Constance Bantman
@constancebantman
Prof. in French, U.of Surrey, UK. Views own. Transnational anarchism & print culture (19thC); Anglo-French exile & migration; women & feminism. Posts in 🇫🇷&🇬🇧. "Un premier exil libertaire" (Libertalia, 2024); “Femmes de révolution” (Seuil, 2025)
Oh the wind, the wind is blowing Through the graves the wind is blowing Freedom soon will come
Inattendu: Georges Clemenceau (lorsqu’il n’était pas occupé à réprimer les mouvements sociaux) était un avide collectionneur de boites à encens. Sa collection exceptionnelle est exposée au Musée des Beaux-arts de Montréal.
Vue à Montréal, à la librairie L’Insoumise, cette si belle édition des classiques de Kropotine, chez @nadaeditions.bsky.social, qu’on recommande plus que chaudement.
And generally being so happy seeing so many books by wonderful friends and colleagues which are so rare to see in a single place. What an amazing bookshop.
Not me looking stupidly happy after seeing my book on display in Montreal’s brilliant anarchist bookshop L’Insoumise.
I got one too! Who knew anarchist transnationalism held such relevance for *all* social movements?
Over and out - and finally on leave for a bit. Friday cricket in the evening sun to start winding down…
Interesting news from France, where the likely frontrunner of next year’s presidential election may be wearing an electronic tag… Interesting echoes with Farage’s own situation atm too.
Un #vendredilecture éprouvant et nécessaire, très intéressant également car il est imprégné de questionnements sur l’éthique journalistique (et humaine) lorsqu'on enquête sur les abus sexuels historiques. Voila ce qu'on attend de Libé quand c'est bien.
Vous reprendrez bien un peu de littérature complotiste et spiritiste des années 1890? source: L’indépendant du Cher, 14 mai 1893, via Retronews
Today I attended a Y8 history class created as part of the ‘Dorking refugee committee’ project I am co-leading. It was great - I’d never observed a secondary school lesson, let alone one created as part of a research project and discussing refugee solidarity (very timely).
You'd think that race riots and pogroms, freewheeling far-right interference and record levels of youth unemployment would have put serious pressure on Starmer's 'leadership' - you'd be wrong, clearly.
Finally watched “Wuthering Heights” and my main conclusion is that, at his most gormless, Jacob Elordi/ Heathcliff looks like French actor Vincent Lacoste.
Quick (work) trip to Paris - does wonders for Sunday blues…
In the middle of a historic heatwave and an illegal war. The death throes of the great 1990’s reformer…
Not quite sure how I ended up enrolled in that particular cult. 😱
En bonne compagnie au CIRA de Marseille (avec aussi des humains sympa et plein de bons livres).
A perk of working in an English department: reading Becky Wills's beautiful poetic novel 'Stun', about a family facing opioid addiction in the US - adapted from the Creative Writing PhD which she recently completed with us at Surrey.
Juste une suggestion pour soutenir la presse et la pensée indépendantes.
Weird AI result of the day - telling us that 'The Torch', a quintessential late-Victorian British anarchist periodical, was less connected with Kropotkin than with 'early proto-punk' or '"riot grrl" energy'. (That's not from Libcom btw, rather from a not bad but clearly undigested web source).