Sinead O’connor performing in Santiago, Chile, 1990. Photo by Marcelo Montecino/Flickr. Singer Sinéad O’Connor was not of this world. She was an ethereal talent and fearless political activist who existed beyond the margins of respectability and societal expectation. When she died last week at 56, she left behind an artistic
Continue readingAuthor: Ted McCoy
Canadian Dimension: Lana Del Rey’s American dream
American singer-songwriter and record producer Lana Del Rey performs at the Planeta Terra Festival in São Paulo, Brazil, November 9, 2013. Photo by Beatriz Alvani/Wikimedia Commons. Two of America’s best songwriters released new albums during the COVID-19 pandemic. The first was Bob Dylan’s Rough and Rowdy Ways, a staggering deep-dive
Continue readingCanadian Dimension: Resisting education cuts in Alberta: Drawing on recent historical examples
Operation Solidarity rally at Empire Field in Vancouver, where over 40,000 citizens joined to protest the government of Bill Bennett, August 10, 1983. Photo by Dan Keeton/Simon Fraser University Pacific Tribune Collection. Dramatic changes are coming to Alberta post-secondary education. On the advice of a report commissioned from management consulting
Continue readingCanadian Dimension: Rough and Rowdy Ways: Bob Dylan Confronts History
Bob Dylan mural, Minneapolis. Photo from Wikimedia Commons. On his new studio record, Rough and Rowdy Ways, Bob Dylan continues to mystify and astound. Over ten new original songs, the 79 year-old legend contemplates the twentieth century, American history, and his unique place within it. Who is Bob Dylan in
Continue readingCanadian Dimension: Solidarity and Trauma in the 24th Century: The Politics of ‘Star Trek: Picard’
Patrick Stewart as Captain Picard. Image by James Dimmock/CBS Interactive. Star Trek is back, and its new series Picard, starring Patrick Stewart, asks explicitly political questions. What does it mean to be alienated from society? What does it mean to be a stranger to yourself? These are old questions, asked
Continue readingCanadian Dimension: A Post-COVID-19 Canada: Towards Decarceration
Prison surveillance. Photo from Flickr. The COVID-19 pandemic has been a period of incredible collective action for the public good, and also a moment of stark inequality. “We are all in this together” is a comforting slogan, but there is clear evidence that some areas of society are experiencing the
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