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Interviews, Podcasts, Realities 4th July 2020

The Social Review Podcast Episode 51: School’s Out…?

Jasper and Wrenna sit down with headteacher Cathy Rowland to discuss life on the ground in schools right now, how the Department of Education has handled the crisis, the long and short-term impacts of school closures, keeping children safe online in lockdown, and much more. iTunes Link

History, Realities, Reviews 29th June 2020

Review: A People’s History of Tennis

Credit: UA Archives – Upper Arlington Public Library (Repository: UA Historical Society) I have never considered myself a “sports person”. In my salad days, I hardly brimmed with natural athleticism. To me, school sport was at best an irritant and at worst an exercise in humiliation–I faked injuries in order to do my homework in the library (I know, I know) and declared…

Liberation, Podcasts, Realities 25th June 2020

The Social Review Podcast Episode 50: The 1987 Caucus

Jasper meets singer/songwriter Jermain Jackman, and Labour activists Jake Cable and Amen Tesfay, to discuss the 1987 Caucus, a new movement to enhance the representation and power of black men within Labour. They discuss racism in Labour, changing public perceptions of racism, how the Conservative Party may be trying to appeal to black voters, and much more. Theme composed by Katrina Toner.…

Realities, Within Westminster 24th June 2020

What the Robert Jenrick Story Tells Us About Corruption in the UK

Credit: Chris McAndrew / UK Parliament (Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)) In any normal world, Robert Jenrick would have resigned by now. If you aren’t aware of the Housing Secretary’s misdemeanor, Jenrick is accused of facilitating a ‘cash for favours’ deal in which he approved a housing development on the Westferry Printworks site in Tower Hamlets, a site owned by Conservative Donor…

Beyond the UK, Realities, Reviews 21st June 2020

Review: Yesterday’s Man: The Case Against Joe Biden by Branko Marcetic

Famously, Franklin Roosevelt was described by none other than Supreme Court Chief Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes as possessing a “second class intellect but a first class temperament”. While perhaps they wouldn’t say as much out loud, one gets the feeling that this is an epithet with which supporters of Joseph R. Biden, former Vice President, 6-term Senator from Delaware and presumptive Democratic…

Ideas, Realities, Reviews 20th June 2020

Review: Split: Class Divides Uncovered

“Split: Class Divides Uncovered”, by Ben Tippet, has one major thing going for it. As an object – as a consumer product – it is beautiful. The cover design by Jamie Keenan is a lovely use of colour and image, pinks and blues and blacks and whites with clean lines and clear iconography. The actual material of the cover is lovely, a…