Covid, capitalism, climate: The standard of double-standards between the global north and the global south

In the fifth episode, historian, researcher, celebrated writer and executive director of Tri-Continental Institute for Social Research, Vijay Prashad discusses the standard of double standards that have long plagued the relationship between the power-holding centres of the Global North and the world’s majority of the Global South.

Vijay Prashad describes the Tri-Continental Institute for Social Research as: “associated with this project of internationalism. And our agenda as a research institute is essentially to amplify the voices of movements. To bridge the gap between movements and intellectual activity and to create a kind of intellectualism that develops its confidence, its clarity from the lessons learnt by people in struggle. .. We see ourselves rooted in a very long tradition that goes back to early scholarship in the 19th century ... Dadabhai Naoroji who in the 19th century contested British colonial claims about a mission civilization in Britain ... We see ourselves in the tradition of the Pan-African scholars; people of course like WEB DuBois, later Walter Rodney, CLR James, and so on. People who tried to make the argument very strongly about not only how the histories of parts of the world were set aside, not only that; but even the kind of values that begin to dominate in the stories we tell ourselves. Values that essentially shaped the world through the eyes of the West.”

In speaking of the Global North’s attitude toward the Global South amid converging crises, Prashad says, “To my mind, the callous attitude towards the pandemic is equivalent to the callous attitude towards arms-sales is equivalent to the callous attitude to climate change is equivalent to the callous attitude towards austerity. It’s all one and the same. And it comes from this sense of superiority and this sense of being somehow immune from the challenges of the world.”

About today’s guest: 

Executive Director of Tri-Continental Institute for Social Research, Vijay Prashad is an historian, journalist, researcher, activist,, and a prolific writer. He has over 30 books to his name,

including: The Darker Nations: A People’s History of the Third World; The Poorer Nations: A Possible History of the Global South; Red Star Over the Third World; and Washington Bullets: A History of CIA, Coups, and Assassinations. He is the chief correspondent for Globetrotter, a columnist for Frontline News and chief editor of Leftword Books. 

Check out Tri-Continental publications discussed in this interview:

CoronaShock and Patriarchy

A Plan to Save the Planet

The Courage My Friends podcast series is a co-production between The Tommy Douglas Institute (at George Brown College), rabble.ca, with the support of the Douglas Coldwell Layton Foundation.

Transcript of this episode can be accessed at georgebrown.ca/TommyDouglasInstitute. 

Image: Vijay Prashad / Used with permission. 

Music: Ang Kahora. Lynne, Bjorn. Rights Purchased.

Intro Voices: Chandra Budhu (Podcast Announcer), Nayocka Allen, Nicolas Echeverri Parra, Doreen Kajumba (Street Voices); Bob Luker (Tommy Douglas quote). 

Courage My Friends Podcast Organizing Committee: Resh Budhu, Breanne Doyle (for rabble.ca), Chandra Budhu and Ashley Booth. 

Produced by: Resh Budhu, Tommy Douglas Institute and Breanne Doyle, rabble.ca.

Host: Resh Budhu