Accio Politics

We're joined by Marina Daldalian to talk about consent in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Our conversation takes us to many places, including consent as it relates to living and sharing your life on the internet and the vulnerabilities that people exploit in this magical space. Find us online: www.acciopolitics.com Twitter: @acciopolitics Instagram: @acciopolitics Facebook: www.facebook.c...

We discuss how healthcare/medicine can be a tool used for evil, as well as resistance to that evil, including the hospital wing, mandrakes, skelegrow, and St. Mungo's. Who takes care of mental health at Hogwarts? Is it Madam Pomfrey? Find us online: www.acciopolitics.com Twitter: @acciopolitics Instagram: @acciopolitics Facebook: www.facebook.com/acciopolitics Leave us a voicemail: 915-996-1699 Ou...

It's the last chapter of Chamber of Secrets! Erin and Adri discuss how Dobby is a slave and how Hogwarts is basically operated by slaves at the mercy of our problematic fave, Dumbledore. Sometimes, we think of slavery as a thing of the past, but it really is still something that happens every single day. In this episode, we talk about a former victim of human trafficking: https://www.nbcdfw.com/ne...

Adri and Erin discuss the politics of consent in Chamber of Secrets, especially when it comes to Tom Riddle's use of Ginny as a vessel for his means. Can Harry also be a non-consenting part of this equation? This episode's current event is brought to you by Katy Perry and her breach of consent with an American Idol contestant: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/suspendedinherjar/2018/03/consent-necessar...

Let's talk about how expectations set rules, policy, and temper behaviors. We see how expectations touch everyone from Harry to Professor Lockhart. The politics of expectations made us think about the Donald Trump/Kim Jong Un talks: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/theworldpost/wp/2018/03/16/trump-kim-meeting/?utm_term=.ab8e8b2f585a Find us online: www.acciopolitics.com Twitter: @acciopolitics...

This week, we're talking about Magical Creatures in the Harry Potter universe. How are they seen by wizards? How do they see wizards? This politic made us think about how we treat animals in America, and how lobbyists can regulate animal cruelty: https://theintercept.com/2018/03/02/consumers-are-revolting-against-animal-cruelty-so-the-poultry-industry-is-lobbying-for-laws-to-force-stores-to-sell-t...

What is persecution really about? Can just about anyone be persecuted? Are we swept away by mob mentality? Join us as we untangle pure blood wizards in the wizarding world and how they relate to white people feeling persecuted in Trump's America: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/mar/01/how-americas-identity-politics-went-from-inclusion-to-division Find us online: www.acciopolitics.com Twit...

Adri and Erin talk about exposition and how controlling the narrative is inherently a political act (for better or worse) in chapter 13 "The Very Secret Diary" of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. This episode's theme made us think about Jared Kushner and his security clearance narrative: https://www.politico.com/story/2018/02/22/white-house-security-clearance-porter-kushner...

We're back! On this episode, we talk about the myriad ways impersonation both benefits and hurts the trio (and how there are no perfect victims) in chapter 12 "The Polyjuice Potion" of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. This episode's theme made us think about Rachel Dolezal and her continued attempts at impersonating for her benefit: http://www.newsweek.com/rachel-dolezal-se...

This week's episode is all about language. Erin and Adri discuss the politics of language prejudice in chapter 11 "The Dueling Club" of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. Harry is a victim of gossip, Adri feels called out because she loves gossip, and Erin makes some great points about how we think about language. Our current event comes from Canada: http://www.thesuburban.co...

Can institutions hurt our bodies? On this week's episode, Adri and Erin discuss the politics of bodily harm in chapter 10 "The Rogue Bludger" of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. Poor Colin gets petrified (plus his camera gets fried), Harry's arm gets deboned, and Adri stumbles through the chapter summary. We also talk about how bodily harm is seen in current events: https:/...

How are threats used for political gain? On this week's episode, Adri and Erin discuss the politics of threats and how these affect characters in chapter 9 "The Writing on the Wall" of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. We also talk about threats in context to the "fake news" movement: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-42792611 Find us online: www.acciopolitics.com Twit...

How do we choose who and what we remember in our cultural spaces? Who gets invited to places of memories and who gets excluded? This week, we discuss the politics of remembrance in chapter 8 "The Deathday Party" of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. We also talk about remembrance in the context of American history and politics: http://www.cnn.com/2018/01/15/us/mlk-day-latest/...

It's really hard not to draw comparisons between Draco Malfoy's utterance of the word "mudblood" and the racial politics of the United States. This week, we discuss the politics of magical purity in chapter 7 "Mudbloods and Murmurs" of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. We also discuss a conviction of a neo-nazi leader in Florida and how whiteness is a shield against conseque...

Another week, another politic. This week, we discuss the politics of narcissism (in a world where that doesn't exist in politics, right?, RIGHT?!) in chapter 6, "Gilderoy Lockhart" of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. We discuss how narcissism rules our American political climate: http://theweek.com/articles/746102/americas-warped-narcissism-world-stage Erin makes some sound...

Erin and Adri discuss the politics of borders, in chapter 5 "The Whomping Willow" of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. What are borders, really? Borders as a geographical and oftentimes imaginary marker of place, legal and illegal border crossing, and how you can illegally cross borders even if you do belong somewhere. We discuss how borders can dictate what we can do with o...

Happy Holidays, everyone! We're bringing you a short and sweet episode discussing the holidays, Adri taking her dogs to see Santa Claus, Erin's holiday plans, and the framework we use when we're discussing Christmas at Hogwarts. Find us online: www.acciopolitics.com Twitter: @acciopolitics Instagram: @acciopolitics Facebook: www.facebook.com/acciopolitics Leave us a voicemail: 915-996-1699 Our the...

Adri and Erin discuss the politics of fame in Chapter 4, "Flourish and Blotts" of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. We talk about the tension between fame and infamy and how we see this in the chapter and the series as a whole. We discuss Kim Kardashian's Paris robbery and Omarosa's White House exit: https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2016/10/solving-kim-kardashian-west-paris-...

Adri and Erin discuss the politics of poverty in Chapter 3, "The Burrow," of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. We talk about gnomes, scorpions, house elves, and Molly Weasly, amongst other things. We discuss some tweets and the following article: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/how-poverty-can-follow-children-into-adulthood/ Find us online: www.acciopolitics.com T...

Adri and Erin discuss the statements made by David Yates and J.K. Rowling regarding Johnny Depp's continued involvement in the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them franchise. We dissect these statements, are generally disgusted with the state of Hollywood (AND THE WORLD), and Adri reveals just how much time of her life has been spent in analyzing celebrity gossip. Also, your heroes can block yo...

Adri and Erin discuss the politics of good intentions in Chapter 2, "Dobby's Warning," of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. We also discuss Dobby and his enslavement, context when it comes to good intentions, and invisible labor. We discuss the following article: http://www.ny1.com/news/2017/11/20/emergency-food-providers-struggling-to-feed-nyers--report-finds.html Find us o...

On the first episode season 2 of Accio Politics, Adri and Erin discuss the politics of child rearing on chapter 1, "The Worst Birthday," of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. Adri argues about how the Dursleys deny Harry his personhood, while Erin counters that birthdays are about policing and materialism. We discuss the following article regarding the politics of child reari...

Adri and Erin discuss what makes a good movie adaptation; is it when the script adheres to the book in a strict manner, or is there more to it? We make cases for good and bad casting choices, have a few problems with some politics in the movie, and reminisce about our foundational crush on one Oliver Wood. Today's featured tweet comes from Meg. Find us online: Our website: www.acciopolitics.com Tw...

Along with special guest Dr. Angel Matos, PhD, Erin and Adri discuss the politics of identity in  Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling. We talk about how identity is an invisible force that can manifest itself on your body, much like Harry's magic begins manifesting itself before he knows he's a wizard, Hogwarts houses, jock identity, and much more. We'll discuss the movie adaptat...

Adri and Erin discuss the difference between power and empowerment in chapter 17,  "The Man with Two Faces" of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling. This episode's featured voicemail comes from Nat. Episode 18 will discuss the politics of identity  in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling with special guest Dr. Angel Matos. Find us online: Our website: www.acciopol...