A Pageant for the Ruling Class
A celebration of royalty is a celebration of unearned status, intergenerational wealth and undemocratic politics. It is, in other words, doffing the cap to the ruling class – and the society they preside over.
4302 Articles by:
Rae Hart
Rae Deer is an economist and freelance writer.
On the Cost of Living Crisis, Labour Is to the Right of the Tories
With millions facing poverty, Labour should be demanding that the government goes much further than the weak measures announced so far – instead, they’re trying to cast those measures as irresponsible.
20 Years Later, ‘The Wire’ Remains Is Just as Radical and Relevant
On this day in 2002, the first episode of ‘The Wire’ aired. More than two decades later, it remains one of this century’s great television shows – and most radical social critiques.
The Radical History of British Republicanism
From the Levellers to the Chartists and Tom Paine to Tony Benn, a seam of republicanism runs through much of what is great about Britain – a tradition that is just as much a part of its history as the royal family.
Fighting the Holiday Home Invasion
Cornwall has 12,000 registered second homes, while 20,000 people wait to be housed. It’s an absurd situation that only serves the wealthy – and now local residents are organising to fight back and save their towns.
Public Pools for Everyone
After years of austerity, many of Britain’s swimming pools face closure due to spiralling energy costs – the alternative is a properly-funded system that treats them as a public good.
Shipping Chaos Is the Latest Sign that Capitalism Is Eating Itself
Capitalism rests on a network of privately-owned infrastructure, with shipping at its heart – but now the industry is in chaos as the profiteering of rentier corporations sends the world system into meltdown.
Remembering John Browne
John Browne, who died last month aged 71, spent his life fighting for workers on Preston Council, built solidarity movements with oppressed people from South Africa to Palestine, and never flinched from his commitment to a socialist society.
When the President Is a Crypto Bro
El Salvador became the first country in the world to adopt cryptocurrency as legal tender, pledging to build a ‘Bitcoin City’ on a volcano – but the recent crash has exposed the consequences of hitching a country’s economy to crypto delusions.
BDS Is Palestine’s Only Path to Justice
Israel will face no consequences from the international community for the murder of Shireen Abu Aqleh, or its attempted cover-up afterwards – for Palestinians, justice can only be won through political struggle.
Sinn Féin’s Breakthrough Opens the Door to a United Ireland
Sinn Féin’s victory in the recent Assembly elections is the first time a nationalist party has been the largest in Northern Ireland – and as unionism disintegrates, a unity referendum looks more likely than ever.
The Windfall Tax Sham
Rishi Sunak’s windfall tax is a drop in the ocean of the profits of oil giants. If the government was serious about tackling the cost-of-living crisis, it would stop letting super-rich corporations off the hook.
Imagining World Peace
The Russian physicist and dissident Andrei Sakharov was haunted by his role in the development of nuclear weapons – as an alternative, in late life he devised a system of horizontal confederation for both the USSR and the world.
Enshrining Impunity
This week, the British government introduced legislation to shield soldiers who committed historic crimes in Northern Ireland from prosecution – just the latest example of its determination to grant impunity for atrocities.
The Global Fight Against the Gig Economy
Workers across the Middle East and North Africa are taking on the gig economy in the face of political oppression – and demonstrating the power of solidarity.
10 Years of the Hostile Environment
Today marks the 10th anniversary of the hostile environment. As the war on migrants continues, building solidarity across our communities has never been more important, writes Shami Chakrabarti.
81. Pandemic Political Economy w/ Sahil Dutta and Nick Taylor
This week, Grace talks to Nick Taylor and Sahil Dutta about the politics behind the economics of COVID – and how the pandemic and current cost-of-living crises are likely to reshape the world going forward.
Rail Workers Are Fighting for All of Us
RMT workers across Britain have just voted for the biggest rail strike in decades. They are fighting not only a cost of living squeeze but funding cuts that would destroy the rail system as we know it.
The Police Don’t Need More Powers
Priti Patel’s plans to expand the use of stop and search and arm police police volunteers with tasers won’t prevent crime – but it will increase state violence and further persecute marginalised communities.
Prevent Reform Is the Latest Tory Gift to the Far-Right
The government’s review of the Prevent strategy will downplay the threat of the far-right while targeting social justice campaigns – the latest example of the Tories bringing extremist views into the mainstream.