Emboldened by the rapid development of technology, a cultural ethos of rugged individualism, globalization, and the monopolization of our media, the era of efficiency in the so-called Global North has significantly altered our communal symbiosis. For many, acts of service that would have once been fulfilled by neighbors and community have now been replaced by apps and gig workers, ultimately commodifying most of our social relations in one form or another. This week on the podcast, we are joined by guest Vijay Prashad to explore how societies take care of themselves, what true public action looks like in crisis, and how movements across the world have resisted the privatization of life and the devaluation of care that we have become accustomed to.

In conversation, Vijay shares how our morality has eroded under the weight of capitalism and why the disappearance of dignified discourse is connected to calculated divestments from our social and state institutions. However, rather than fixating on the bleak, we extend beyond our purview and look at the brilliant lifestyles of authentic agency, sensitivity, and an abundance of love that make up a global movement pushing an existence beyond subservience and consumerism. This moving episode pushes us to think about how we can organize movements that will truly address quality of life, thus bringing people together organically, rather than relying on false calls for unity. 

Vijay Prashad is the Director of Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research, Chief Editor at LeftWord Books and Chief Correspondent for Globetrotter. His most recent book is Washington Bullets, just out from Monthly Review Press with a preface by Evo Morales Ayma.

♫ Music featured in this episode is “Mirage” by Nathan Keck, “Two Hands Together” by Lizabett Russo, “Heyyeya” by Sidi Touré, and “Intro” by Jonathan Yonts.

References & Recommendations

Letter From the Great Wound: The Eleventh Newsletter

Ten-Point Agenda for the Global South After COVID-19: The Twenty-Fifth Newsletter

In the Ruins of the Present

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