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ashwinivasantha.bsky.social
Ashwini Vasanthakumar
@ashwinivasantha.bsky.social
1.9K followers 1K following 680 posts
Legal and political theory | migration, authority, obligation, oppression and the ethics of resistance | writing a book on why immigrants should not 'integrate' www.ashwinivasanthakumar.com
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ashwinivasantha.bsky.social
Ashwini Vasanthakumar @ashwinivasantha.bsky.social · Nov 10
A quick introduction to new followers: I am a political and legal philosopher working on diasporas and transnationalism, the ethics of immigration control, victims' duties, and transitional justice.

My first monograph looked at exile politics,
Cover of book, The Ethics of Exile: a political theory of diaspora, depicting an airdropped aid box in a bombed out city scape. Original artwork by Houssam Alloum.
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Reposted by Ashwini Vasanthakumar
nkalamb.bsky.social
Nathan Kalman-Lamb @nkalamb.bsky.social · 5h
Front page of Scottish newspaper The National today.
How Genocide Happened
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ayoub.bsky.social
elia ayoub 🌱 @ayoub.bsky.social · 23h
Absolutely horrible news - Saleh was killed today

www.middleeasteye.net/news/saleh-a...
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Reposted by Ashwini Vasanthakumar
marxinhell.bsky.social
William Clare Roberts 🇵🇸 @marxinhell.bsky.social · 1d
The McGill Assoc. of Univ. Teachers (MAUT) yesterday *overwhelmingly* endorsed the academic and cultural boycott of Israel, & calls upon McGill to end its partnerships with Israeli universities & other institutions.

("Overwhelmingly" means 104 yea to 8 nay!)
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Reposted by Ashwini Vasanthakumar
axdouglas.bsky.social
Alexander Douglas @axdouglas.bsky.social · 2d
I wonder if Dutch philosophy departments in the 1630s were only hiring in the philosophy of tulips.
saraluckelman.bsky.social
Doctor Logic @saraluckelman.bsky.social · 2d
One might also say "hiring committees".
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Reposted by Ashwini Vasanthakumar
danielsohege.bsky.social
Dan Sohege @danielsohege.bsky.social · 2d
At least one senior Labour official seems to finally remember they aren't in Reform.
The changes won't just harm economy and country, they'll destroy families and force more people into becoming undocumented, leading to more deportations. They need scrapping not pausing.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
Sir Sadiq Khan calls for pause on new immigration rules
The mayor of London said the changes had "moved the goalposts".
www.bbc.com
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ashwinivasantha.bsky.social
Ashwini Vasanthakumar @ashwinivasantha.bsky.social · 2d
Its systematic critique of the notion of the ‘perfect victim’ is a respite for victims themselves, who otherwise must navigate the 'victimological gaze". Read it in conjunction with Mohamed El-Kurd's searing Perfect Victims (Haymarket Books.)
Perfect Victims
www.haymarketbooks.org
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ashwinivasantha.bsky.social
Ashwini Vasanthakumar @ashwinivasantha.bsky.social · 2d
I reviewed @profcheryllawther.bsky.social's excellent new book, Constructing Victimhood (OUP 2025 - global.oup.com/academic/pro...): essential reading for anyone working on transitional justice, social and political oppression, and/or Northern Ireland.
Book Review: Constructing Victimhood: Beyond Innocence and Guilt in Transitional Justice - Ashwini Vasanthakumar, 2025
journals.sagepub.com
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volts.wtf
David Roberts @volts.wtf · 2d
Is it cancel culture when they threaten to kill you?

www.nj.com/news/2025/10...
Sold-out Ta-Nehisi Coates speaker appearance in N.J. canceled over security reasons
Organizers canceled a sold-out Ta-Nehisi Coates event in Montclair citing undisclosed security concerns.
www.nj.com
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fishkin.bsky.social
Joey Fishkin @fishkin.bsky.social · 2d
@mit.edu has done an incredibly important service to the nation by being willing to be the first school to reject the administration's "compact."

President Kornbluth focuses—and she's right—on the principle that "scientific funding should be based on scientific merit alone."
The document also includes principles with which we disagree, including those that would restrict freedom of expression and our independence as an institution. And fundamentally, the premise of the document is inconsistent with our core belief that scientific funding should be based on scientific merit alone.
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laurajedeed.bsky.social
Laura Jedeed @laurajedeed.bsky.social · 3d
Portland Frog gets it
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fmreview.bsky.social
Forced Migration Review @fmreview.bsky.social · 3d
"Every migrant lost on a dangerous journey is someone's child, parent or friend. Writing for FMR meant honoring those lives by reaching people who can prevent the next loss. Not just academics, but aid workers at borders & officials whose policies determine life & death."

-Houman Oliaei, FMR75
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Reposted by Ashwini Vasanthakumar
lisastampnitzky.bsky.social
Lisa Stampnitzky @lisastampnitzky.bsky.social · 5d
This really is beyond parody
tmksyracuse.bsky.social
Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 5d
Weber State administrators told student they couldn't present their research on the state's anti-DEI law at an on-campus conference on censorship(!) unless they removed all mentions of DEI from their slides

www.insidehighered.com/news/faculty...
Weber State Censors, Then Cancels, Censorship Conference
University officials said that several planned presentations violated a Utah state law banning diversity, equity and inclusion at public universities.
www.insidehighered.com
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ashwinivasantha.bsky.social
Ashwini Vasanthakumar @ashwinivasantha.bsky.social · 5d
“Alexa Culver, a planning lawyer who works at RSK Wilding, added: “There are lots of elements of nature that are essential to social and economic prosperity, and are microscopic, that we can’t see. Air for example, being one of them.”

Reeves reveals herself to be both corrupt and incompetent.
georgemonbiot.bsky.social
George Monbiot @georgemonbiot.bsky.social · 6d
Utterly beholden to lobbyists, staggeringly ignorant and dismissive of the natural world: Rachel Reeves might not look or sound like Donald Trump, but she is behaving very much like him. This government is even more of an ecological hazard than the Tories were.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Rachel Reeves clears planning blockage amid ‘good relationship’ with developer
Exclusive: Chancellor says 20,000 homes were being held up due to ‘some snails that are a protected species or something’
www.theguardian.com
Reposted by Ashwini Vasanthakumar
elisewang.bsky.social
Elise Wang @elisewang.bsky.social · 6d
One of the more incredible stories out of LA this year has been how a taco review blog became the best on-the-ground coverage of ICE raids in the city.

They do a dispatch every day, follow-up on the kidnapped people (which almost no media outlet has done), and fact-check government claims.
motherjones.com
Mother Jones @motherjones.com · 6d
@lataco.bsky.social first began as a blog documenting local Mexican cuisine. Now, it’s an essential reporting powerhouse to the city as Trump’s mass deportation plot unfolds.

Check out the latest from our friends at Reveal: tinyurl.com/4cm2bsdr
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gbrockell.bsky.social
Gillian Brockell @gbrockell.bsky.social · 6d
Claim: 10 cars rammed ICE
Truth: No cars rammed ICE

Claim: She boxed ICE in
Truth: ICE boxed her in

Claim: She shot a rifle at ICE
Truth: She did not have a rifle

Claim: ICE returned fire
Truth: Only ICE fired

Claim: She drove herself to the hospital
Truth: Paramedics found her
chicago.suntimes.com
Chicago Sun-Times @chicago.suntimes.com · 6d
Body-camera video appears to contradict the government’s claim that Marimar Martinez, 30, drove toward officers before one of them opened fire at her late Saturday morning in Brighton Park, her attorney claimed.
trib.al/9Sxu9IN
Attorney for woman shot by Border Patrol claims officer said 'Do something b-----' before shooting
Body-camera video appears to contradict the government's claim that Marimar Martinez, 30, drove toward officers before one of them opened fire at her late Saturday morning in Brighton Park, her attorney claimed. A judge ordered Martinez and a co-defendant released pending trial.
trib.al
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jlisayoung.bsky.social
Lisa Young 🇨🇦🇺🇦 @jlisayoung.bsky.social · 6d
The war on Christmas continues!
journodale.bsky.social
Dale Smith @journodale.bsky.social · 7d
New ceremonial robes vs old ceremonial robes. #SCC
2026 photo of the Supreme Court of Canada, where the new robes are black with red piping. 2025 photo of the Supreme Court of Canada, with the red velvet and ermine robes.
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ashwinivasantha.bsky.social
Ashwini Vasanthakumar @ashwinivasantha.bsky.social · 6d
Is this excerpted from the post linked below? Sorry I couldn't find it.
Reposted by Ashwini Vasanthakumar
movementlawlab.bsky.social
Movement Law Lab @movementlawlab.bsky.social · 7d
From @lawdorknews.bsky.social: Calling the order “yet another grave misuse of our emergency docket,“ Jackson wrote that the majority had failed by “privileging the bald assertion of unconstrained executive power over countless families’ pleas for the stability our Government has promised them.“
chrisgeidner.bsky.social
Chris Geidner @chrisgeidner.bsky.social · 9d
Friday’s SCOTUS decision was issued in a brief, unsigned order that contained virtually no reasoning. It was accompanied by no signed opinions from any of the justices in the majority and over opposition from the three Democratic appointees. Only Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote.
Supreme Court lets Noem end legal status for many Venezuelans in the U.S.
The majority gave virtually no reasoning. The Democratic appointees objected, but only Justice Jackson wrote: "[Y]et another grave misuse of our emergency docket."
www.lawdork.com
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ashwinivasantha.bsky.social
Ashwini Vasanthakumar @ashwinivasantha.bsky.social · 7d
ploughshares.ca/targeted-fro...
Targeted from above: Canadian sensors facilitating unlawful U.S. airstrikes in the Caribbean - Project Ploughshares
On the morning of September 2, 2025, a small speedboat skims across open water somewhere in the Caribbean Sea. Suddenly, in a flash of white, it’s destroyed in a U.S.-launched airstrike. All 11 people...
ploughshares.ca
ashwinivasantha.bsky.social
Ashwini Vasanthakumar @ashwinivasantha.bsky.social · 7d
Masked cowards picking up people off the street with no warrant and no cause.

This is what Kemi Badenoch wants, and where all those 'difficult conversations' about immigration got us.
cristianfarias.com
Cristian Farias @cristianfarias.com · 8d
This video of Chicagoans intervening to save a man from being abducted off the streets by ICE is making the rounds on Instagram.

Community action works.

Source: www.instagram.com/reel/DPZL2AL...
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olufemiotaiwo.bsky.social
Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò @olufemiotaiwo.bsky.social · 9d
important for us in the US to note: even a solidly right wing government can't ignore this.
apnews.com
The Associated Press @apnews.com · 9d
Over 2 million people across Italy have rallied in more than 100 cities for a one-day general strike.
2 million rally in Italy for Gaza as general strike halts key services
Over 2 million people across Italy have rallied in more than 100 cities for a one-day general strike.
bit.ly
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ashwinivasantha.bsky.social
Ashwini Vasanthakumar @ashwinivasantha.bsky.social · 11d
Reposted by Ashwini Vasanthakumar
gbbranstetter.bsky.social
Gillian Branstetter @gbbranstetter.bsky.social · 11d
Memorizing this
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ashwinivasantha.bsky.social
Ashwini Vasanthakumar @ashwinivasantha.bsky.social · 11d
Reading this book made me hopeful about egalitarianism and place-making in cities; re-reading it gave me a deeper appreciation of its technical achievements: drawing on different disciplines and interviews while reading like a thoughtful conversation over a pint.

And it's open access!
World's most perfect dog with book, City of Equals, by Jo Wolff and Avner de-Shalit, published by Oxford University Press.
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