Interview: I chat to Gordon Brown about his hero, Mandela
Written by Oona KingOona chats with Gordon Brown on a train journey to Manchester
The Black Panthers A collection of photographs by Stephen Shames
The Revolution will not be televised. But if it is, it should star the Black Panthers. The Black Panther Party, one of the most iconic movements to emerge from a century filled with revolution, caught the imagination of oppressed people the world over. Their narrative was of bread and guns. Their imagery was key, and it is fitting that the 40th anniversary is marked by the publication of a photographic history. Stephen Shames, a close friend of founding Panthers Bobby Seale and Huey P Newton, photographed the movement between 1968-73, during years of extraordinary social change.
Book review: Women in Parliament - the new suffragettes
Written by Boni Somes with Margaret Moran and Joni LovenduskiHave you ever wondered what Westminster is really like? What it feels like and tastes like from the inside? If so, regardless of your gender or politics, this is a book you have to read. Boni Sones succeeds in bringing Westminster to life, as well as shining a light on the traditionally male world of parliament, fashioned by 500 years of men-only shortlists.
Women in Parliament deconstructs the ‘Blair’s babes’ phenomena to give readers a real taste of what happened when the 1997 election doubled the number of women in parliament overnight. But, even after this huge increase in women, 82% of MPs were still men. It is no wonder that women, a small minority of parliamentarians, weren’t able to transform the Commons overnight. Yet they remained burdened with vast expectations.
Do you remember Hurricane Katrina? It not only destroyed New Orleans, but also laid bare the ugly truth about America's racial divide. I reported on the disaster for the Guardian, and set out on a personal journey through the southern states to see what had changed since my African-American dad was forced to flee the US on racially-motivated charges. The last time I visited New Orleans I was a student travelling around America. It was the first time in my life that I was physically thrown out of somewhere for being black. "We don't have niggers like you here!" yelled the manager of a scummy youth hostel before throwing my belongings out of a first-floor window, scattering them over the street.
