Battle of Ideas Readings
Battle Readings is a regularly updated compilation of articles, essays, and opinion pieces relevant to the themes of the Battle of Ideas.
Choose a theme from the listing on the left to narrow your search, or view all readings.
Latest readings
What Makes An Icon?
In a world where celebrity dominates mainstream media, Jazz questions what makes certain people iconic, and why we put them on pedestals.
Jasmine Thompson, Rife, 4 August 2016
In a world where celebrity dominates mainstream media, Jazz questions what makes certain people iconic, and why we put them on pedestals.
Jasmine Thompson, Rife, 4 August 2016
The Permanence of Black Lives Matter
A new policy platform from a coalition of activists signals a new stage in the protest movement.
Vann R. Newkirk II, The Atlantic, 3 August 2016
A new policy platform from a coalition of activists signals a new stage in the protest movement.
Vann R. Newkirk II, The Atlantic, 3 August 2016
The Moral Case for Abortion
This thought-provoking book sets out the ethical arguments for a woman’s right to choose
Ann Furedi, Palgrave Macmillan, 2016
This thought-provoking book sets out the ethical arguments for a woman’s right to choose
Ann Furedi, Palgrave Macmillan, 2016
Clean Athletes, and Olympic Glory Lost in the Doping Era
Karen Crouse, The New York Times, 1 August 2016
Karen Crouse, The New York Times, 1 August 2016
So what if some female Olympians have high testosterone?
Jaime Schultz, The Conversation, August 2016
Jaime Schultz, The Conversation, August 2016
Federal judge temporarily halts Obama’s directive to schools on accommodating transgender students
Moriah Balingit and Emma Brown, Washington Post, August 2016
Moriah Balingit and Emma Brown, Washington Post, August 2016
Are we living through another 1930s?
As daunting events come thick and fast amid increasing public racism and xenophobia, the similarities with the buildup to the second world war are real, but we can take hope from a few key differences
Paul Mason, Guardian, 1 August 2016
As daunting events come thick and fast amid increasing public racism and xenophobia, the similarities with the buildup to the second world war are real, but we can take hope from a few key differences
Paul Mason, Guardian, 1 August 2016
Why have grammar schools become a symbol of social mobility when they make things worse for the many?
The grammar school debate is firmly back on the agenda thanks to a burgeoning campaign by Conservative MPs to lift the ban on new selective schools. But bringing back selection is no substitute for the one silver bullet in education: good teaching.
Russell Hobby, Schools Week, 28 July 2016
The grammar school debate is firmly back on the agenda thanks to a burgeoning campaign by Conservative MPs to lift the ban on new selective schools. But bringing back selection is no substitute for the one silver bullet in education: good teaching.
Russell Hobby, Schools Week, 28 July 2016
Moral panics or just panic?
"To contribute to Battle of Ideas is to add a few words to a giant, communal speech-bubble out of the gap-toothed mouth of British opinion. It is a strong reminder that the joys of free, uncalculated speech and the right to attack orthodoxies can in no way be assumed in 2012 – that we use them or lose them."
Piers Hellawell, composer; professor of composition, Queen’s University Belfast
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