Episode 7: Identity Politics and the Role of Intellectuals

Episode 7: Identity Politics and the Role of Intellectuals

Anti-intellectualism is running rampant: attacks are now coming not only from the far right but even some self-proclaimed representatives of the left. This week we turn our attention to the source of some of these polemics, including provocateurs like Catherine Liu, who criticize academics using the language of identity politics and "wokeness." Cutting past the shallow critiques and the clickbait, we talk about the nature of the "professional managerial class," the real meaning of lived experience, and the urgency of sustaining an intellectual vocation.

Episode 6: Hormones, Biopolitics, and Gender

In this episode, we continue our discussion of the current landscape for gender expression and liberation. We talk about the theoretical framework for Zein’s book project and think beyond trans politics to consider the ways that gender is constructed in wartime to meet certain political objectives. If you like what you hear, then please be sure to rate us or to head to our Instragram account (@exilic_city) to drop a comment with your thoughts!

Episode 5: Transgender Politics with Special Guest Prof Paisley Currah

In this episode, we talk with Professor Paisley Currah about the current landscape of anti-trans laws in the US and how they create conditions of internal exile for transgender people by stripping them of legal status. Read more: Isaac Sederbaum and Paisley Currah, "When Compliance Becomes a Crime: What Does Transgender Citizenship Mean after a New Kansas Law? [https://donmoynihan.substack.com/p/when-compliance-becomes-a-crime]" Can We Still Govern?, March 3, 2026. Paisley Currah, "The Anti-Trans Playbook," New York Review of Books, December 18, 2025. Unpaywalled [https://archive.is/mmLeI⁠] Paisley Currah,  Donald Trump's War on Gender is Also a War on Government, [https://www.newyorker.com/news/the-lede/donald-trumps-war-on-gender-is-also-a-war-on-government]" The New Yorker, May 27, 2025. Unpaywalled [https://archive.is/atCHB⁠] TransLash [https://translash.org/] with Imara Jones

Episode 4: James Baldwin, Malcolm X, and Critique of the U.S. w/ Prof. Christina Greer

What does it mean to oppose one's country, and can that critique come from a place of love? Joined by special guest Dr. Christina Greer, we discuss Malcolm X and James Baldwin as quintessential American thinkers as well as outsiders linked to larger global struggles against colonialism and imperialism. The conversation ends with important insights about how their message resonates today.

Episode 3: On Iran and the US-Israeli Attacks

In this special episode, we discuss the recent February 28 attack on Iran by Israel and the United States, with close analysis of how the war has been manufactured, what the role of the Iranian diaspora has been, and what possible outcomes lie ahead.