It's International Blog Against Racism Week! For more info, visit
ibarw.I want to pimp to you a great resource chocka with info, both specifically about racism and colonialism, and generally about the cultures of the world: the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's Radio National podcasts.
You don't need to be in Australia to download or subscribe to the podcasts. The audio is generally available for a few weeks after their original broadcast, plus transcripts of most shows are permanently available. There are a few in particular which I catch up with whenever I can (typically on the treadmill :-).
Lingua Franca is a short (15 min) show about language. It covers English, Australian Aboriginal languages, and languages around the world. If you're quick, you can still catch audio of remarkable Russian Jewish polyglot
Alexandra Aikhenvald.
Trying to keep up with every edition of
The Book Show is like drinking from a firehose - it airs daily and is 45 minutes long. I pick and choose from the huge selection of items. Earlier this year my brain was grabbed by a broadcast about
Rotten English, a anthology of non-standard English from around the world - which tied in with an earlier Lingua Franca show on
postcolonial and global English.
The Ark is a short (about 20 minutes) show on religious history, full of intriguing bits and pieces which can lend insight to current events. The show spent June exploring
the ancient history of Israel. The longer (about an hour) religions magazine show,
The Spirit of Things, is also well worth a listen.