Introducing Digressions, a virtual reading group organized by the Dig and Haymarket Books. This first session took place on August 3, 2023. Every session of Digressions will take place three to four weeks after its guest appears on the Dig, and will be broadcast live. A list of suggested readings—including a discount code for any recommended book(s)— will be made available by both Haymarket and the Dig, and participants will also be given a chance to ask their own questions of Digression guests. Click here to learn more about Digressions. Our first session will be on The Communist Manifesto and its enduring relevance, featuring China Miéville, author of A Spectre Haunting: On The Communist Manifesto. •Read along by ordering a copy of A Spectre Haunting from Haymarket Books for 40% off the cover price: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/... •If you have questions you'd like to ask China, or Dan, about The Communist Manifesto , A Spectre, Haunting, or their conversation on the Dig, you can submit them in advance using the following form: https://forms.gle/rwQHxyhyrjy7ttdu8 ———————————— More about A Spectre, Haunting: Few written works can so confidently claim to have shaped the course of history as Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels's Manifesto of the Communist Party. Since first rattling the gates of the ruling order in 1848, this incendiary pamphlet has never ceased providing fuel for the fire in the hearts of those who dream of a better world. Nor has it stopped haunting the nightmares of those who sit atop the vastly unequal social system it condemns. In A Spectre, Haunting, award-winning author China Miéville provides readers with a guide to understanding the Manifesto and the many specters it has conjured. Through his unique and unorthodox reading, Miéville offers a critical appraisal and a spirited defense of the modern world’s most influential political document. ———————————— China Miéville is the multi-award-winning author of many works of fiction and non-fiction. His fiction includes The City and the City, Embassytown and This Census-Taker. He has won the Hugo, World Fantasy, and Arthur C. Clarke awards. His non-fiction includes the photo-illustrated essay London’s Overthrow. He has written for various publications, including the New York Times, the Guardian, Conjunctions and Granta, and he is a founding editor of the quarterly Salvage. Daniel Denvir is the author of All-American Nativism and the host of The Dig on Jacobin Radio. ———————————— Digressions is sponsored by Haymarket Books and The Dig. While all of our events are freely available, we ask that those who are able make a solidarity donation in support of our important publishing and programming work. Watch the live event recording: https://youtube.com/live/CN9JJmO2mYY Buy books from Haymarket: www.haymarketbooks.org Follow us on Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/haymarketbooks

A special conversation with Naomi Klein, Astra Taylor, Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, and Chenjerai Kumanyika Presented by Hammer & Hope magazine, Haymarket Books and Marguerite Casey Foundation. The Left is at a critical juncture in the United States—and globally. We confront multiple simultaneous threats, from rising militarism, to profound ecological disruptions, to the growing threat of fascism, and beyond. What are the possibilities for building hope and effective political strategies amid the intersecting economic, political, and ecological crises we face? How do we understand the limits of the ballot box to achieve the changes we need and deserve? Please join us for this urgent discussion, which will also serve as the launch of the new issue of Hammer & Hope magazine.

Join Mohammed El-Kurd and Robin D.G. Kelley for a virtual conversation to launch Mohammed’s new book Perfect Victims. Perfect Victims is an urgent affirmation of the Palestinian condition of resistance and refusal―an ode to the steadfastness of a nation. Palestine is a microcosm of the world: on fire, stubborn, fragmented, dignified. While a settler colonial state continues to inflict devastating violence, fundamental truths are deliberately obscured—the perpetrators are coddled while the victims are blamed and placed on trial. Why must Palestinians prove their humanity? And what are the implications of such an infuriatingly impossible task? With fearless prose and lyrical precision, Mohammed El-Kurd refuses a life spent in cross-examination. Rather than asking the oppressed to perform a perfect victimhood, El-Kurd asks friends and foes alike to look Palestinians in the eye, forgoing both deference and condemnation. How we see Palestine reveals how we see each other; how we see everything else. Masterfully combining candid testimony, history, and reportage, Perfect Victims presents a powerfully simple demand: dignity for the Palestinian. Watch the live event recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXcqfLsraJI Buy books from Haymarket: www.haymarketbooks.org Follow us on Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/haymarketbooks

Join Naomi Klein, Chenjerai Kumanyika, Astra Taylor, and Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor for an emergency town hall on the accelerating corporate dominance of our lives and societies. From Elon Musk’s hostile takeover of core government functions, to the Trump family's vision for remaking Gaza into another Dubai, we are witnessing the extension of corporate power across the globe at an unprecedented pace. Tune in for a discussion of what we must do to resist the shock and awe politics of the far right and their billionaire enthusiasts. Watch the live event recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyLiNN_NMO4 Buy books from Haymarket: www.haymarketbooks.org Follow us on Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/haymarketbooks

Join Clément Petitjean and Alex Han in conversation about the new book Occupation Organizer. This event took place on April 30, 2023. How can activists seize on this moment of unrest to build durable, effective organizations for change? Join Clément Petitjean and Alex Han for a history and critique of the community organizing tradition and the fight to build collective power. The rise of the professional organizer has seen community organizing as a site of contestation. Chicago, where Alinsky first developed his model of the “professional radical”, is home to vast networks of community-based organizations that bring together multitudes in the fight for collective liberation—led by those who do the work as part of the community, rather than standing apart from it. With Brandon Johnson set to usher in a new era of progressive politics in Chicago, the time is now to learn from the successes, failures, and contradictions of the past. Get Occupation Organizer from Haymarket: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/... Speakers: Clément Petitjean is an associate professor of American studies at the Université Panthéon Sorbonne in Paris. He holds a PhD in sociology. His writing has appeared in academic journals and popular outlets like Jacobin, Contretemps, and Le Monde diplomatique. Alex Han is Executive Director of In These Times. He has organized with unions, in the community, and in progressive politics for two decades. In addition to serving as Midwest Political Director for Bernie 2020, he’s worked to amplify the power of community and labor organizations at Bargaining for the Common Good, served as a Vice President of SEIU Healthcare Illinois and Indiana for over a decade, and helped to found United Working Families, an independent political organization in Illinois that has elected dozens of working-class leaders to city, state and federal office. Most recently he was executive editor of Convergence Magazine. Watch the live event recording: https://youtube.com/live/6xfpDOcW1i0 Buy books from Haymarket: www.haymarketbooks.org Follow us on Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/haymarketbooks

Join Cathy Linh Che, Kyle Lucia Wu, and illustrator Kavita Ramchandran for a book launch and celebration of An Asian American A to Z. A comprehensive and spirited exploration of Asian American history—its movements, cultures, and key figures—An Asian American A to Z is a beautifully illustrated and compellingly told for readers of all ages. Co-authors Cathy Linh Che and Kyle Lucia Wu take us on a journey through stories of celebration and resistance: the Third World Liberation Front, the Muslim Ban, Japanese American incarceration camps, Padma Lakshmi, Rashida Tlaib, Sunisa Lee, and more. It is a history of struggle, but also one of great triumph, brought to life with colorful and dynamic illustrations by Kavita Ramchandran. Written by the directors of Kundiman—an organization dedicated to nurturing Asian American writers—An Asian American A to Z is a book for children of all backgrounds and a vital resource for tomorrow's organizers. Asian American identity formation is expansive yet under-taught, and this book is a necessary intervention that will ground readers in joy, history, and solidarity. ​​“This is the book I wish I had when I was growing up. It’s the book I’m glad I have now, one that I can read to my own children. Personal and political, playful and provocative, this rhyming guide brilliantly condenses rich, complicated Asian American histories. It’s an A to Z book that isn’t the last word on Asian American cultures but rather the beginning of many conversations.” —Viet Thanh Nguyen “An essential collection for any children’s library—it’s the book I wish I had for my own children when they were young. Informative, engaging and delicious rhymes—Che and Wu are simply enchanting storytellers. This book is foundational and intersectional, providing just the right historical touch to pique kids’ curiosity and encourage further reading for all!” —Aimee Nezhukumatathil “In An Asian American A to Z, Che, Wu, and Ramchandran share a beautiful, bright, and inclusive history of Asian America that is sure to inspire and delight readers. Asian Americans have much to be proud of, and much to look forward to.” —Sarah Park Dahlen ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Speakers: Cathy Linh Che is the daughter of Vietnam War refugees. She is the author of Split, winner of the Kundiman Poetry Prize, the Norma Farber First Book Award from the Poetry Society of America, and the Best Poetry Book Award from the Association of Asian American Studies. Her work has been published in New Republic, Nation, McSweeney’s, and Poetry. She serves as Executive Director at Kundiman and lives on the traditional lands of the Lenape people. Kyle Lucia Wu was born and raised in a small town in New Jersey. She is the author of Win Me Something, an NPR Best Book of the Year. A former Asian American Writers’ Workshop Margins Fellow, her work has been published in Literary Hub, Joyland Magazine, Catapult, and BOMB Magazine. She is the Managing Director of Kundiman and teaches creative writing at Fordham University and The New School. Kavita Ramchandran is an illustrator and graphic designer based in New York City, though she is originally from Mumbai, India. She has art directed and illustrated for children’s magazines and apps, designed elementary-school text books, and created animated shorts - Maya the Indian Princess and "Happy Holi Maya!" for Nick Jr. Her first picture book - Dancing in Thatha’s Footsteps written by Srividhya Venkat won the 2022 South Asia Book Award. http://www.wemakebelieve.com Watch the live event recording: https://youtube.com/live/zZ7FljzBOA4?feature=share Buy books from Haymarket: www.haymarketbooks.org Follow us on Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/haymarketbooks