Many of today’s most urgent political struggles are defined not by citizen-government conflict but by tension between consumers and corporations. The pharmaceutical industry’s opioid epidemic, Big Food’s obesity crisis, and a climate emergency created by the fossil fuel industry all point to industry’s pervasive influence in the modern world order. In 2018, 157 of the … Read more
Lasers were once considered to be tools of the future. While movies like Star Wars and James Bond have traditionally depicted them as science fiction, the days of thinking about lasers as a futuristic tool have come to an end. Protesters around the globe are now using cheap, commercial lasers to confront police, cause disorder, … Read more
“Show me what democracy looks like! This is what democracy looks like!” Anyone who has attended a protest will be quick to recognize those lines as a fixed feature of any demonstration, whether it be the Women’s March or Black Lives Matter. “The right of the people peaceably to assemble” is enshrined in the First … Read more
When about 50 students occupied Harvard’s Office of Admissions and Financial Aid on December 12, 2019, they carried the legacy of a nearly half-century-long call for Harvard to create an Ethnic Studies department. The occupation represented one of several recent actions that have gripped campus and jarred the administration. From Fossil Fuel Divest Harvard’s sit-in … Read more