Abdul Malik aka @SocialistRaptor (a dope Twitter handle & a great follow btw) joins Redspin Sports' founder Nathaniel (or Nate -it's whatever) Wallace @NateWallace9, to riff on everything from similarities and differences in sporting culture in the U.S. and Canada, his work as a labor/environmental/indigenous rights activist in "oil country" of Edmonton, Alberta (aka "Canada's Texas"), lots of hoops, football (and the differences in the U.S. and Canadian versions of the game) hockey, and of course the central role of sport in the broader labor struggle against neoliberalism's hegemony (albeit with growing cracks in the armor) across North America. We hit on a lot, but expect a Part II because there's much more I regret not getting to this time around.

Along with his political and environmental activism, Abdul Malik, is currently new media producer for the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE). Abdul's a native of Toronto, Ontario who moved to what is in many ways Canada's "wild west" (to make an historical U.S, pop cultural reference) of Edmonton, Alberta. Unfortunately, "wild west" allusion is still an apt one given the predominance of far-right conservative politics in Canada's Alberta Province. Hence why the power of oil and identity's seemingly inseparable marriage is another topic we definitely hit on in the pod.

He is an often published writer and investigative journalist whose work is often featured in Jacobin, Canadian Dimension, and many other progressive media platforms and publications.

Checkout a couple recent pieces Abdul's had published just this past week.

https://www.jacobinmag.com/2020/12/luxury-sneaker-markets-capitalist-nikes-resale

https://canadiandimension.com/articles/view/from-winnipeg-to-tokyo-sports-capitalism-and-the-surveillance-state

This CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) article on the Edmonton-based Hate Free YEG, the radical anti-racist/indigenous rights organization he co-founded, and the Edmonton rally they organized against racism in the city. Abdul is quoted extensively in the article, as are quotes from the far-right Soldiers of Odin (yeah, that Odin from Norse Mythology) white supremacists who counter-protested Hate Free YEG's action.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/hate-free-yeg-pep-rally-1.4976412

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This episode was recorded on Friday, December 11th, 2020.

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