Barco’s father was a political dissident in Cuba who spoke out against communism, forcing his family to flee to Venezuela in the 1980s. Four years after Barco was born, his family entered the US with asylum, and were later given lawful permanent resident status. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

And in fairness, this is also true for UK voters. Take local elections seriously. Councils matter. Each Reform council is a disaster for daily lives. They aren't a dress rehearsal

"... inviting artists, organisations & creative agencies to submit proposals that breathe life into the wood saved from the felled tree. This extraordinary opportunity will see up to 5 artists receive funding to develop their ideas, with 1 final concept selected in early 2026." tinyurl.com/3pamneuv

I think it is immoral for the Labour Party to wait till after the local elections to deal with their problems with leadership, because this configuration will lead to Reform dominating many councils & we know, for a fact, that they cannot run councils. So the system of local government is in peril >

Spring Clean by Mariette Voke @mariette_artist, a fabulously cheery painting to encounter in the atrium of the new Bristol Southmead Hospital. 'My paintings are inspired by everyday things, found, hoarded or worn with use... the ability of objects & clothing to encapsulate memories.'

Chileans will go to the polls on Nov. 16 to vote for a new president, 23 Senate seats and all 155 seats in the lower Chamber of Deputies. The elections could be a deciding factor in how the country addresses a number of ongoing environmental issues.

Labour’s latest attack on asylum seekers is cruel & counterproductive. How does it help community cohesion to hold threat of deportation over vulnerable people? We don’t need an arms race with the hard right over asylum, we need safe routes & European cooperation #bbclaurak

The response to this story has been wonderful! Thanks to everyone who has read and shared it. And thanks also to all new subscribers!!

Exactly this! As soon as you see the word 'but' adjacent to a phrase like 'the slave trade was abhorrent' the speaker has just invalidated their own speech

A glimpse through the topsoil of #Stonehenge for #StandingStoneSunday Like an iceberg, there is more of these bluestone below the surface than above Unlike icebergs, it's not because they're less dense than saltwater 📷 of the @buarchanth.bsky.social trench excavated April 2008 #WhatLiesBeneath

Every time I hear a politician say that an issue is “dividing” this country they always then come down on the side of the right wing view of it. Just once I’d love to hear someone say “this issue is divisive, which is why I’m making the argument that kindness and compassion is important”

My favourite word for “slow motion”from another language is the German Zeitlupe. It means “time magnifying glass”

the actual migrant boat crisis, for people who aren't heartless rabid racists (part of bigger interlocking global problems — but addressing those is also part of solving the desperate employment and 'productivity' problem at home too, as they are the. same. problem.) www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

If you care about the future of University of Edinburgh, call or email your local MSP on Monday: Monday, 17 November: Call your MSP. UCU has prepared a briefing here, but you can also simply call and tell your story. These cuts will affect the whole city. www.ucuedinburgh.org.uk/lobby-your-m...

Some good news this morning - exports of Xinjiang tomatoes have collapsed. Last year I worked with the BBC to expose how XJ tomatoes produced with forced labour were making their way to UK supermarkets via Italy. 🧵

To suggest that having lived a life so grim that even an English tribunal will grant you asylum, and to have somehow managed to get here at great risk to life, is a "golden ticket" is absolutely fucking contemptible. Shame on this so-called Labour Party.

If you’re feeling a bit sad it might help a little to know that this painting exists. It’s called Dynamism of a dog on a leash, by Giacomo Galla, 1912:

app.onlinesurveys.jisc.ac.uk/s/rncm/neuro... this looks interesting

Appeasing the far-right gives the broader public the impression that their narrative is true. There is no way to stem support for Reform by endorsing their policies. Either you are fighting against them or you are, regardless of how you see yourself, fighting for them.

As with so many maintenance jobs in so many circumstances, they are going to keep putting this off until there is no choice. The costs of doing nothing are making a bigger and bigger bill - yet another cost we leave for the next generation.

There’s nothing left wing socialist or progressive about violent policies towards Black and brown people seeking asylum and the Labour Party will find out what this means for you at the May elections

At what point will Labour politicians, locally and nationally, really start to push back against the endless underfunding of local authorities? We know what damage this does, and how it will verberate into our futures. How is there not louder, insistent opposition to this?

It is not immigration that is ‘tearing this country apart’ it is politicians using refugees as disposable pawns to gain political ground. It is evil, unconscionable and unforgivable. @labourlewis.bsky.social @stellacreasy.bsky.social @sarahhall-labour.bsky.social

Vanity isn't worth the life of a child. Get these stupid deadly toys off of our streets.

#Newblogpost!!! Here I unpack the term “racialised (un)belonging” as I use it in my work. I rely on Spillers' "ungendering" to describe a process that is produced through a colonial history that inscribes the racialised other as ever beyond the bounds of humanity. folukeafrica.com/racialised-u...

Good morning ☀️ Starting the day with this powerful Nelson Mandela quote: “May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.” Isn’t that what it’s all about? The choices we have to make. And what moves us to make them.

Slo-mo Flicker cat attack!!!

Contaminated sand ⚠️ I've had several emails asking about where/how to dispose of the Anko kinetic sand sold by Kmart which is potentially contaminated with asbestos. Kmart's guidance thus far is just to "contact your local council for disposal".

Interesting to see so many great British patriots right now begging an American president to bankrupt one of Britain’s last remaining truly national institutions.

"A series of punches to the face was designed to unlock the inherent kindness, gorgeousness and loveliness of the British people."

I know we need to sort the BBC as the right attacks it, but they don't make it easy. Saw this headline, for 'what the papers say' and wondered which tabloid had used such inflammatory language about asylum. But when I looked though the headlines they included, none of them did >

The sustainable management of lunar natural and cultural heritage: suggested principles and guidelines. 🧪 🏺 🔭

Using these newfangled lightbulbs creates zombies, but what can do? There's a lot of money in newlight. The industry is robust. Sure, the zombie throngs are growing every day, and scientists project that 98% of all non-zombie life will be wiped out by 2055 but scientists aren't always correct.

Kyiv, Sophia Square today. The annual “Empty Chairs” event – in support of journalists, writers, and cultural figures missing, imprisoned, or held captive because of russia’s war against Ukraine. I was there. I want the world to see.

erasing disability visibility

Join us on Weds 19 November for the launch of our new co-hosted Applied History Fellowships for postdoc historians, with @ihr.bsky.social and DC Thomson bit.ly/4ofWArN Fellowships will develop historical skills for use in workplaces beyond higher education: 2.30pm, 19 November, online #Skystorians

This is easily one of the most beautiful things any human has ever made. Possibly my favorite art object on this earth. Simple and yet so compelling.

In the new world order no one is welcome anywhere This won’t last and can’t last but while riding this pernicious cult of pious purity politics the majority will live through heartbreak and increasing impoverishment in spirit and material fact so that the powerful can get kicks

A new Global Justice Now report has found that nearly one-fifth of minerals labeled “critical” by the U.K. aren’t actually essential for the green energy transition, but are instead needed for the aerospace and weapons industries.

At some point, for the love of God, will someone ANYONE at long last take the council funding crisis seriously?!? Because THIS is what will break down a society, not some poor soul escaping incredible dangers, arriving on our shores.

Bit of good news...

Great to be out campaigning for the Big Green Day of Action in Cardiff this afternoon. Each event we get more people out, gives me real hope for the Senedd elections in the spring #MakeHopeNormalAgain

HOLY SHIT. They found the genes for fibromyalgia - and it's *not* autoimmune, it's the central nervous system. It's very cool to see some progress made on the thing that's ruined my life since late teenage years!

Someone has DMd me, sorry but I can't I can't read it because I won't do age verification.

As we sleep in our beds tonight, may we think of others. Everyone deserves to live with dignity, safety and joy. My deepest appreciation to everyone who continues to support our beloved friends in Gaza. gofund.me/a39d9fda #freepalestine #freegaza #mutualaidgaza #gazaGFM #savegaza #helpgaza 💕💸🍉

I came to this country as a child refugee. No English, no certainty, no idea what my life could become. Britain gave me refuge. Not on a timer, not with conditions attached, but with a chance to grow roots. A thread 🧵 1/8 www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Today I did canvassing for the first time, and I used positive and hopeful language on the doorstep and it really engaged the conversation. Community, togetherness, hope. People want in.

Lmao they just built a golden ballroom

What, exactly, does this string of words mean? Why does everyone who stands to profit from selling "AI" love to repeat it? And what's the value of slogans that masquerade as history? sonjadrimmer.com/blog-1/2025/...