In this collaborative episode with Return to Bandung, Pranay Somayajula and I have a conversation with Gabriel Rockill loosely centered around his new book ‘Who Paid the Pipers of Western Marxism?’.

We discuss how a distorted, effectively pro-empire form of Marxism, or radical politics more broadly, came to dominate western academia, how to understand academia as an intellectual industry almost just like any other industry, where the space exists for anti-imperialists to intervene in the otherwise bourgeois-dominated intellectual space, and where the ‘battle of ideas’ goes from here onward through the 21st century.

Journal of International Solidarity Links

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In this episode, I speak with Dr. Tejaswini Ganti, who is a Professor of Anthropology at New York University. We discuss the the emergence of the Hindi film industry in India during the era of Indian independence from British rule, how Hindi films during this era became popular across the world from the Soviet Union to North Africa, how the industry later transformed into Bollywood in the 1990s, and how the class character of films and film-going audiences changed during this period. We also look at some of the more recent developments in Indian film, including the rise of South Indian film industries and the saffronization of Bollywood.

Dr. Ganti's book "Producing Bollywood: Inside the Contemporary Hindi Film Industry": https://www.dukeupress.edu/producing-bollywood

Journal of International Solidarity Links

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In this episode, we discuss Torkil Lauesen’s latest book "Unequal Exchange: Past, Present, Future", published by Iskra Books. We take a deep dive into the theory of unequal exchange and how it explains the disparities between the global North and the global South. We look at the life of Arghiri Emmanuel, whose understanding and theorizing of unequal exchange Torkil is drawing on throughout the book. We also discuss the concept of ecological unequal exchange – that the ecological crisis is felt differently across the global North and South. Finally, we explore how unequal exchange is being resisted by China, how it can be resisted in the rest of the global South, but also in the global North.

Check out the book here (free PDF available): https://www.iskrabooks.org/ue-past-present-future/

Journal of International Solidarity Links

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In this episode, we look at the establishment of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) and where they fit in the history of African politics. We discuss the legacy of French colonialism on the region and the enduring neocolonial domination after flag independence, what these countries are doing to continue to defend themselves against the threat of terrorism in the region, what their paths of sovereign economic development is starting to look like, the role of Russia and China in these countries, what the rest of Africa and the global South can learn from the AES, and where the AES fits in the vision of Pan-Africanism.

Mikaela Nhondo Erskog is a researcher and editor at the Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research and co-coordinates the Tricontinental Pan-Africa office. She is currently pursuing her PhD at the School of International Relations and Public Affairs, Fudan University. She is a member of Pan-Africanism Today Secretariat, which coordinates the regional articulation of the International People's Assembly. She is also part of the No Cold War coordination committee, a peace platform promoting multipolarity and maximum global cooperation.

The Sahel Seeks Sovereignty (Tricontinental): https://thetricontinental.org/dossier-sahel-alliance-sovereignty/Le Sahel (latest news on Niger and AES - French language): https://www.lesahel.org/

'Is Homosexuality 'Un-African'?' (Tricontinental): https://thetricontinental.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/ink000013_interventions-2_is-homosexuality-unafrican_web.pdf

Queer Imperialism Article (Journal of Intl Solidarity): https://intlsolidarity.substack.com/p/queer-imperialism-the-highest-stage

'The Actuality of Red Africa' (Mikaela Erskog & Vijay Prashad): https://monthlyreview.org/articles/the-actuality-of-red-africa/

The 80th Anniversary of the Victory in the World Anti-Fascist War (Tricontinental): https://thetricontinental.org/the-80th-anniversary-of-the-victory-in-the-world-anti-fascist-war/

Journal of International Solidarity Links

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In this episode, Pranay and I look back at the debate that took place at the Communist International in 1920 between Lenin and Indian Communist M.N. Roy on the national and colonial question. At its heart, the debate sought to figure out what form the struggle for national liberation could take in the colonies as part of a world revolution, and especially, what role the indigenous bourgeoisie would play in this national liberation struggle.

In the first half of the episode, we go through Lenin’s and M.N. Roy’s positions on the national question, we look at where there are overlaps, and where there are differences. In the second half of the episode, we fast forward just over a century and explore the resonances of this debate in our current moment, specifically as they relate to China and Palestine.

Pranay Somayajula is an Indian-American writer, researcher, and political educator whose work focuses on the structures of global imperialism, as well as questions of decolonization, internationalism, and anti-imperialist resistance—both historically and in the present day. He is a PhD student in Political Science at the University of Minnesota, specializing in political theory and international relations from a Third World Marxist perspective, and is the host of the podcast Return to Bandung. Pranay’s writing has appeared in numerous outlets including Protean, Jacobin, and Monthly Review, as well as on his Substack blog, culture shock.

Return to Bandung podcast: https://www.returntobandung.com/

Pranay's Substack - Culture Shock: https://www.culture-shock.xyz/

Journal of International Solidarity Links

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In this episode, I have a wide-ranging discussion with Adnan Husain tracing the history behind why Islam and Muslims are uniquely demonized in the West, as well as the role Islam has played in anticolonial and anti-imperialist liberation struggles around the world, among other things.

Adnan Husain is an Associate Professor at Queens University in Kingston, Ontario specializing in the Medieval Mediterranean and Islamic World. He also hosts the Adnan Husain Show on Youtube and co-hosts the Guerrilla History Podcast.

Journal of International Solidarity Links

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PLEASE SUPPORT:

Lifeline4Gaza: https://lifeline4gaza.com/ 

One of the Sameer Project's several campaigns across the Gaza Strip: https://linktr.ee/thesameerproject

In this episode of our West Asia series, we discuss the ongoing hunger strike taken up by 6 Palestine solidarity activists being held in prison in the UK, the state of the Palestine solidarity movement in the west, and the need to develop a psychic militancy as part of continuing this internationalist struggle.

Filton 24 on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/freethefilton24/

Filton 24 on Substack: https://filton23.substack.com/ 

Prisoners4Palestine on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/prisoners4palestine/ 

Calla Walsh’s Substack: https://calla.substack.com/ 

Raven’s Substack: https://ravensreflections.substack.com/

Raven’s Instagram: https://instagram.com/indefenseofliberation/ 

Journal of Intl Solidarity Links

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In this episode, I talk to Immanuel Ness about his book ‘Migration as Economic Imperialism’. We look at the place of migration in the broader world-system of capitalism and imperialism, and why migration in fact does not contribute to the overall development of the countries people are migrating from.

Immanuel Ness is a Professor of Political Science at the City University of New York. He is a Marxist scholar whose work looks at migration and workers’ struggles. He is also a longtime labour organizer.

Journal of International Solidarity Links

Patreon: https://patreon.com/internationalsolidaritypodcast/ 

Instagram: https://instagram.com/journalofintlsolidarity/ 

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Youtube: https://youtube.com/@journalofintlsolidarity/ 

PLEASE SUPPORT:

Lifeline4Gaza: ⁠https://www.lifeline4gaza.com/

One of the Sameer Project's several campaigns across the Gaza Strip: https://linktr.ee/thesameerproject/  

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In this episode, Carl Zha discusses with me his recent trip to China, and specifically to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. We discuss what role tourism plays in the Chinese economy, and specifically in the economy of Xinjiang, how Xinjiang’s economy is increasingly being linked up with the eastern parts of China to share the fruits of development, in addition to the some of the security and separatism challenges faced by those in the region, and more.Carl Zha is the host of the Silk and Steel Podcast.Journal of International Solidarity Links

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In this episode, I have a wide-ranging conversation with Dr. Ken Hammond about the place of Chinese culture in the Chinese revolution more broadly. We touch on the role of Confucianism in Chinese history and through different phases of the Chinese revolution until today, we discuss language policy in China, how the study of Marxism is being revitalized, as well as the changing attitudes in China about the west.

Ken Hammond is a Professor at the Department of History at New Mexico State University, he is an expert in Chinese and East Asian history, having worked and lived in China for several periods over the past 40 years. He is the author of several books including ‘From Yao to Mao: 5000 Years of Chinese History’ and ‘China’s Revolution and the Quest for a Socialist Future’.

Journal of International Solidarity Links

Patreon: https://patreon.com/internationalsolidaritypodcast/

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