Jacobin Radio

A prisoner is held, in theory, for something they did. The people inside America’s roughly 250 immigration detention camps are held for who they are, or where they’re from. That distinction anchors journalist John Washington’s new book, How to Close a Camp: Dispatches from the Fight Against Immigrant Detention. He joins Suzi to trace the bipartisan machinery behind ICE detention — from the reservation system to today's $240 billion buildout — and the local permits, contracts, and licenses that make these camps more vulnerable than they look. In Surprise, Arizona, a thousand residents showed up to block a $70 million warehouse conversion. “The opposite of a camp is community,” Washington argues — and closing one, keeping it closed, depends on exactly that.

Plus: Meleiza Figueroa remembers David Cobb, who died on Labor Day.

Jacobin Radio with Suzi Weissman features conversations with leading thinkers and activists, with a focus on labor, the economy, and protest movements.

Garrison Lovely, author of Obsolete, discusses the terrors and possible promise of artificial intelligence. Dave Zirin looks back on the life and work of Howard Zinn, the subject of his new biography.

Behind the News, hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.

The US Federal Reserve appointed a new chair earlier this year. Kevin Warsh replaced Jerome Powell, who had been under constant fire from the Trump administration. For many, Warsh’s appointment represented a turn towards the overt politicization of monetary policy.

Is the age of central bank independence coming to an end? And is it something that the Left should mourn or celebrate?

Martijn Konings, professor of political economy at the University of Sydney and author of The Bailout State: Why Governments Rescue Banks, Not People, joins Long Reads to discuss the state of central banking.

Long Reads is a Jacobin podcast looking in-depth at political topics and thinkers, both contemporary and historical, with the magazine’s writers. Hosted by features editor Daniel Finn. Produced by Conor Gillies with music by Knxwledge.

Featuring Daniel Denvir and Ben Mabie answering questions posed by you, our listeners.

Submit a question for our next mailbag: speakpipe.com/ListenerMailbag

Support The Dig at Patreon.com/TheDig

Read the piece Ben mentioned, “From the Camp to the Picket: Reflections from the UC Strike for Palestine”: longhaulmag.com/uc-strike-for-palestine

Learn more about The Shadow Court and Disability Revolution at UCPress.edu

The Dig goes deep into politics everywhere, from labor struggles and political economy to imperialism and immigration. Hosted by Daniel Denvir.

Alejandro Velasco looks at Trump’s oil grab in Venezuela. Alex Vitale imagines a post-carceral future.

Behind the News, hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.