In an era of cultural homogenisation and sanitised commercial music, Irish language, punk-rap trio Kneecap stand out as a raw, unapologetic expression of working-class resistance and international solidarity with the oppressed. Their explosive rise to fame is not just a musical phenomenon but a political one—rooted in anti-imperialism, socialist struggle, and […]
Culture
Book Review: Blue Collar Empire by Jeff Schuhrke
Trade unions resist capitalism but do not abolish it. However, Lenin said trade unions are the schools for revolution: it is from there the communist parties traditionally draw their cadres. For a worker, trade union consciousness is natural because they fight for wages to survive, but the fight for socialism […]
Glastonbury
A poem in Irish and English by Gabriel Rosenstock (for Kneecap) Glastonbury Legend has it that Jesus himself came here With Joseph of Arimathea. Jesus the Carpenter lent a hand to build a church Of clay and wattles made Incitement of love was His desire […]
Banu Mushtaq’s Heart Lamp and the Rebellion of the Unseen
When Banu Mushtaq’s Heart Lamp became the first Kannada work—and first short story collection—to win the 2025 International Booker Prize, it marked more than a literary triumph. It marked a pivotal recognition of regional Indian literature and brought overdue attention to the voices of Muslim women in rural Karnataka. Translated by Deepa […]
Cuban Film Festival 2025
Step into the vibrant, resilient world of Cuban cinema this July, as The New Theatre proudly hosts this year’s three-day film festival celebrating the enduring artistry of the island nation. From 24th to 26th July 2025, we invite you to explore the rich tapestry of Cuban storytelling, a testament to […]
A World Ruled by Adversaries
Michael Crummey’s The Adversary, winner of the 2025 Dublin Literary Award, is a dark, atmospheric novel that probes the brutal complexities of early colonial Newfoundland through themes of power, class, and survival. Set in a remote coastal community marked by hardship and hierarchy, the narrative interrogates the moral and human costs […]
Statement from the Communist Party of Ireland on the British Government decision to Charge Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh of Kneecap.
The Communist Party of Ireland expresses its solidarity with Kneecap, who are now under serious threat by the forces of the British State. The arrest and charging of one of the group’s members Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, is just the latest in the ongoing effort to silence the group and […]
James Connolly Festival 2025
This year’s James Connolly Festival runs from Tuesday 6th to Sunday 11th May 2025 with almost all events taking place at Connolly House and The New Theatre. It will include a week-long James Connolly Art Exhibition. Seven artists have been invited to prepare prints and paintings that will be available […]
Book Review: Western Marxism: How it was Born, How it Died, How it can be Reborn, by Domenico Losurdo
Western Marxism (WM) by Dominico Losurdo, translated into English and published recently by Monthly Review, is an important work exposing the idealism, pro-imperialism and eurocentrism (i.e. the paternalistic approach towards struggles in the periphery) of western Marxists. In the introduction, the book explains that WM is not a geographical orientation […]
Book Review: Lobbying for Zionism on Both Sides of the Atlantic by Ilan Pappé
Ilan Pappé, as readers may know, is one of the most controversial of Israel’s “new historians” after having sacrificed his academic career there by publishing extensively on the buried history of the Nakba and challenging official Zionist accounts of the colonisation of Palestine. His most recent work, Lobbying for Zionism […]
The German Peasants’ War
The German Peasants’ War (1524–1525) was a large-scale social and political uprising in early modern Europe, where peasants, who constituted the majority of the population, revolted against the oppressive feudal system. Trapped in servitude, the peasants were burdened with labour and levies to the nobility while a growing bourgeois class […]
Book Review: The Revelation of Ireland 1995-2020
Diarmaid Ferriter, who has come to be something resembling the public face of “History” in the respectable Irish media, has cannily inverted the title of his popular 2004 work The Transformation of Ireland 1900-2000 in his latest book The Revelation of Ireland 1995-2020, which represents a sequel of sorts outlining […]
250th anniversary of William Turner’s birth
In 19th-century England, a new realism in painting emerged, driven by the country’s advanced capitalist development compared to the European continent. Landscape painting became the hallmark of this realism, particularly with William Turner (1775–1851). Turner’s work sought to capture the immense forces of nature while reflecting social transformations. A lifelong […]
Book Review: Inflamed: Deep Medicine and the Anatomy of Injustice, by Rupa Marya and Raj Patel
Rupa Marya and Raj Patel, authors of Inflamed: Deep Medicine and the Anatomy of Injustice, successfully cover an impressive range of topics in a coherent, extremely readable volume. When we speak of the book’s readability, in this case it is a testament to superb skill in using technical language when […]
Book Review: Against the Crisis: Economy and Ecology in a Burning World by Ståle Holgersen
“Let us outdate my book”, Ståle Holgersen writes on the last page of his book, Against the Crisis: Economy and Ecology in a Burning World. “We must change reality so that librarians will be able to move this book from the political section to the historical one.” His critical optimism […]
Heinrich Mann’s The Loyal Subject– A Sharp Analysis of Power and Submission on the 75th Anniversary of His Death
Heinrich Mann, brother of Thomas Mann and in his own right one of the most significant German writers of the 20th century, died in exile in California 75 years ago, on March 11, 1950. His literary work, deeply concerned with social justice and political change, remains relevant today. Mann’s writing […]