Some lives exist only in files, headlines, or accusations. How do paperwork, policing, and media narratives quietly decide who belongs? What does democracy look like from below? Drawing on the book The Many Lives of Syeda X, this talk explores how journalism can recover erased histories, expose routine violence, and hold power to account. It examines media influence, gendered surveillance, majoritarian politics, and the slow erosion of democratic rights in contemporary South Asia. The talk also highlights the struggles of urban poor workers, precarious labor, and income inequality, showing how economic marginalization intersects with political and social exclusion. It will reflect on the hidden struggles and the everyday realities of citizens caught in the machinery of the modern state, amid shrinking media freedom and democratic backsliding.

Bunche 10383 4:00 PM