NOlympians: Inside the Fight Against Capitalist Mega-Sports in Los
Angeles, Tokyo and Beyond (Fernwood Publishing) NOlympians: Inside the
Fight Against Capitalist Mega-Sports in Los Angeles, Tokyo and Beyond
investigates the intersection of the global rise of anti-Olympics
activism and the declining popularity of hosting of the Games. The
Olympics were once buoyed by myths of luminous prosperity and upticks
in tourism and jobs, but in recent years these assurances have been
debunked. Now more than ever, it’s clear that the Olympics have
transmogrified into a political-economic juggernaut that arrives with
displacement, expanded policing, and anti-democratic backroom deals.
Jules Boykoff – a former professional soccer player who represented
the US Olympic soccer team – zooms in on Los Angeles, where the
Democratic Socialists of America have launched the NOlympics LA
campaign ahead of the 2028 Summer Games. Boykoff shows how DSA-LA’s
anti-Olympics activism fits with the resurgence of socialism in the US
and beyond. Boykoff’s research, based on more than 100 interviews
with anti-Olympics activists, personal experiences at protests in Los
Angeles, Rio de Janeiro, London, and Tokyo, academic research, mass-
and alternative-media coverage, and Olympic archives, is the backbone
for this story of activists fighting against the odds and embracing
the transformative politics of democratic socialism. Jules Boykoff is
the author of four books on the Olympic Games and two on the
suppression of political dissent in the United States. His writing has
appeared in places like New Left Review, the Guardian, the Nation, the
New York Times, NBC Think, and the Los Angeles Times. He teaches
political science at Pacific University in Oregon. Advanced Praise:
“The Olympic City, like so much of capitalist speculation, rests on
a lie, that of shared prosperity. Through a meticulous analysis of
NOlympics activism, this vitally important and urgently needed book
demonstrates how social movements are exposing this lie and
challenging the structures of displacement and policing that accompany
the Games. Essential reading, NOlympians is a hopeful vision of how
transnational resistance can build democratic urban futures.” —
Ananya Roy, UCLA “NOlympians is a timely reminder that the Olympics
must end. Powerfully and precisely, Jules Boykoff introduces us to
critical voices on both sides of the Pacific who are questioning the
value of the capitalist mega-event. These voices are telling us that
we no longer need the Olympics. This important book inspires us to
listen.” — Hiroki Ogasawara, Kobe University, Japan “Jules
Boykoff is a leading voice on the politics of mega-sporting events. In
NOlympians, Boykoff brings us the voices of activists on the ground
who are leading an inspiring fight against the Games, ultimately
showing the power and possibilities of grassroots resistance in the
face rampant and corrosive capitalism.” — Amira Rose Davis, Penn
State University
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31/05/2020 Last update