Imagine Otherwise by Ideas on Fire

How can we tell a story that is ours but also belongs to millions of others? How can documentary film and engaged scholarship portray the realities of war?

In episode 22 of the Imagine Otherwise podcast, host Cathy Hannabach interviews filmmaker Wazhmah Osman about the politics of memoir, what the trauma of war does to archival research, and Wazhmah's critically acclaimed documentary film, Postcards from Tora Bora, which recounts Wazhmah's return to her childhood home of Kabul, Afghanistan nearly 20 years after her family fled Cold War violence.

Transcript and show notes: https://ideasonfire.net/22-wazhmah-osman

How is war felt through the body? Why are so many long-time antiwar and anticolonial activists turning to healing and body-based practices like acupuncture, traditional Chinese medicine, and somatics? And how can academics integrate decolonial feminist healing justice lessons into our classrooms and work spaces?

In episode 21 of the Imagine Otherwise podcast, host Cathy Hannabach talks with guest Ronak Kapadia about how Middle East, Arab, and South Asian artists are using visual culture to critique US empire and the global war on terror, the relationship between social justice activism and ethnic studies/women's studies scholarship, and self-care and community care as disability/healing justice ways to imagine otherwise.

Transcript and show notes: https://ideasonfire.net/21-ronak-kapadia

April Lynn James addresses how storytelling can help trauma survivors heal, the role of poetry in racial justice struggles, crafting an altac career that fits your unique skills and desires, and the political and personal importance of whimsy and laughter.

Transcript and show notes: https://ideasonfire.net/20-april-lynn-james

How are gender and sexuality implicated in the immigration process? Are there concrete steps that academics can take to engage with the broader community? What are the benefits of sound-based media (like this podcast)?

In episode 19 of the Imagine Otherwise podcast, host Cathy Hannabach interviews guest Karma Chávez about the intersectional politics of migration, how grassroots activism is essential to make change, and how her work integrates art, activism, and academia.

Show notes: https://ideasonfire.net/19-karma-chavez

How can publishers promote voices from the margins, and how can writers do their part in insisting that their voices are heard? For authors who write in multiple genres, what's the best way to choose the style that best matches your content?

In episode 18 of the Imagine Otherwise podcast, host Cathy Hannabach interviews poet, publisher, and writing coach Minal Hajratwala about her genre-bending writing style, the joy of coaching other writers, and how publishing can be a form of activism.

Show notes: https://ideasonfire.net/18-minal-hajratwala

Elizabeth Walker and Maria Novotny discuss popular representations of infertility, the common misogynist refrain that tells women they need to "fix" infertility by becoming mothers, the childfree movement, and merging oral history and art with academic scholarship.

Show notes: https://ideasonfire.net/17-elizabeth-walker-and-maria-novotny

Katie Manthey talks about feminist fat fashion blogging, running a website about body positivity, and the racially gendered politics of what counts as "professional dress" in the academy.

Show notes: https://ideasonfire.net/16-katie-manthey

Vicko Alvarez chats about using comics in the K-12 classroom and how she drew on her life to create her two comic series—ScholaR Comics and CholActivist—which use lighthearted, sometimes humorous events to tell otherwise tough stories of growing up Latina in a low-income neighborhood.

Show notes: https://ideasonfire.net/15-vicko-alvarez

How can artists engage with the academy to share cultural work and activism? How is education a form of activism?

In episode 14 of the Imagine Otherwise podcast, host Cathy Hannabach interviews filmmaker and cultural producer Aishah Shahidah Simmons about her award-winning film NO!: The Rape Documentary, collaboration as key to feminist work, and how every one of us can play a part in ending violence in our communities.

Show notes: https://ideasonfire.net/14-aishah-shahidah-simmons

What role do art museums and exhibition institutions play in creating political dialogue? How is highlighting work by and about marginalized populations a form of social justice activism?

On episode 13 of the Imagine Otherwise podcast, Cathy Hannabach chats with curator and director of the Philadelphia Institute of Contemporary Art Amy Sadao about the role of art in social change, how ethnic studies informs Amy's AIDS activism and curating practice, why we need more radical art and curators of color, and creating diverse community in Philadelphia.

Show notes: https://ideasonfire.net/13-amy-sadao