The Weekly Read

The Weekly Read for March 25, 2023, is Three Registers of Destitution, the introduction of Destituent Power, a recent special issue of South Atlantic Quarterly (122:1), by issue editors Kieran Aarons and Idris Robinson.

From the Introduction:

“Herein lies the great merit of those theorists working to develop the concept of destitution outside of and beyond the logic of revolt, in long-term experiments in autonomous anti-institutional collective life, whether among the Mohawk warriors in Tyendinaga or the Zapatistas in Chiapas or in the strategies of urban survival amidst the ruins of the Anthropocene, from Mexico City to the exurbs of America. If it is possible to collectively constitute ourselves as destituent, if neighborhoods or entire regions can self-organize autonomously against the rule of money, without succumbing to the temptation to reinstitute the political as a sphere separate from everyday life, then we need not await the Great Evening in which “another end of the world” becomes possible, for there are already glimmers of a life in common within the passing away of this world, here and now.”

Read the article for free here, and buy the issue using coupon code SPRING23 to save 50% through April 17th.

Explore this topic more by listening to a panel conversation (in Spanish and English) featuring the issue editors, Kieran Aarons and Idris Robinson, as well as Diego Sztulwark, Sonali Gupta, Francesco Guercio, Rodrigo Karmy, and facilitated by Gerardo Muñoz via Conversaciones a la intemperie–a platform for presenting publications on contemporary thought–a collaboration between Arthaus artists’ residence and the 17/institute.

The South Atlantic Quarterly, founded amid controversy in 1901, provides bold analyses of the current intellectual scene, both nationally and worldwide. Published exclusively in guest-edited special issues, this award-winning centenarian journal features some of the most prominent contemporary writers and scholars tackling urgent political, cultural, and social questions. Some issues grow out of current academic debates, concerning, for example, the growing power of finance, narratives of black leadership, and the politics of austerity.

The Weekly Read is a weekly feature in which we highlight articles, books, and chapters that are freely available online. You’ll be able to find a link to the selection here on the blog as well as on our social media channels. Enjoy The Weekly Read, and check back next week for something new to read for free.