More Activist Reading and Listening
The week 70 listicle
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Activism in fiction
is back with her newsletter Activist Explorer, examining activist experiences, especially in writing. Barnet is irked by limited and stereotypical representations of activists in fiction and, as an antidote, is writing a movement mystery series. The newsletter also includes great original artwork. I look forward to following these journeys!Fatphobia and environmentalism
This piece on anti-fatness in the environmental sustainability movement was recently recommended by
in her newsletter.According to the article’s authors Austin Bryniarski and Samara Brock:
The logic goes like this: weight is directly linked to how much people eat, eating too much food has a measurable environmental impact and anyone who is deemed to be overweight is, therefore, a bigger burden on the environment.
Fat studies scholars and food justice advocates explain how the supposed “science” driving anti-obesity campaigns is based on a narrow body of evidence that not only reinforces stereotypes and stigmatises large bodies but is also biased in terms of gender, race, class and geography. Plus ça change.
Let’s try this instead:
Environmental catastrophe is directly linked to the greed, corruption and colossal waste of the international food industry. Anyone who profits from this industry is therefore a bigger burden on the environment.
The ethics of true crime reporting
As a podcast addict and someone who guiltily binged season 1 of Serial, I enjoyed this discussion on Canadaland about the ethics of earning a living off other people’s tragedies. Investigative journalist Michael Lista talks to host Jesse Brown about the dilemmas of telling the stories of those most directly affected by the aftermath of murder, how class prejudice helps to hide the realities of domestic violence in upper-middle-class homes, and the importance of not giving away information from interviews that might prejudice legal proceedings and hinder justice for survivors.
When words matter (and not so much)
Another shout-out to the Canadaland podcast, which regularly features journalist
as a guest commentator. Loreto also has a Substack, and I enjoyed this post on when it’s important to find just the right word in political writing, and when obsessing about the definition of a particular term becomes a distraction for the left.It’s much easier to get mad about someone’s imprecise use of words online than it is to do pretty much anything in real life that builds power. With building power not going super well these days, yes, some of the fights over words and their meanings is a proxy for our lack of power.
Cuban serenade
I’ve been enjoying this new podcast featuring my friend and fellow Cuban historian Karen Dubinsky alongside Freddy Monasterio. The show focuses on the history of Cuban music in Canada, from the post-war period to the present. It showcases not only key musicians, but also the producers, journalists and others who worked to bring Cuban sounds and artists to Canada, as well as the wider socio-political context that has both constrained and shaped the Cuban-Canadian musical relationship. A creative podcast with an activist angle.
The tedium of the devil’s advocate
and Alexandra of The Green Fix newsletter ask “Why play 'devil's advocate' to people trying to fix the world when you could help instead?” It’s not a rhetorical question. This short piece is a handy reminder of why it’s better to walk away from smug time wasters than to engage in meaningless banter. Go do some activism instead.The work of Minnie Bruce Pratt (1946-2023)
All of it.
I’ll be back later this month with some reflections on the prose, poetry and actions of this amazing lesbian anti-racist activist writer, who died on Sunday. Rest in power.
Pen in Fist is written by me, C Lou, aka Dr Carrie. You can find my other writing and projects here. You can subscribe to this newsletter here. You can support my writing further by buying my book or getting me a virtual coffee.