From the Lighthouse Archives: solidarity without borders

At Lighthouse we livestream and record nearly all our events, one of the reasons being that we want the wisdom shared and questions asked to move beyond one moment and one room, to bring enjoyment and learning to folks where they are and where they are able to access it.

With that in mind, we hope you’ll allow us to suggest a few past events to revisit this month - for learning and the making of essential connections:

As the government continues to push its horrific Rwanda deportation bill, it’s crucial to remember how this is part of a world-view laid out and calculated for years. Back at the Radical Book Fair in 2021 (yes, unfortunately discussions had two years ago seem more current than ever) we held a panel on the hostile environment and how to challenge it, with contributions from Leah Cowan and Siobhán Mcguirk. In April 2022 we hosted Sally Hayden, speaking about her book My Fourth Time We Drowned, on the world’s deadliest migration routes. At the 2022 Radical Book Fair we heard from Andreas Hackl and Gracie Mae Bradley on the Limits of Citizenship.

The latter talk is also very relevant to the ongoing genocide in Gaza, and the apartheid state that has framed the lives of Palestinians for generations. Hackl’s book The Invisible Palestinians looks at the precarious lives of Palestinians living in Tel Aviv, a city that refuses to recognise them.

I can’t finish this round-up without sign-posting a couple of other conversations dedicated to Palestinian solidarity. At November’s Radical Book Fair, Hil Aked discussed censorship and the BDS movement with our Jim and Gina Gwenffrewi. There’s also a recording from the very recent community reading, part of a day of action during which the work of poet, editor and educator Refaat Alareer - killed under Israeli bombardment forty days earlier - was read publicly. The event is part of a series in collaboration with Publishers 4 Palestine - do keep an eye out for the next instalment.

Together we show up, together we think, and together we act.