James Baldwin, Collected Essays The Library of America, 1998
Tariq Ali, "On the Death of Pramoedya Ananta Toer" CounterPunch
James Baldwin gave a talk about history and human potential at the Masonic Temple in San Francisco on December 16, 1964. And the Indonesian dissident and author Pramoedya Ananta Toer spoke on KPFA in 1999 about his political activities, long incarceration, and now-legendary writing. (KPFA 60th Anniversary Special.)
Hilary Wainwright, Reclaim the State: Experiments in Popular Democracy Seagull Books, 2009
Are people allowed by current governments and political systems to realize their creative and political potential? If not, why not? And how should the knowledge not of experts and elites but of ordinary folks be valued and used? Hilary Wainwright talks about democracy, political agency, and efforts to push back against top-down ways of governing.
Paul Ginsborg, Silvio Berlusconi: Television, Power and Patrimony Verso, 2004
Paul Ginsborg, Democracy Profile, 2008
A wealthy media magnate named Sylvio Berlusconi was first elected prime minister of Italy in 1994. What have his three stints as Italy's leader meant for democracy and dissent? Paul Ginsborg contends that Berlusconi's use of the media, of clientelism, and of notions of negative freedom has stymied meaningful popular political participation.
What does private eye V I Warshawski have to do with the Patriot Act? Crime fiction writer Sara Paretsky, creator of the acclaimed Chicago detective, speaks out about feminism, literature, and dissent in the post-9/11 era.
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