Remake the world Essays, reflections, rebellions

Filmmaker Taylor (Democracy May Not Exist, but We'll Miss It When It's Gone) tackles a wide range of pressing social issues in these ambitious and thought-provoking essays. "Breathing Together" ties the respiratory distress of Covid-19 to Eric Garner's death in police custody, conspiracy allegations against striking workers in the mid-19th century, and the conspiratorial thinking behind the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. Taking note of the rising interest in democratic socialism, Taylor critiques the social media activism that has replaced old-school organizing among younger activists, and encourages older folks to embrace millennial policy aspirations such as the Green New Deal. In "Failing Better," she reflects on the "strategic tenacity" needed to keep trying to make the world a more equitable place, while "Who, the People?" explores what images of "the people" should look like in order to inspire change without glossing over inequality. Taylor also tackles patriarchal attitudes in the tech industry, how capitalism preys on insecurity, and the crushing burden of student debt. Blending big-picture thinking with the history of the populist struggle in America, this impressive collection makes a strong case that the time for change is now. (May)

A trenchant analysis of contemporary problems. Activist, organizer, and documentary filmmaker Taylor gathers 15 penetrating essays (previously published in venues such as the New York Times, New Republic, and the Baffler) on issues including the deleterious consequences of unfettered capitalism; planetary stewardship; Covid-19; inequality; and the meaning of democracy. "We are all living amid the wreckage of a long, ongoing, and intentional sabotage of progressive collective action," she writes, "a profit-driven health care system ill-prepared to cope with a pandemic, runaway climate change threatening the future, a bigoted and broken criminal justice system, a misinformation-addled (and conspiracy-promoting) corporate media sphere, and an economy in which the majority of people can barely keep their heads above water." In the face of such deep-seated problems, the author laments the lack of "an organized and mobilized multiracial working class fighting for their shared interests." Her own evolution from "supportive observer to obsessive organizer" came in response to the Occupy movement, which highlighted the suffocating debt afflicting so many Americans; in response, she helped found the Rolling Jubilee, a fundraising initiative aiming to purchase and erase people's debts, and the Debt Collective, a union for debtors. Activism alone cannot foment change, Taylor asserts: Organizing transforms activism into movement building, crucial to sustaining and advancing causes "when the galvanizing intensity of occupations or street protests subsides." In several essays, the author delivers sharp critiques of capitalism, which she calls "an insecurity machine." Besides "profits, commodities, and inequality, insecurity is a fundamental output of the system." More than reforming capitalism, she urges, we must "jettison and transcend it." Whether she is writing about gender discrimination in the tech industry, the plight of refugees, or the rights of the natural world, Taylor reveals in her essays a forthright commitment to "the cause of common humanity." Stirring essays reveal an intelligent and pragmatic voice for change. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.