All that is solid melts into the air: The July uprising and a state in transition
Our people opened a new horizon of possibilities and demonstrated what it means to be active citizens. In the days of chaos following the fall—with no police and the army happy to sit back—they took on traffic regulation, protected their neighbourhoods, and organised a massive relief effort for the flood victims. They did all this without command and with no thought of reward other than a functioning state. The jury is still out on what they have received in turn.
1m ago
The banality of evil and the Messiah of a new dawn
For three days we were a state without a government.
3m ago
The cheapening of life and the struggle for the state
Either we finally build a people’s republic or we condemn ourselves to repeat this “legacy of blood”.
3m ago
The shifting political field and the price of permanent war
Is it not easier to defeat your enemies in parliament than to be permanently on the warpath against some shapeshifting enemy?
4m ago
Why every woman must ask for more
Every Women’s Day, I suffer from this ambivalent feeling of euphoria and despair.
1y ago
A scooter and a teep: Misogyny, in public and private
It is time to reimagine our city—a city where I can ride my bike without being run over or recorded by a stranger, where Lata can wear whatever she wants, and Meem can ride her scooter home safely without being questioned about her clothes, her movements or her company. We cannot wait for the patriarchy to be fully “smashed” before we can imagine this city and claim it as ours.
2y ago
Shifting the onus: Unshackle gender from violence
I was invited to write for 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, and it felt as if the universe was preparing confetti of convoluted emotions to throw at me.
3y ago
Lost home, abandoned nation: Fighting for a Bangladesh for all
I have been feeling unwell since October 13. After the mayhem in Cumilla, I knew it wouldn’t be the last. With a broken heart, my father-in-law and I, along with my son, decided to continue with our tradition of puja visits and mandap-hopping, yet we were all deeply disturbed, witnessing the carnage unravelling with a helpless rage.
3y ago
November 1, 2020
The burning man, and our national addiction to violence
Barely a month had passed since one of us wrote about rape, scopophilia and collective rage, and barely a day since we began an intergenerational dialogue on gender, rage and violence, full of hope at the emergence of passionate and resourceful young allies, when the world dutifully punched back.
October 7, 2020
Rape, scopophilia and our collective rage
Monday morning, October 5—I woke up and made the mistake of checking my Facebook newsfeed.
April 4, 2020
Covid-19: The ineptitude of power
Plagues, pandemics, floods and blights, we were once taught, are vehicles of retribution, weeding out those who have not prepared for divine wrath—the greedy, reckless, and arrogant.
September 16, 2015
The possibility for transversal politics
The students of private universities have shown their maturity and creativity in leading a peaceful demonstration against the proposed 7.5 percent VAT.
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