Country music became popular in Japan after World War II. Today, Tokyo has a vibrant underground country music scene.

“Mike is for Black banks, Black businesses, Black guns, Black colleges, Black homeownership—all things Black Americans can do here and now without passing a law or asking for permission. He’s also for using Black voting power to wrest everything we’re owed from the government. It’s Black nationalism with a hint of socialism and armed to the teeth.”

Are humpback whales the Justice League of the oceans?

The link between Confederate memorials and Nazi art.

“Astrology, private equity, a $1.1 billion gender discrimination lawsuit, and a precariously built bangle behemoth.”

“To say that we’re drowning in our shit—the shit we all made together—is no longer a figure of speech in Lebanon today.” Lina Mounzer writes about Beirut’s broken sewage system and the political and economic factors that have drowned the city in its own waste.

“Were Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay really the first to summit the world’s highest peak? We searched for a camera that could rewrite history.”

“Nortel was once a world leader in wireless technology. Then came a hack and the rise of Huawei.”

“What I am evidence of is: You can dismiss a Black person. If you’re a young Black girl and you get raped, in the film business, no one’s going to fucking care. You can tell whoever the fuck you want, and they’ll call it an affair. Until people start taking this seriously, I can’t fully heal.”

“Can Joan be a heroine who, perhaps, also experienced hallucinations? I am trying to move towards a place where mental illness doesn’t fundamentally change her story to the point of delegitimising her successes or struggles. Can we accept that someone with mental illness might also be a competent hero?”