The pandemic has hit many of us in different ways. But women in particular find themselves at the intersection of multiple crises. Across the economy, jobs in female-dominated industries are disappearing. Inside the home, moms are often shouldering the brunt of the extra childcare burden that comes with school closures.
How are women getting by right now? And will the setbacks they’re experiencing be permanent?
Guest: Jess Calarco, professor of sociology at Indiana University.
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People of color experience more air and water pollution than white people and suffer the health impacts. The federal government helped create the problem, and has largely failed to fix it. NPR climate reporter Rebecca Hersher talks about the history of environmental racism in the United States, and what Biden's administration can do to avoid the mistakes of the past.
Read Rebecca's reporting on how Biden hopes to address the environmental impacts of systemic racism.
How to understand propaganda art in the post-truth era—and how to create a new kind of emancipatory propaganda art. Propaganda art — whether a depiction of joyous workers in the style of socialist realism or a film directed by Steve Bannon — delivers a message. In Propaganda Art in the 21st Century (MIT Press, 2019), Jonas Staal argues that propaganda does not merely make a political point; it aims to construct reality itself. Political regimes have shaped our world according to their interests and ideology; today, popular mass movements push back by constructing other worlds with their own propaganda.
Jonas Staal speaks to Pierre d'Alancaisez about his proposal for a new model of emancipatory propaganda art — one that acknowledges the relationship between art and power and takes both an aesthetic and a political position in the practice of world-making.
Jonas Staal is a scholar of propaganda and a self-described propaganda artist. He is the founder of the artistic and political organization New World Summit (2012–ongoing) and the campaign New Unions (2016–ongoing). With BAK, basis voor actuele kunst, Utrecht, he co-founded the New World Academy (2013–16). His most recent project Collectivize Facebook exploring legal ways to return the ownership of data in its many forms to the collective ownership of the users of software platforms.
Pierre d’Alancaisez is a contemprary art curator, cultural strategist, researcher. Sometime scientist, financial services professional.
Amazon faces its first unionization vote in the country in seven years next week in Bessemer, Alabama, and if the workers decide to unionize, it could spark waves of action across the country.
We interviewed Christian Smalls, a former Amazon employee, who led a walkout last March at a warehouse in Staten Island and was subsequently fired. He told us about his experience, his thoughts on the union push in Alabama, and what's next for essential workers.
And in headlines: Andrew Cuomo signs a bill to repeal the “walking while trans” ban in New York, Canada designates the Proud Boys as a terrorist organization, and country music’s Morgan Wallen gets dropped after using the n-word.
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"Amazon to face first U.S. unionization vote in seven years next month"
Chicago winters can be long and brutal. Curious City’s Monica Eng spoke with postal workers and other Chicagoans who spend a lot of time outdoors about how they dress for warmth during the winter. Also, we hear from a listener who asks what happens to the colorful landscaping along Michigan Avenue during the winter months.
Chicago winters can be long and brutal. Curious City’s Monica Eng spoke with postal workers and other Chicagoans who spend a lot of time outdoors about how they dress for warmth during the winter. Also, we hear from a listener who asks what happens to the colorful landscaping along Michigan Avenue during the winter months.
Freshman Rep. Beth Van Duyne, R-Texas, says she is committed to focusing on the “meat and potato issues that affect people's daily lives.” Van Duyne was the first female mayor of Irving, Texas, from 2011-2017. Now, she says, she'll draw on her experience in local government to listen to the needs and concerns of Americans and take action.
Van Duyne joins the "Problematic Women" podcast to share her personal journey to political office, why she is so committed to the pro-life movement, and how she intends to push back on the far-left agenda of progressive colleagues.
We also cover these stories:
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a new Republican Congresswoman from Georgia, continues to be at the center of controversy.
Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who died as a result of injuries he received during the Capitol riots Jan. 6, lay in honor at the Capitol Rotunda.
The Department of Justice drops an affirmative action lawsuit against Yale University.
Paris Marx is joined by Lauren Kaori Gurley to discuss how Amazon surveils workers to stop them from organizing, the difficult working conditions in warehouses and for delivery drivers, and whether Jeff Bezos become Executive Chair will change anything.
Lauren Kaori Gurley is a labor reporter at Motherboard/Vice. Follow Lauren on Twitter as @LaurenKGurley.
Tech Won’t Save Us offers a critical perspective on tech, its worldview, and wider society with the goal of inspiring people to demand better tech and a better world. Follow the podcast (@techwontsaveus) and host Paris Marx (@parismarx) on Twitter, and support the show on Patreon.
