Ideas

*Warning: This episode contains descriptions of graphic violence.* In part two of our series looking at the role of police in society, IDEAS contributor Kyle G. Brown examines the use of police surveillance on citizens, the increased use of military tactics, and its struggles when responding to mental health emergencies.

What kinds of responsibility does a Black writer have? Is it enough to just write whatever inspires you, or is there an obligation to take on the big questions of culture, class, colour? In part two of a two-part series, Black Canadian writers George Elliott Clarke, Afua Cooper and André Alexis discuss why they write and the importance of ‘home’ in their work.

Some protests hit with lightning speed and bring quick change in dramatic ways. But often the push for change takes much longer — decades, even generations. The change comes not from dramatic events but from a slow transformation of people, of culture, and society itself. IDEAS contributor Guy Dixon looks at the perpetual protest.

What kinds of responsibility does a Black writer have? Is it enough to just write whatever inspires you, or is there an obligation to take on the big questions of culture, class, colour? In part one of a two-part series, Black Canadian writers Canisia Lubrin, Nigel Thomas and Téa Mutonji discuss why they write and how they deal with the power — and the burden — of making art with language.

I love you: those three magic words are the most powerful and misunderstood words in the English language, according to writer and contributor Marianne Apostilides. She draws from Shakespeare, Freud, Aretha Franklin, Dolly Parton and other greats to parse how "I love you" can be enriching, manipulative and even empty.

In part one of a two-part documentary series on policing, contributor Kyle G. Brown traces its history, from the watchmen of the pre-modern era, to colonial forces — to the increasingly militarized police of today.

Contributors David Zane Mairowitz and Malgorzata Zerwe recount their odyssey throughout the southwest United States, as they ponder wedding services that range from mere kitsch to the truly bizarre. Their journey culminates, naturally, in Las Vegas, where they tie the knot at a drive-through chapel in a minutes-long ritual.

Covering the chaos of the last national election in his home country of Kenya gave Larry Madowo solid experience as a journalist reporting on an outcome that not everyone agrees on. As a North American correspondent for the BBC, he takes us inside his experience as a Black man reporting on the U.S. election in a deeply divided country.

Half the people on the planet eat it once a day. And it's one of the world's fastest growing food staples. But rice is more than food. It's folklore, culture, and history. Iris Yudai revisits her 2002 documentary exploring the power and meaning of rice. *This documentary originally aired on November 26, 2002.

In his lecture, and in a conversation with host Nahlah Ayed, philosopher of science Frédéric Bouchard explores our current relationship with scientific expertise and why we trust — or don’t trust — the experts.