Everything’s in motion, everything in flux, nothing and no one stays the same: the young become the old, stories get retold, and the blowtorch of history illuminates the path ahead. That’s the way of time—the center cannot hold, and everything that is solid melts into air. I pause and sit down with my friend and comrade Wayne Au to talk about dialectics, contradiction, and the meaning of freedom. Dr. Au is a professor in the School of Educational Studies at the University of Washington Bothell, a scholar/activist, and a deeply engaged social justice organizer. Wayne is an editor at my favorite teaching magazine, Rethinking Schools, and the author of A Marxist Education: Learning to Change the World, an essential text for understanding the mess we’re in, and the possibilities before us.

Transition music from Dr. Sparkles’ song Great Bus Journeys of the West Midlands Pt 2 from the album “The War on Drugs.” © License. Disclaimer. Additional music from One Man Book's song Native Ocean© Disclaimer and Blue Sky Moon's song Burnt Utopia.© Disclaimer License and Lobo Loco's song Country Dream Sequence© Disclaimer License