Solidarity takes on many forms but for over four decades one vivid example rose out of a design and print studio in Havana, Cuba. Born in 1966 out of the Tricontinental Conference the Organization of Solidarity of the People of Asia, Africa, and Latin America (Organización de Solidaridad de los Pueblos de Asia, África y América Latina — OSPAAAL) strove to unite liberation movements across the three continents. The Tricontinental magazine and the colorful, multi-lingual posters inserted within became legendary and covered the walls of activists and revolutionaries around the world.

Inspired by the intersection of graphic design and political solidarity, the Brooklyn-based Interference Archive hosted an retrospective exhibit of the work of OSPAAAL. Now, publishers Common Notions have released an astonishing and beautiful new book not only celebrating the legacy but inviting us all to explore how we can contribute to this vital work of moving towards social transformation. We’re joined in conversation by two of the editors of the book Armed by Design: Posters and Publications of Cuba’s OSPAAAL, Lani Hanna and Josh MacPhee.

Dave Zirin (“Edge of Sports;” and Under the Tree, Episode #58 ) gave a delightful and provocative talk at a conference a few years ago called “Will There Be Sports Under Socialism?” The short answer—of course!—human beings have played games and sports from the beginning, and there’s no stopping us. But capitalism has distorted and mangled our natural desire and capacity to play in its relentless drive for profit. An ongoing case-in-point is the Olympic Games, flying under the noble banner of internationalism while on the ground exploiting athletes and workers, destroying host communities, increasing militarism, and more. Dave introduced us to Jules Boykoff and the movement to defend local communities against the steam-roller that is the 2028 Los Angeles games. Jules is an academic, author, activist and former professional soccer player whose writing focuses on the politics of the Olympics, social movements, the suppression of dissent, and the role of the mass media in US politics, especially regarding coverage of climate change. He is part of the coalition of community organizations (LA Tenants Union, Black Lives Matter, Sunrise Movement, DSA) founded in 2017 to oppose staging the 2028 Summer Olympics, and the author of

NOlympians: Inside the Fight Against Capitalist Mega-Sports in Los Angeles, Tokyo and Beyond..

The Invisible Institute—with its evocative and mysterious name—exists in the proud tradition of “guerrilla journalism,” a difficult to define or pigeon-hole practice of human rights inquiry and documentation. This dazzling collection of journalists, archivists, writers, thinkers, organic intellectuals-without-portfolio, organizers, activists, data analysts and other collaborators pioneer a form of journalism based on long-term relationship-building, deep inquiry, and on-going interrogation of our shared social/political world. They are investigative reporters, multimedia storytellers, human rights champions, and facilitators of difficult public conversations. The Invisible Institute has won two Pulitzer Prizes, and produced a film that was a finalist for a short documentary Academy Award. They also won a landmark court decision, Kalven v. Chicago, in 2014 establishing that in Illinois police misconduct files are public information. We’re joined by two brilliant members of the Invisible Institute team, Maira Khwaja, Director of Public Strategy, and Trina Reynolds-Tyler, Director of Data.