Statue Was Pure Justice
by Aaron Bastani
Both Britain's major political parties have decried the toppling of the Colston statue as an act of vandalism and criminality. Aaron Bastani argues that what we saw in Bristol on Sunday was in fact a moment of justice - and a glimpse, perhaps, of Britain's future.
Opinion: Pull Them All Down
by Dalia Gebrial
On Sunday afternoon a statue of slave trader Edward Colston was pulled down, dragged across Bristol and dumped into the city's harbour. Dalia Gebrial argues it's only by pulling down statues of slavers and colonisers that we can create space for re-education on how Britain came to be.
Novara FM: Anglo-Arabia: Khashoggi, Gulf Wealth & the War in Yemen
On #NovaraFM, James Butler is joined by David Wearing, author of 'Anglo-Arabia: Why Gulf Weath Matters to Britain' to discuss the Khashoggi affair and the rise of the Gulf monarchies.
The Lockdown: WTF Is Prison Even For?
On The Lockdown, Oonagh Ryder and Sam Swann ask: what is prison actually for? They discuss the history of the prison, its relationship to capitalism and colonialism, and what this means for our criminal justice system today.
Long Read: ‘I’m not looking for a new England’: On the Limitations of Radical Nationalism
by Kojo Koram
As UK politics veers wildly to the right, some people are attempting to rehabilitate a progressive English nationalism as part of a left project to push back against a rising tide of xenophobia and racism. Kojo Koram examines the limitations of this project.
Is It Time to Take the ‘Great’ out of Great Britain?
by Alice McCool
From Brexit to the Olympics, the strange idea that Great Britain is destined (or entitled) to greatness by virtue of its name persists.
Support for the Empire Shows it Matters Who Controls the Past
by Tom Cutterham
A recent poll showed 44% of Brits think the British empire is something to be proud of. To understand why such ideas remain so common, we need to lift the lid on how we come to understand history.