The Raah Podcast

While it is common to speak of the COVID-19 pandemic as existing only in the past-tense, the world we live in is not post-pandemic. The virus continues to spread throughout our communities, leaving material effects that have gone unacknowledged and unaddressed. This episode of the Raah Podcast interviews key members of COVID Action Montreal, a local mask bloc and mutual aid network aiming to pick up some of the pieces dropped by public health, and working to build the social infrastructure for a healthier future.RESOURCESCOVID Hazard Index (Wastewater modelling from UofT Moriarty Lab; province-specific data on pgs3-6)“What’s Up With COVID And What Can We Do About It in 2026?” (Zine by Hazel Newlevant)“Reasons to Wear a Mask in 2026” (Zine)“The Pandemic Never Ended. We Only Pretended It Did” (recent article)“Masking as a Revolutionary Act” (podcast episode)“Your Vascular System and COVID” (article from Heart and Stroke Foundation)Ma, Yirui, et al. “Long-Term Consequences of Asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 Infection: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.” International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, vol. 20, no. 2, no. 2, Jan. 2023, p. 1613. www.mdpi.com, https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20021613.Ruf, Wolfram. “Immune Damage in Long Covid.” Science, vol. 383, no. 6680, Jan. 2024, pp. 262–63. DOI.org (Crossref), https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adn1077.Scardua-Silva, Lucas, et al. “Microstructural Brain Abnormalities, Fatigue, and Cognitive Dysfunction after Mild COVID-19.” Scientific Reports, vol. 14, no. 1, Jan. 2024, p. 1758. DOI.org (Crossref), https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-52005-7. CREDITSProduced and Edited by: Jared W. AronoffMusic by: Stefan ChristoffExecutive Producer: Ishita Tiwary

Produced by Stefan ChristoffMixed and edited by Joseph SannicandroThis special edition of the RAAH Podcast highlights audio from a walking tour in the spring of 2024 that took place in the Chabanel district in Montréal, a key centre of both the textile industry in the city and labour organizing of immigrant textile workers. This event took place in collaboration with the Immigrant Workers Centre (IWC).The walking tour included a gathering with cultural performances, including works by musician Philippe Battikha and sound artist Martín Rodríguez. From the walking tour we hear from mural artist Hélène Guay [Helenka (LNK)] who presented a public mural project in the Chabanel district painted to honour Italian women immigrant workers. Also in this podcast we hear key excerpts of oral history interviews co-facilitated by Stefan Christoff and Lauren Laframboise. The interview excerpts include the voices of Joey Calugay, Mostafa Henaway, Yumna Siddiqi and Bita Mary Eslami, who have all been deeply involved in the IWC and particularly the campaign to support garment sector workers in Chabanel district who were unjustly dismissed by garment manufacturer Lamour. The original long format interview series is available through the Deindustrialization and the Politics of Our Time portal here.The official podcast of the Raah Lab of Media and Migration, based out of Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec.

In October of 2024, the Raah Lab hosted a two-day event gathering scholars, artists, and community organizers for a series of presentations. Discussing what possibilities and frictions emerge at the intersections of academia and activism, this workshop is captured here as the many speakers and panels are placed into conversation with each other.Produced by: Ishita TiwaryRecording and Editing: Jared AronoffMusic by: Stefan ChristoffThe official podcast of the Raah Lab of Media and Migration, based out of Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec.