Mann returned to Europe in 1952, never to leave again… it was politics that had brought him to America, and politics that pushed him away. The mind is always in exile.. “I am an American,” Thomas Mann said during a radio interview in 1940. If he sounded relieved, it was because he was: He had… Read More Book review: How Thomas Mann escaped to America and waged a moral battle against Hitler
The United States presents itself as the beacon of democracy in contrast to the autocracies of China and Russia. Yet American democracy is in danger of succumbing to the same sort of oligarchic economics and racist nationalism that thrive in both these powers. After all, it wasn’t long ago that Donald Trump – who openly admired Xi… Read More Robert Reich – Beware of this deadly mix: oligarchic economics and racist, nationalist populism
So long as Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma kept a low profile, he was seen as an emerging leader from Assam. However, with political success he has turned into a profligate commentator and revealed himself as incapable of civilised political discourse. His comments on Rahul Gandhi’s parentage normally should not be worthy of public… Read More Bharat Bhushan: Verbal abuse of political opponents part of a larger malaise
‘Some have to play the game because they cannot otherwise live, and those who could live otherwise are kept out because they do not want to play the game’ Seventy years after its publication, Theodor Adorno’s Minima Moralia is a warning against resurgent fascism Minima Moralia is a work of exile. Published just over… Read More Theodor Adorno's Minima Moralia is a warning against resurgent fascism. By Peter E. Gordon
This is the twentieth anniversary of the making of Narendra Modi and the Gujarat Model. It was this month twenty years ago that triggered the marinade of horror, hatred and gore that has served up this sizzled nation called New India where it is possible for zealotry to hound a young girl for her choice… Read More Sankarshan Thakur: Splintered vision
NB: The debate on the Holocaust unleashed by Whoopi Goldberg‘s comments about race could be about her ignorance; but it could also arise from a linguistic misunderstanding around the concept of race. An issue related to this one is the origin of Nazi race legislation, the study of which may be found in this book… Read More Racism, the Nazis and American media
Our board member Sravya Tadepalli moderated the briefing and opened with the words, “As a Hindu and part of a religious tradition that believes all human beings are inherently divine, I believe it is my religious duty to speak out when oppressed people face atrocities. As an Indian American, I feel a special obligation to… Read More Sunita Viswanath: Why is the Indian Media Erasing 'Hindus for Human Rights' from the Republic Day Story?
Gauri Lankesh, a high-profile journalist and activist who spoke out against the rise of right-wing extremism and stood up for India’s marginalised people, was shot to death on 5 September 2017. Gauri was posthumously awarded the Anna Politkovskaya Award for her work. The trial of the 17 people being held in remand for her murder… Read More Killing the Truth: the case of Gauri Lankesh
The three-day hate fest against the Muslim community, held at Haridwar recently, is only the latest in a series of intemperate and vulgar attacks against minorities that, if unchecked, may lead to an irreversible fragmentation and disintegration of the Indian Union. We should stop minimising the destructive impact of these increasingly brazen and violent attacks… Read More Shyam Saran: Communal virus runs riot – Attacks on minorities may lead to irreversible fragmentation of Indian Union
NB: This public letter to the highest authorities in the land is of great significance. It’s contents reveal all that is to be said about the current situation in India, and leave me with only two things to say: one: more than judges, IAS officers and police officials, it is an active citizenry which is… Read More Your silence emboldens hate voices: Faculty, students of IIMs to PM
