Radio Reversal
Anna, Natalie, Han, Lamisse, Aleea, Jonathan and Helen
Thursday
9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Radio Reversal is a show that subjects aspects of everyday life to historico-political, theoretical, cheeky, irreverent, high brow, low brow, eye brow, warm-hearted analysis. Our aim is to see the world more clearly, think about what we'd like it to become, and how we can make that happen. We think that discussing these sorts of ideas is one way to lessen the alienation that affects many of us trying to make sense of a world that so often makes no sense of us. We also play loads of awesome music (sometimes thematic!) with great enthusiasm for requests and an emphasis on supporting local artists. It's fun!
Email us! radio.reversal(at)gmail.com. Find our podcasts on Substack.
01 May, 2025
Labour organising and solidarity in so-called qld
Happy May Day Zedrades! This morning, the people's historian Dr Jeff Rickertt joins Han in the studio to talk about the history of labour struggle in so-called queensland -- how the first unions were established, and some of the tensions and contradictions that these movements revealed in terms of race, gender, and colonialism. We'll talk a bit about the history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander labour organising, and particularly the incredible history of Aboriginal labour strikes as a strategy for demanding the return of Aboriginal lands.
Later in the show, we’re going to focus a bit more on some of the recent histories of labour solidarity during periods of crisis: from the “green bans” and unions standing against gentrification and displacement; to the unions who took collective strike action to protest the tour of the all-white Springbox rugby team during apartheid in South Africa. We’ll wrap up by hearing a bit about the most recent examples of labour organising during the genocide in Gaza, and some of the ways that workers have attempted to leverage their collective power to refuse to be complicit in genocide.
There’s lots to dig into in this week’s show, and lots of questions about the power and possibility of workers movements in the present conjuncture - in a time where union membership is at all time lows, wages have stagnated further than many thought possible, and housing security is out of reach for all but the wealthiest of workers.
As we face down emboldened fascist movements, growing political repression and overt genocidal violence in Palestine and beyond, we’re looking back to think about the long history of workers organising on this continent, its tensions and contradictions, and what we ought to be doing collectively as workers in this moment.
Artworks by Sam Wallman ✊