An incisive work of Black feminism in Britain covering reproductive justice, trans inclusionary feminism, supporting sex workers, prison abolition, and—excitingly—art as witness. I would have been bowled over if the chapter on food concentrated on food justice with inspiration from Vandana Shiva. Olufemi envisages a living, breathing practice … Read more
First off, Shiva cannot seem to write without clobbering repetition. The heart of her ideas and activism, however, are galvanising and foundational. She has transformed the way I think about food justice and agroecology. She questions the sanctity of science and development and [reveals] that these are not … Read more
She talks about colonialist principles being applied to Europe in WWII (Césaire), conditional absorption into whiteness, and revisionist histories—in riddling analogies and immoderate irony. She writes more straightforwardly about internalised racism and white men in Europe claiming to stand up for women only when they can pin patriarchal … Read more
★★½
★★★
★★★½
★★★★
Uneven, from distasteful sympathies (the anti-abortion Lark Street and the entitled white male murderer redemption story Light Spitter) to scintillating acuity
I didn’t expect so much patronising flattery and unscientific claptrap in the opening speech. Very little of this collection is agelessly thundering in exposing the crimes of imperialism, the prison walls of America, and the artifice of white liberal allyship.
This is a dissertation work on collective memory and commemorative activism. Although there are stretches of empirical research to wade through, it is fortunately also explicitly polemical. France is not unique as a country that refuses to acknowledge racial oppression (unless it’s in America or unless it’s … Read more
A comprehensive dissection of anti-Black racism across history, in Canada, and across all borders. If repetitious it’s as a direct reflection of unrelenting anti-Black demonisation, surveillance, containment, and violence in all our societal structures. Policing Black Lives is intersectional, potently researched, and crystal clear.
★★★½
★★★★
“Black and Blue” by Garnette Cadogan is the highlight ★★★★★
★★★★½
★★★★★
★★★★½
★★★
My ambivalence about mindfulness took a dive exactly during her example of taking care of the feelings of a racist instigator (Dan) with equanimity.
