Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 14hAt midday we will be gathering to commemorate the 90th Anniversary of the Battle of Cable Street & marching to the Cable Street Mural which has featured heavily in promotional materials. Here’s my recent with more on the mural's rich contribution to this history: artuk.org/discover/sto... 014
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 01/10/2026With the 90th Anniversary of the Battle of Cable Street on Sunday @artukdotorg.bsky.social have published a “story” I wrote about the Cable Street Mural for @unitetheunion.bsky.social’s 90th anniversary book. Photos by Paul Trevor and David Hoffman.... Read all about it!: artuk.org/discover/sto... 022
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannMarxism in Culture @marxisminculture.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Autumn Seminars now confirmed. Now @ioe.bsky.social 16th October, Hannah Proctor 30th October, Alison Wright 20th November, Dave Beech, Esther Rose Leslie and Stevphen Shukaitis 4th December, Gregory Sholette All 5.30-7.30pm. Free. No booking required. www.ucl.ac.uk/social-histo...ucl.ac.ukMarxism in Culture 2026-27See the upcoming events in our Marxism in Culture Seminar Series. 023
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannTom Mills @tommills.bsky.social · 16/09/2026New post: 'Reform’s Donations are not Normal'. Plotted every donation in the Electoral Commission donations register in grey - and Reform's recent mega donations in red. 12212
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 28/08/2026Great to have a short piece on the Hackney Peace Carnival Mural included in the latest edition of the ever brilliant Left Cultures @leftcultures.bsky.social leftcultures.com/collections/... 000
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 24/08/2026Powerful closing address to the jury from @tonygreenstein.bsky.social jewishvoiceforliberation.org.uk/article/the-...jewishvoiceforliberation.org.ukThe jury has spoken - supporting Palestinian resistance is not terrorism - Jewish Voice for LiberationA jury has acquitted Tony Greenstein of inviting support for a proscribed terrorist organisation 000
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 04/08/2026Zubarán @nationalgalleryuk.bsky.social. Weird and wonderful. 010
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 01/07/2026‘Art, Internationalism and Resistance’ Workshop with Warren Carter and Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann 8 July, 6-8pm, hARTslane gallery. Part of Rank and File Trade Unionists for Divestment from Israel and Peckham Keffiyeh’s ‘Defiance Not Compliance: The Arrestable Art Exhibition’ 6th - 8th July 030
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannInside Croydon @insidecroydon.bsky.social · 16/06/2026Three accused in Croydon vote-rigging case to face trial in 2029 insidecroydon.com/2026/06/16/t... #Croydon #Labour #TheFraud @labourlist.bsky.social @left-foot-forward.bsky.socialinsidecroydon.comThree accused in Croydon vote-rigging case to face trial in 2029Three Croydon Labour Party activists – Joel Bodmer, his wife Shila Bodmer and former Fieldway councillor Carole Bonner – are to be tried on conspiracy and computer misuse charges, but w… 2178
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 12/06/2026David Hockney, 1937-2026 Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures), 1972 A Lawn Being Sprinkled, 1967 Portrait Surrounded by Artistic Devices, 1965 030
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannTom Mills @tommills.bsky.social · 07/06/2026Capitalist Power in Post-War Croydon. New post in which I discuss the network of business people & local politicians behind Croydon's concrete building boom. tamills1981.github.io/society-from... 185
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 07/06/2026For a mark of the extent of creeping fascism consider that in a week of endless repetition of far-right's 'two tier' policing horseshit, mainstream media totally ignored targeted arson on socialist Muslim politician's family home. Solidarity @SalmaYaqoob www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midland...birminghammail.co.ukWatch terrifying moment arsonists set car alight in attack on Yaqoob familyArsonists appear to have singled out 'politically involved' city family of activist Salma Yaqoob, setting a car alight outside the family home 000
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 09/05/2026And we’re there! The venal, bullying Blairites that ruled Lambeth as their fiefdom, gleefully implemented round after round of cuts and outsourcing, refused democratic accountability, and speculated on the future of our estates while destroying residents’ lives have been routed. Good riddance 🇵🇸🚩 052
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 19/04/2026Very useful insight into the broader impacts of US and Israeli military adventurism in Iran, from Adam Hanieh in this weekend’s FT. archive.ph/TBO31archive.ph 000
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannMarxism in Culture @marxisminculture.bsky.social · 18/04/2026And we’re back. Join us for our first seminar of summer term: Diary of a Vandalized Car Dominique Routhier (@routhier.bsky.social) Friday 24 April, 5.30pm @ucl-ias.bsky.social Common Ground G11, South wing, UCL, Gower St, WC1E 6BT All welcome. No booking required. www.ucl.ac.uk/institute-of...ucl.ac.ukDiary of a Vandalized CarJoin this 'Marxism in Culture' seminar with Dominique Routhier (Roskilde University). His talk traces the “decline and fall” of American civilization through the decomposition of its most emblematic f... 1156
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 18/04/2026Beatriz González at the Barbican - catch it while you can! 000
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 16/04/2026Enjoyed this review of what seems (problems around imperialist 'decolonial' cosplay notwithstanding) a fascinating exhibition. www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...lrb.co.ukTony Wood · At MoMA: Wifredo Lam ReconsideredLam referred to a ‘desire to include in my painting all the transculturation that had occurred in Cuba’ – using a... 173
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 08/04/2026Espai Verd, Valencia. Improbable and wondrous 1990s housing complex by Antonio Cortés Ferrando and CSPT. 010
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannLaleh Khalili @lalehkhalili.bsky.social · 07/03/2026“The hour of the barbarian is at hand. The modern barbarian. The American hour. Violence, excess, waste, mercantilism, bluff, conformism, stupidity, vulgarity, disorder.” Aimé Césaire, Discourse on Colonialism 412764
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 03/03/2026Important, detailed coverage of commitments made by the OU to UKLFI regarding the use of the term ‘ancient Palestine’ in learning materials. Still lots of ambiguities & no public retraction, defence of the term or internal investigation, but some softening perhaps.🤔 novaramedia.com/2026/03/03/o...novaramedia.comOpen University U-Turns on ‘Ancient Palestine’ BanIn December, the Open University told UK Lawyers for Israel it would stop using the term ‘ancient Palestine’ in teaching materials. Following a public outcry, the university now says the term isn't ac... 302
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 02/03/2026'This is the real crisis of free speech in the west. The target is not just protest, but a people. Israel seeks to erase Palestinians as a society. First they are destroyed in the present. Then they are deleted from the past' Strong from @owenjones.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...theguardian.comWorried about freedom of speech? Then what’s happening at the Open University should terrify you | Owen JonesThe OU has capitulated to a pro-Israel lobby group about the use of the term ‘ancient Palestine’. The wider context is impossible to ignore, says Guardian columnist Owen Jones 000
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 01/03/2026Academics slam Open University for caving to pro-Israel lobby on 'Ancient Palestine' term www.newarab.com/news/academi...newarab.comAcademics slam Open University for caving to pro-Israel lobby on Ancient Palestine termThe British Society for Middle Eastern Studies demands OU reverse its decision, linking the incident to a wider pattern of censorship of pro-Palestine voices 011
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannBRISMES @brismes.bsky.social · 26/02/2026#AcademicFreedom | We have written to The @openuniversity.bsky.social to express our profound concern about the university’s response to a letter from the UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) regarding the use of the term ‘#ancientPalestine’. Read our letter: bit.ly/4r0j68L 1/3 147
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannMarxism in Culture @marxisminculture.bsky.social · 23/02/2026"Artistic Labour of the Body" Book presentation on Rose-Anne Gush’s monograph, with @rsenne.bsky.social Alexander Stoffel and Jenny Nachtigall. Fri 20 March 2026, 5:30–7:30pm @ucl-ias.bsky.social Common Ground, G11 Ground Floor, South Wing, UCL, Gower Street, WC1E 6BT www.ucl.ac.uk/institute-of...ucl.ac.ukBook presentation on Rose-Anne Gush’s monograph "Artistic Labour of the Body"Join this 'Marxism in Culture' seminar with Rose Anne-Gush, Alexander Stoffel, and Jenny Nachtigall. They will examine the use of the body and psyche as artistic material to explore Adorno’s concept o... 063
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 15/02/2026The term ‘ancient Palestine’, as many ancient historians…have agreed, conveys the true multiculturalism of ancient Palestine. It is the best way to reject the weaponizing of ancient heritage for ethnonationalist and genocidal purposes’ 👏🏼 @luxmea.bsky.social www.middleeastmonitor.com/20260215-isr...middleeastmonitor.comIsrael is trying to rewrite history – and British institutions risk helping them do itIsrael is trying to rewrite ancient history. In Palestine, Israel has systematically destroyed ancient heritage and made colonial land grabs of archaeological sites like the ancient Palestinian tow… 163
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 15/02/2026Lee Miller at Tate: from surrealist suave, (via Vogue and Buchenwald), to Hitler’s burning house and the execution of Lászlo Bárdossy. 000
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 15/02/2026The British establishment ever ready to prop up the ailing Zionist project. This latest speculative gambit by UKLF* needs to be challenged head on. archive.ph/kBMjS 010
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 13/02/2026Ystrdy, the OU Palestine Solidarity Group launched a call on our Vice-Chancellor to retract commitments to caveat & proscribe future use of term ‘Ancient Palestine’ in learning materials. We have >200 signatures from colleagues & international scholars. Add yours: docs.google.com/document/u/3...docs.google.comOpen Letter to the Vice‑Chancellor of The Open University: Call for Urgent Compliance Action under the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 regarding “Ancient Palestine” 011
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannDr Julia Molinari PhD SFHEA - INTIFADA against all #Colonialism @serenissimaj.bsky.social · 12/02/2026The OUPSG (#OpenUniversity #Palestine Solidarity Group oupalestinesolidarity.org) has launched an Open Letter to its VC requesting a full retraction of commitments made to an Israeli lobby group (aka foreign pressure on #AcademicFreedom). Please read, sign & share 🇵🇸 docs.google.com/document/u/3...oupalestinesolidarity.orgOU PALESTINE SOLIDARITY GROUP 023
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 06/02/2026www.brixtonbuzz.com/2026/02/lamb...brixtonbuzz.comLambeth Unison and Lambeth 4 Divestment from Israel state their disappointment with Lambeth CouncilLambeth Unison and Lambeth 4 Divestment from Israel have made a joint statement in response to Lambeth’s claim that they have no exposure to funds complicit with Israel’s breaches of in… 010
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 21/01/2026Lambeth refuse to hear call of 5000 local residents and workers, claiming the council have “no control” over their pension fund. 🧐 www.brixtonbuzz.com/2026/01/who-...brixtonbuzz.comWho runs Lambeth? The council reject hearing petition of 5,000 local residents and workers calling for divestment from IsraelMore than 5000 people signed a petition asking Lambeth Council to divest from all funds complicit with Israel and its genocide, occupation and oppression of the Palestinian people. The campaign was… 000
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannKEW @kidadaewilliams.com · 10/01/2026At Houston's BAIA Fine Art Print Fair, Black Art in America presents the first public exhibition of an early study by John Biggers, created in the early 1950s and foundational to his iconic mural 'The Contribution of the Negro Woman to American Life.' www.blackartinamerica.com/blogs/news/b...blackartinamerica.comA Rare John Biggers Study Comes to Light Before the Mural At BAIA Fine Art Print Fair, HoustonA Rare John Biggers Study Comes to LightBefore the Mural — The Contribution of the Negro Woman to American Life A Rare John Biggers Study Comes to LightBefore the Mural — The Contribution of the Ne... 043
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 28/12/2025Loved Kerry James Marshall at the Royal Academy: full of life, incident, wit and visual ingenuity. Renews hope in painting’s capacities. 010
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannMarxism in Culture @marxisminculture.bsky.social · 20/11/2025Our Next Seminar: 📢☢️ Radioactive Marxisms & Atomic Fairytales from the former East Germany, with Sarah James Friday 28th November 2025, 5.30-7.30pm @ucl-ias.bsky.social Common Ground G11, ground floor, South Wing, UCL Gower St, London WC1E 6BT www.ucl.ac.uk/institute-of...ucl.ac.ukRadioactive Marxisms & Atomic Fairytales from the former East GermanyAn Ultra-Violet Art History of Afterlives. Join this 'Marxism in Culture' seminar with Sara James (Manchester School of Art, MMU) 132
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannYour Party Lambeth @lambethyourparty.bsky.social · 01/11/2025📣Not 1 but 2 South London Your Party events @peckhamlevels tomorrow 💥Kicking off with a Regional Assembly for members from 2pm 🎉And concluding with a rally of local trade unionists and campaigners joined by @jeremycorbyn.bsky.social from 6.30pm Hasta mañana ✊🚩 www.brixtonbuzz.com/2025/11/jere...brixtonbuzz.comJeremy Corbyn returns to South London for Your Party rally at Peckham Levels, Sunday 2nd November 2025Your Party continues its South London expansion with a Regional Assembly and rally in Peckham on Saturday 2 November, headlined by Jeremy Corbyn alongside trade unionists and local campaigners. 021
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannApollo @apollo-magazine.com · 20/10/2025The London Underground has, over the past 25 years, hosted works by some of Britain’s leading contemporary artists. Eleanor Pinfield, director of Art on the Underground, talks to Apollo about why preserving public art is becoming an ever more urgent taskbuff.lyHow the Tube became London’s biggest art galleryEleanor Pinfield, director of Art on the Underground, talks to Apollo about the challenges of commissioning art for a subterranean audience 011
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 19/10/2025Relieved to see the Edward Burra at Tate Britain before it closed. Fascinating show packed full of great paintings, from 1920s Paris to 1970s Cornwall (via Harlem, Rye and 1930s Spain). 020
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannMarxism in Culture @marxisminculture.bsky.social · 09/10/2025⚡️First seminar of new academic year Rethinking Revolutionary Memory: The Production and Afterlives of Yugoslav Socialist Monuments with Sanja Horvatinčić & Beti Žerovc 31st Oct 🎃, 5.30-7.30pm @ucl-ias.bsky.social IAS Common Ground G11, South Wing, UCL,WC1E 6BT www.ucl.ac.uk/institute-of...ucl.ac.ukRethinking Revolutionary Memory: The Production and Afterlives of Yugoslav Socialist MonumentsJoin this 'Marxism in Culture' seminar with Sanja Horvatinčić and Beti Žerovc. 022
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 29/09/2025Happy 40th Anniversary to the Hackney Peace Carnival Mural! Great to be part of yesterday’s celebrations. 👏🏼🎉🕊️☮️🚩❤️ 040
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 25/09/2025Really looking forward to being part of this panel on Sunday discussing the Hackney Peace Carnival Mural. Part of a wider celebration to mark the mural's 40th Anniversary. Should be great! Free tickets to panel discussion: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-hackne...eventbrite.co.ukThe Hackney Peace Carnival Mural Unwrapped - Panel Discussion & exhibitionEventbrite - Hackney Archives presents The Hackney Peace Carnival Mural Unwrapped - Panel Discussion & exhibition - Sunday, 28 September 2025 at Hackney Archives, London, England. Find event and ticke... 130
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 15/09/2025‘The lack of urgency on all manner of organising questions has been excruciating, and if there doesn’t issue from this a new debate, a new coalition, a new strategy, and a new set of tactics — then we deserve what we get’. Good (/bleak) by @leninology.bsky.social www.patreon.com/posts/138879...patreon.comI heard you want your country back | Richard SeymourGet more from Richard Seymour on Patreon 034
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann @benwwk.bsky.social · 12/09/2025Really looking forward to being a part of the celebrations for the Hackney Peace Carnival Mural's 40th anniversary. Book your free tickets now 👇 www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-hackne...eventbrite.co.ukThe Hackney Peace Carnival Mural Unwrapped - Talk and Panel DiscussionJoin us for an talk and panel discussion with Dr Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann, Laurie Elks, CND Vice President Kate Hudson and Muralist Paul Butler. 010
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannMike Liu @9mac2.bsky.social · 30/08/2025"Steelworker" (Clifford Wight, 1934) // Coit Tower // Telegraph Hill // San Francisco, Calif. This is the first union job I've had so I needed to share this mural today; it was linked to its neighbor with a banner that read "Workers of the World Unite" until it was painted over by censorious jerks 031
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannAleianjack @aleianjack.bsky.social · 30/08/2025The Painted Empire: Mural Messages Across Central Mexico open.substack.com/pub/rogueart...open.substack.comThe Painted Empire: Mural Messages Across Central MexicoMesoamerican Murals Part 2 042
Reposted by Ben Wiedel-KaufmannWorking Class History @workingclasshistory.com · 16/08/2025#OtD 16 Aug 1842 during a Chartist general strike for universal male suffrage, troops fired on a march in Stoke-on-Trent, killing 19-year-old shoemaker Josiah Heapy and injuring others. 146 were jailed and 54 transported to Australia stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8756... 06025